I had a very interesting experience yesterday morning while partridge hunting. I have one trail that goes back through the bush for about 3 kilometres, and ends at a lake. A steep hill goes down to the lake, and I always go down tot he shore to have a look. Suddenly, I heard a heck of a ruckus on the other shore, which was only about 50 yards across. A cow moose came bolting out of the bush and jumped in the lake. A bull in pursuit jumped in too. The cow was setting new records for speed swimming, but the bull was catching up, and he even tried to mount her while they were swimming.
Anyway, it was a pretty good episode of Nature TV, until the cow saw me. She made a beeline for me, like I was the only thing that could save her. I watched in some trepidation, and then began waving my arms and shouting to try to dissuade the thousands of pounds of frantic and horny moose that was headed directly of me. When they got to within 20 feet, I figured it was time to up the ante, I didn't want to act as a couple's therapist and get squashed in the process, so I shot my 20 gauge a few feet above their heads. This had the desired effect, and they turned around and headed for the far shore. Before they even hit the opposite side, I heard another freight train coming though the bush on the other side of the pond. Another very large bull stepped out of the bush.
He was a bit more pensive, but clearly he had been in the chase too, and he needed a drink. After sucking up a gallon of water, he looked across at me, jumped in the water and headed my way. I had just about enough of bush romance by this time, and headed back up the trail. The walk back was considerably faster than the walk in. Of course, all this action is in a WMU that I don't have a tag in, so I will once again probably be hunting for the humane society this year.
