If you spend any time in the northern woods, you already know that moose are basically 1,000-pound horses with big paddle spikes on their heads and, sometimes, a terrible temper. They are the largest members of the deer family, routinely tipping the scales at over 1,000 pounds and standing up to seven feet tall at the shoulder.
Despite being herbivores that spend their days casually munching on twigs and aquatic plants, moose are incredibly dangerous wild animals. In fact, more humans are injured by moose than bears and wolves combined every year. During the fall rut, bulls get hopped up on testosterone and will fight a parked car if it looks at them funny. In the spring, cows are hyper-protective of their calves and will absolutely stomp a predator—or in this case, a snowmobiler—into the dirt. They can run 35 mph, swim effortlessly across massive lakes, and possess a level of territorial aggression that can make a grizzly bear look downright reasonable.
One of the reasons they can be so dangerous is that they don’t see very well; rather than try to figure out what they’re looking at, they’d just as soon charge and ask questions later. They also tend to use trails and plowed roads for travel, which means they’re much more likely to run into humans in the dead of winter. And when snow is deep and food is scarce, their temper can be even shorter.
Now, you might think those paddles are their weapon of choice—and getting railroaded by one certainly isn’t gonna go well for you—but the kick of an angry cow can be devastating. Moose can kick with enough force to break bones, and they’ll think nothing of tap-dancing on your head if they can get you on the ground (which isn’t too hard).
Conflicts With Snowmobiles
If you ride a sled in moose country, you are eventually going to run into one, and the reason comes down to basic winter survival. Trudging through four feet of fresh powder requires a massive amount of energy, so moose prefer to travel on the exact same hard-packed, groomed trails that snowmobilers use.
When you round a blind corner and come face-to-face with a massive bull, the situation can turn deadly in a matter of seconds… and that’s primarily due to a few simple reasons. A moose is not going to step off the packed trail into chest-deep powder just to let you pass. They instantly feel trapped, and a cornered moose would rather go through you every time. But the biggest mistake snowmobilers make is assuming the engine will scare the animal away. To a territorial moose, revving your sled sounds like a direct challenge.
If you encounter a moose on the trail, do not inch forward and do not rev your engine. Stop your sled, back up slowly, and give them all the time they need to leave on their own terms. Typically, a moose will choose the “flight” option in the fight-or-flight response. They’d generally much rather avoid confrontation, though they will absolutely charge without much thought if they feel immediately threatened.
That’s what happened in this video out of Canada when some snowmobilers spotted a moose on the trail they were riding on. One of them idiotically decided to get off his sled and approach the moose, presumably to pet the beast. That ended up easily being the guy’s worst decision of the day, and very likely, his life.
It didn’t take long for the moose to go into self-defense mode. In the blink of an eye, the massive animal had the man knocked right off his feet in the snow, and as mentioned above, that’s NOT good. The man tried to get up, but not before the moose trotted over and stomped him out good.
The snowmobiler exhausted all of his options attempting to get away, but nothing could put distance between himself and the towering moose (not even his friends yelling).
He even started crawling through the snow after getting pelted with relentless hoof kicks, though that only set him up for a nasty, gruesome injury. Unfortunately, his desperate escape led to one of his legs being exposed on its own, and the moose zeroed in on it. In one quick extension of the moose’s back leg, the man’s leg was snapped right around the knee, and the person filming quickly pulled the camera away afterward.
The video isn’t for the faint of heart, but if you’re sledding in moose country, take notes:
