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| True Love! (U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service) |
Because Alaska has had an unseasonably warm winter this year, avalanches are a distinct possibility
This danger was on the minds of three snowmobilers who were recently out riding “about 55 miles northeast of Anchorage.”
Sure enough, they came upon an avalanche in a place where ski tracks and moose tracks had been just an hour before.
Wondering whether a skier might be trapped beneath the snow, the snowmobilers scanned the area. The Associated Press reported that one of the men spotted “something brown moving in the hard-packed snow of the debris
field.”
Thinking that this might be a skier’s arm, the snowmobilers rushed to help. Two began digging, while the third kept a lookout for other signs of danger.
Pretty soon, ears and a snout began surfacing. Since skiers have ears but no snouts, it soon became apparent that the trapped “skier” was indeed a moose.
This story has a happy ending. The moose was freed, and without so much as a “Thank you!” romped off into the wilderness.
Ojibwe and Cree stories also tell us that “moose are symbols of endurance and survival.” How lovely that this particular animal became part of that legacy (with a little, make that a lot, of help from some friendly humans).
Resources
http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/offbeat/3-men-see-snout-free-moose-buried-in-avalanche/ar-BBhs598
http://www.native-languages.org/legends-moose.htm
Copyright February 5, 2015 by Linda Van Slyke All Rights Reserved
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