The Moose's Head is Up
Can You Get one Where the Hoose Has Its Head Up?
As I began my quest in photography, one of my first and favorite RMNP pictures was of the continental divide with Hallett’s Peak predominate, reflecting in Sprague Lake. It is one of the iconic RMNP images guests seek to capture as they visit the park. I’ve taken the photo hundreds of times.
That initial image was blown up and hung warmly in our bedroom for many years. I was proud to be a photographer that could capture such a beautiful image.
Then my wife, Carolyn, decided to redecorate, but she warmly explained that the Sprague Lake reflection would stay in its place of honor. It would remain on the wall above our aspen frame bed. I was delighted.
Then the new bedspread arrived. Adorned with bear, elk, and moose, it gave a warm, mountain home feel. As I stood admiring it, Carolyn said, “You know what would make this perfect?” I was afraid to answer. She pointed at the Sprague Lake reflection saying, “If we had that same picture with a moose in the lake.”
That spring I went to Sprague Lake many mornings, hoping to capture a dynamic morning image, sun brightening the snow covered mountain, and a moose in the lake. But the moose were not cooperating until one bright morning.
It was 5:00 AM and the sun was just touching Hallett’s Peak when I arrived. A small bull moose stood in the middle of the lake, and I rushed around the trail to the dock platform. There, I captured the image. Sprague Lake, the continental divide, a golden sunrise, and a moose in the water feeding with its head submerged.
I returned home excited. “I got it,” I told her, opening the screen on my camera. I showed her the image, and she gasped at the beauty. “That’s magnificent,” she exclaimed. “Now can you get a picture where the moose has its head up?” (Yes, this is my wonderful life.) Thus, our decor above the bed remained mooseless.
The next year at the end of May 2021, I convinced her to join me on an adventure to Yellowstone and the Tetons. It was a fun trip of exploration and photography, and the day we arrived at the Tetons, I said, “Wouldn’t it be incredible if we saw the legendary grizzly 399 and her yearling quads?”
As we approached the dam at Jackson Lake, across the Snake River in a meadow along the shoreline, I saw five dark spots. “Oh my gosh,” I pointed, “is that 399?” As we drove down to the river, it became apparent it was the legend and her four cubs. A hundred or more photographers lined the river’s edge on the opposite side from mother bear 399.
For an hour, I captured images of the bear family. She was a beautiful grizzly, an amazing mother, and iconic with her history in the Yellowstone eco-system. I was both thrilled and thankful for what I was capturing.
When we returned home, I enlarged a beautiful shot of the four cubs in a line, 399 turning back to them as if saying, “Okay kids, lets go.” Carolyn loved it so much, it went above the bed, the bears matching her bedspread and giving a fresh, wildlife impression of the room.
Flash forward to May 2 of this year. We had our first RMNPhotographer Tour of the season. Arriving at Sprague Lake about 3:30 pm, as I walked explaining the history of the lake, one of our guests pointed. A cow moose was entering the lake. Stopping, we watched as she moved into the middle where the water was belly high on her pregnant frame.
Moving on around the lake to face the continental divide, I checked the settings on my camera, focused on the moose, and looked through the viewfinder. I realized, even with a slight breeze dimming the reflection, it was a classic image representing RMNP. I waited for the cow moose to lift her head, and when she did, I captured the image.
Returning home, I was both excited and proud. “Honey,” I said, “I got your picture.” Pulling it up on my camera, her eyes got big. “That’s a beautiful shot. I love it. And the moose’s head is up. Where are you going to put it?” I looked at her confused, answering, “Above our bed?” She turned serious, saying, “Oh, I’m not giving up 399 and the cubs.”
I smiled, gave her a hug, and said, “How about above the bed in the guest bedroom?”
“Perfect,” she answered. “But I’ll have to get a moose bedspread.”
