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Colorado Rockies: Moose, poison oak?


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Home Forums Campfire Member Trip Reports Colorado Rockies: Moose, poison oak?

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  • #1239712
    John Brown
    Spectator

    @johnbrown2005

    Locale: Portland, OR

    Went for a great hike outside Denver yesterday. Two questions:

    1) Is this poison oak? Leaves were about 1 inch long. Sure hope not.

    poison oak

    2) Saw a moose. Are these native to Colorado? Is it possible this one was being farmed/ranched?

    moose

    Regards!

    #1531294
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    "1) Is this poison oak? Leaves were about 1 inch long. Sure hope not."

    Hi John,

    You can relax; That's definitely not poison oak. Poison oak leaves look almost exactly like regular oak leaves on a bush that can be anywhere from 1-3' high. Also, the leaves are sort of glossy.

    #1531295
    Dondo .
    BPL Member

    @dondo

    Locale: Colorado Rockies

    We've had moose in Colorado for the past thirty years. They were introduced in North Park and did so well that some were transplanted to the Lake City area. More recently, they've been introduced to Grand Mesa. A few years ago I had a run in with a moose near Monarch Lake, so I tend to give them a wide berth this time of year. Where did you see your moose?

    #1531297
    John Brown
    Spectator

    @johnbrown2005

    Locale: Portland, OR

    We were on the Burning Bear Creek Trail, near the 285 and the town of Grant…

    #1531300
    Dondo .
    BPL Member

    @dondo

    Locale: Colorado Rockies

    Cool! I've never seen moose in that area before. Sounds like they are doing well.

    #1531307
    Mary D
    BPL Member

    @hikinggranny

    Locale: Gateway to Columbia River Gorge

    The plant is wild strawberry. Very tasty berries in season!

    The animal really is a moose. Not native to Colorado, but transplanted. I was really surprised to find this out when I went back for a visit last year. However, it appears that moose are generally moving south on their own. Out here in the Northwest, there have been quite a few sightings in the Washington Cascades, farther south every year. No doubt some will one day sneak across the Columbia River and make it to Oregon.

    #1531317
    Dean F.
    BPL Member

    @acrosome

    Locale: Back in the Front Range

    The moment I saw it I thought the same thing about the plant- wild strawberry. It looks like it is on a runner, not a twig, and the coloration really looks like it to me.

    There are other berries that I have trouble telling from strawberry (if the berries aren't present), but that is NOT poison ivy or poison oak.

    #1531325
    Joe Kuster
    BPL Member

    @slacklinejoe

    Locale: Flatirons

    As the others have said, yep, we have moose in Colorado. They seem to be making a come back.

    I've seen one so far in a marsh in Rocky Mountain National Park and another in the Wilderness Peaks area around a river (definately not an Elk, I found myself in closer proximity than I wanted).

    #1531560
    Todd Forbes
    Member

    @tf

    I saw a Moose (cow) on a winter trip in Rocky Mountain National Park a few years ago – they are massive! I had no idea that they were not native to Colorado. One guy on this board was in the Weimanuche Wilderness Area last week and emailed me that he saw 3 including a mother & calf.

    I hear they can have a rather nasty disposition at times and you need to be careful around them.

    #1532139
    Chris Harvey
    Member

    @cch

    I've seen moose in the Rawah Wilderness area, northeast of Walcott and tracks north of Silverthorne in the Eagle's Nest Wilderness. Walden is supposed to be a prime area if you want to see them. We've even had a few wander into Denver area suburbs at times. They will cover a lot of ground in their wanderings but are frequently just passing through. Before they were introduced to Grand Mesa I remember one wandering down by Grand Junction (not very "moosey" country at all) that probably came from Utah. Here is some info from the Colorado DOW:

    http://wildlife.state.co.us/WildlifeSpecies/Profiles/Mammals/Moose.htm

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