just moosing around...

 a group gathered at the Glen Alps trailhead for a stroll down powerline looking for moose.  the moose did not disappoint.  the picture below is by Sandra.  tossed it in as it's super cute i think and got everyone in.  thanks Sandra.

 everyone turned back before the bridge except Gretchen and I.  thanks to Gretchen for tagging along as we wandered over semi frozen bogs.  our feet stayed dry though there were some close calls and good luck.  it was actually pretty dang cold out there.  i wasn't ready to put on a winter jacket yet, but the temps was 30F in the parking lot and for sure more chilly before we got out of there.  it was shady in the pass.

 the guys who turned back before us counted 17 moose, we didn't count so i have no idea.

 these are from north bivuoac..then i'll be back to moose.

 the moose collect in powerline every fall for the rut.  a bit of a singles club for moose...not as much activity as we walked in but on the way out the numbers had increased..it must have been ladies night.  that valley must get nuts at closing time!!

 loved this one of Blossom

 Blossom was the lone dog out there today.  not sure if everyone would be thrilled i brought her, but mostly you see the moose in the valley as you walk the main trail. Blossom is very chill anyway.  i just know my dog.

 when G and i walked out closer in to the moose lair  she showed no interest in them and they showed no interest in her.  Blossom was actually more interested in the many blueberries that remained on the bush...especially as we were off trail and over 2 miles back so not picked over.  as we stool watching moose, she was happily munching blueberries.  many dogs love those things.

 i thought the mountain above with the snow looked a bit like a walrus with the snow being the tusks. clearly i've spent way too much time thinking about walrus.

 did some WARIS work this morning and then headed outside to do some yardwork.  i'm pretty beat at this time between the yardwork and the walking.

 these moose above were on the side of the road as i drove back from the Monday walk yesterday.

 these are back to powerline moose.

 just need to take deep breath and email the commentary in.  who knows if it will get published or not, but you don't know unless you send it in.  also filled out papers to get our business license.  you have to have that even as a non-profit...like if you sell shirts or other items.  the stickers are gifts for donating over $20.  so if you want a sticker send us a donation with your address and we will get you a sticker. Thanks to all who have donated so far.  for now, it's going into costs...which have mostly been paid out of my pocket so far.

 you could see 3-4 moose in the distance, a new group showed up in different areas.

 took me a long time to reheat after i got back home.  never understood that phrase "chilled to the bone".  this never happens in my home state of CA.

 one misquoted phrase i've been hearing a lot with this election crap is "walk the walk and talk the talk" which has been altered to a very annoying "walk the talk". i may be the only one who gets annoyed by these changes.  another now common thing to say that i find annoying is "grow our business" or some similar mix of that.  it's silly.

 Miss Lucy is so adorable.  she is moose obsessed and has been for much of her short life so far.

 her mom was one of our moose spotters.  we moved along slowly scanning for moose.

 ice is starting to form...love ice in all it's forms...so cool.  water is just amazing.  it can be monstrously powerful and destructive and delightfully calming and soothing. water can turn to ice or steam.  it can be rain, hail, sleet or snow.

 happy we got down to the creek side to check out the progress of winter. i'm sure hidden lakes above is getting a good ice sheet on top of the tarns.

 3 bags of leaves today and the deck furniture is stored in the shed.  it was another beautiful day out there so great to be able to be outside for so many hours of it.

 last night i watched a really good movie from netflix..."saving mr banks".  about the making of Mary Poppins...a Disney classic.  the woman who wrote the original books was less than enthusiastic about the happy place that Disney had created and the plans he had for her books.  eventually he won her over and the movie was made in Disney style and was wildly successful.

 we were walking towards this guy and then could no longer find him.  amazing how easily these large beasts can be hidden in plain view.

 i got in closer and then Bam...there he was.  i'd seen him lay down from the other side of these trees but then we could no longer see him.  we were probably around 50 feet from him here....give or take.  the moose are pretty focused on their task so it's easy to kind of sneak up on them.

 we ran into many more moose as we headed back to our cars.  apparently there had also been a black bear near the trail.  we didn't see the bear nor did the friends who went back early.

 more moose which were pretty close to trail. one crossed the trail in front of us...i think it was this guy below and then we watched him disappear into the brush soon after crossing.

 more moose on the other side of the trail.  in the evening they were everywhere.

 there were some nice racks out there.  no hunting so safe territory for them  it's become a well known place in town to hang out and watch.  no matter how many moose i see, they still make me smile and i always pull the camera out.

 fun to just watch them as well.

 my phone was ringing today and turned out to not be election related.  it was someone who had gotten our mailing and was calling to get more information about what is happening with round island.  so hopefully, this mailing will turn out to be fruitful.  when i checked the po box today there were only 5 returned envelopes which isn't too bad. i'm sure there will be more but that isn't bad.  i'll scratch those names off the list so we can have this as a resource for later.

 a few from the Monday walk.  didn't take too many pics. below is Manny.

 i was in the back all day...wasn't Rio's fault...she wasn't there.  i blame it on being out of shape, having a bum knee and the dang shoe laces that won't stay tied.

 back to today...

 the mountains look so pretty with that dusting of snow. the trail was mostly covered with snow it seemed as well.  it's here to stay.

 lots of time spent looking over the valley looking for the moose.

 thought this was a cute shot...some wonderful folks up here in Alaska!

 everyone is scanning for moose.

 read a blip today online that the poor nurse in France that got ebola and is sick...apparently they are putting her dog to sleep.  there is a lot of paranoia about this disease and how it is spread.  i would be devastated if someone did that while i lay fighting for my life in a hospital bed...way to knock off a persons will to live.  take out their pets so they have nothing to come home to.  if that is true it is awful.  dogs haven't been shown to get ebola nor have they been shown to transmit the virus.

 these are just some scenery shots from today.  we were in the shade so not the most spectacular photo ops.

 just a fun day with friends moose spotting.

 fall is mixed with winter....soon to be taken over.

 the view as i came down the hill from the trailhead.  this road can be a wee bit scary coming down in the winter.  i'm a wimpy winter driver anyway.

thankful for...1.  my overall health and ability to be outside and enjoy beautiful days like today 2.  the crunch of the fall leaves, raking and picking them up.  3.  people who are about walrus as much as i do.  this world is a better place for each different plant and animal that exists here.