This week’s blog: Too close for comfort! 😬😏
The summer season has officially started, and we had our first safari June 1th. And multiple times the first week, we came very close to muskox. Now, before I tell you more about this, some background information.
The muskox tend to be in different areas depending on the season. During winter, most muskox are often higher up in the mountains, mostly at areas where wind blows away the snow, which makes it easier for them to get to their food. But as soon as spring comes around, many of the muskox go down into the valleys, where spring – and food! – comes earlier then higher up in the mountains. And after a long winter with little food, this is of course very important to them.
And down in the valley, that means in the forest. The same area where we start our hikes. Which means that it is common to see muskox right next to or even ON the path, and often we don’t see them until we’re under 50 m away. And when the security distance is 200 m, well you can guess we’re way too close. And that happened on multiple occasions!
Spoiler alert: everyone survived. 😉
June 1th was expected to be a pretty “bad” hike, with lots of rain throughout the day. Not the best motivation for a bunch of 14-year old kids. But after just 45 minutes, we met our first muskox – 50 m away from us, which obviously was very exciting. The animal was walking away from us, so we waited a bit before continuing on the path, carefully looking around for more muskox. And only 5 minutes later, another muskox came running in front of us! He was probably stressed because of us, but we simply had no way of seeing him before. So, we went away from the path to give him his space. Enough adrenaline for the day – or so we thought!
On our way back, we met another muskox, this time only 10 m away. Thankfully the kids listened very well to my instructions (better than some adults, I might add), and we moved in a big circle to pass the animal. Only to meet him again – apparently he had moved as well. And this time he seemed angry! He came a couple of steps towards us and made a snorting sound with his nose, the absolute sign a muskox does NOT like you. So, we very quickly turned around, making our way through the forest back to the other path, thankfully without having any more close encounters with muskox (yes, there exists such a thing as “too many close encounters with muskox”). And if you’re wondering what this experience feels like, there are some scenes in “Jurassic Park” that give the same vibes. 😉
This picture was shot from the E6, and shows how low in the valleys the muskox can be in June. Thanks to my mother for modelling! ;)
A couple of days later, we had another close encounter, and this time I actually ended up shaking with adrenaline. The setting was very different from last time; we were up on the mountain with a good view all around and found a lovely herd with cows and newborn calves (literally the cutest thing you’ll ever see). I moved a good distance away with my group, because everyone knows you’ve got to be even more careful around mothers with babies. We sat down behind a ridge to be out of the wind and enjoyed a lovely lunch. I stood up to look through the telescope, and suddenly heard a noise behind me. And as I turn around, there are 3 muskox - a mother with a newborn and a young female - less than 20 m from us…
My heart stopped and all I could say was: “We have to go, and leave everything behind, calmly, NOW!” Thankfully everyone listened, and we were safe. Most likely these muskox were on their way to the herd, but didn’t see us until they came so close. And being this close to a muskox can already be scary enough, but surprising a mother with calf like this, phew! A real adrenaline rush!
This picture was taken right after we got suprised by the 3 muskox, and the red circle shows where they were when I first saw them. Thanks to our guests who helped make this day amazing!
So, the moral of this story: if you get this close to a muskox, walk away! Give the animals their space. Muskox usually don’t run away if they feel they are in danger, they actually defend themselves. And if you don’t know their body language, it can become dangerous. These last weeks there have been multiple occasions where people (without a guide!) got attacked by muskox because they got way too close, and stayed too close for too long. Respect the animals, and don’t think they are tame just because they are not running away from you.
That’s it for now, but it won’t be long until the next blog, as the season is getting more exciting every day. Soon all our summer employees will be here, and I’ll make sure to introduce them. :)
- Kim