Of Moose and Men

I got up early this morning and went for a drive down to Mt. Engadine. A fellow at the Thursday morning market told me that was a good place to see Moose. He had some awesome pictures and I wanted some too. We've seen several moose up here but they are a bit shy. The ones I found at Engadine, five of them, were not shy at all. They stood by the side of the road positioning themselves in various poses for my camera. I found a bull and cow up a little side road and they were very photo friendly. They are magnificent beasts, however have quite the unfortunate faces.

While on this little trek, I met a fellow from Calgary who makes wildlife movies. He was filming the moose too. He showed me his camera and gear...a $7000 camera with a $1500 lens....I think I'll stick with my sony for now.

We've had a bit more bear activity in the campground. The other morning I went outside and walked to the truck...I must have been half blind or still dozy or something cuz I missed seeing a bear right out in our front yard. Tom was quick on the uptake though and grabbed the camera. He took this picture from inside the fifth wheel...you can see the tops of my flowers out on our little patio. By this time Oso was barking and I'm sure would have taken after the bear if he wasn't leashed so the bear turned tail and ran. We've had campers reporting grizzlies in their sites but the bears are more interested in the nice ripe berries than in eating any campers.

There is a thrift shop in Canmore that is absolutely awesome. If you look through the clothes, you'll find name brand clothes and shoes, some still with the tags on. I have found a few things there that are great for camping....some jeans and hoodies mostly. Yesterday, however, I found three pair of shoes...some river walkers (Solomon), brand new running shoes (Reboks), and a pair of too small Mud Puppies (If I bought three pair, I got them all for half price so buying the mud puppies saved me $15...weird, eh!) Anyway, all three pair cost me $15...I love a bargain!

Today I came down to Canmore looking for leather shoe-laces to make grips for walking sticks. I happened into a shoe store that had an incredible sale on. I treated myself to a pretty pair of Clarks sandals for $30...they are super comfy and cute too...Regular price was $94. I love a bargain...oh, did I say that already!

We have a staff dinner on Sunday at the golf course in Kananaskis. It should be lots of fun. Many of the Campground Managers have already finished or are soon to finish as some of the campgrounds close right after Labour day. Looks like we'll be here till Thanksgiving (Canadian) if the weather is good. If it turns bad, we might close early. The weather has been beautiful lately.

The other day Tom and I went down to a shallow little lake near us where we got pictures of the loons and we sat and soaked up the sun...if I closed my eyes, it almost felt like Mexico. The air is fresh and clean...I love it up here!