Foggy Morning Moose Face-Off: In Case You Missed It

After the U.S. Department of the Interior tweeted a photo of two young bull moose testing boundaries, taken last fall at Isle Royale National Park’s Tobin Harbor by Carl TerHaar, it has been favorited and shared hundreds of times. (Copyright © photo by Carl TerHaar, used by Patch with permission)

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Photographer Carl TerHaar had his head in the clouds the day he heard the grunt, muffled in the thick fog that had blanketed Isle Royale National Park’s Tobin Harbor, that led him to the scene in the “foggy morning face-off” photo that has become a social media sensation.

He had been lured to the docks of the Rock Harbor Lodge that mid-September morning by the image of clouds reflected on the calm waters as the fog burned off the harbor. The call of the moose was more urgent, though, and he abandoned the still-life for a photograph that epitomizes the life cycle in one the last remaining sections of unspoiled Michigan wilderness.

“The moose are in rut then and I could hear a bull grunting on the other side of the harbor, but I couldn’t see him through the fog,” TerHaar told Patch in an email interview. “A short time later, I looked up and could make him out swimming toward my side but going farther down the shore.”

TerHaar hiked down the trail that runs parallel to the shore to get a closer look. He lost sight of the moose after about a quarter of a mile, then cut over to a small point of land that had been blocking his view to the east. Success: There they were – not just one moose, but two.

The two young males acknowledged then just as quickly dismissed him. The matter between them was more pressing.

“They looked up briefly to see me and turned their attention back to each other,” TerHaar worte. “These are two young bulls, hardly ready for prime time, but still learning what this time of year is all about for a moose.

“They tested each other, put their heads down some and locked antlers, did some pushing and shoving, but nothing serious, chased each other around in the shallow water. I watched them and shot a bunch of photos for a few minutes before leaving them alone.”

» See what happened during the “Foggy Morning Face-Off” on Carl TerHaar’s website.

TerHarr sells some photos and also assembles some of the best in the 2016 Isle Royale calendar, which is available at the park. A photo from the “Foggy Morning Face-Off” series graces the cover. He captured the image with a Canon 40D, using a wide angle zoom lens.

Retired from the National Park Service and Michigan Department of Natural Resources, TerHaar now spends his summers as a boat captain for the ferry service from Rock Harbor Lodge – one of the few places on the pristine island off Lake Superior that is influenced by humans. It’s only accessible by ferry – six hours from Cooper Harbor in Houghton, and even longer from Grand Portage, MN.

“You don’t have to go far and you’re soon in the wilderness, either on land, or on the water,” TerHaar said.

An archipelago surrounded by more than 400 smaller islands, the 45-mile long, 9-mile wide island is closed to wheeled vehicles and is “probably one of the most intact ecosystems in Michigan,” according to the state Department of Natural Resources.

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TerHaar said he’s drawn especially to the Lake Superior coastline.

“I’ve always been fascinated by water, so all the Lake Superior shoreline really appeals to my eye,” he said. “I find I take few photos that don’t include water in them, so in that way, I’m stuck in a rut.:

TerHaar fell in love with Isle Royale years ago, and relishes returning for the summer tourism season. The park opens the first week in June and closes in the first week in September.

“Isle Royale may not have the majestic scenery that some of the western parks do, but it’s a more subtle beauty,” he said. “It is the least visited national park in the lower 48 states because it’s so hard to get to, but it also has a very high return rate with many people returning multiple times.”

Because of the long ferry trip, the park isn’t the kind of place visitors drop into on a whim.

“The average length of stay is something like four days compared to a few hours at many parks,” TerHaar said. “So, it’s not just my opinion, but a lot of others agree that it is a pretty special place.”