Ski Santa Fe is home to a moose
Dec. 20—It was a sight so rare it might have been historic: a moose — yes, a moose — skipping along Hyde Park Road toward the Ski Santa Fe parking lot on Sunday afternoon.
Santa Fe family captures a video of a ten-ton animal that is moving to the tune of “Let It Snow” as they return home from a ski trip.
Adam Ronan, driver of the vehicle as the moose passes by his car, says “That thing’ll get you killed.”
He added, “We couldn’t believe that,” to his wife Theresa Ronan who sent the video clip via The New Mexican. “We didn’t believe there should be any moose in New Mexico.”
The sight was a delight for the couple as well as their young sons Omar and Teddy.
It is rare to see a moose in New Mexico. There have been only about half a dozen in the past decade. However, in October and November several people reported seeing bull mooses in Taos and Mora county.
Could this be the same moose who visited Santa Fe’s mountains northeast?
Perhaps.
“It may not seem beyond the realm of possibility that it is the same one,” stated Darren Vaughan (a spokesperson for the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish). The tracking of the moose that was spotted in Mora, New Mexico in November has shown it moving “gradually South.”
Vaughan said that the Ski Santa Fe encounter with moose could be historic. His department had never seen a moose so far south as Santa Fe.
Vaughan commented, “That’s quite spectacular.”
Jack Dant, Ski Santa Fe mountain manager, said after he had seen the video that “my jaw hit the ground.”
He stated, “I have not in my life of skiing up there and 21 years of work up here seen or heard about a moose.”
Dant stated that the animal looked stressed and scared.
Moose can often be found in the North of the United States. According to Colorado Parks and Wildlife, they were introduced to Southern Colorado in 1978.
Vaughan explained that moose moving south from Colorado are typically younger males searching for new habitats and breeding opportunities.
Vaughan added, “That doesn’t mean we haven’t seen females.” It’s more males than it is females.
Adam Ronan stated that he first saw the moose with his wife around 2 p.m. on Sunday. It was about a quarter mile away when he came up to the ski basin road. He estimated that the animal was moving at 25 mph.
Ronan stated, “I was stunned at how fast he was moving.”
Ronan thought to his self, “Please don’t run on top our car!”
Omar and Teddy enjoy animal shows on TV, and “weren’t afraid at all.” Ronan stated that they thought it was a fun show and that they enjoyed it.
He assumed that someone else would have seen the moose as it reached the ski basin parking lot. There would also be many photos and videos on social media Monday.
He couldn’t locate any.
He said, “With all the people around it, it probably hid.”
Vaughan stated that this was best for the moose as well as any nearby people.
Although moose aren’t a danger to the public, he stated that they can pose a threat to people.