A loner by nature, the eastern bull moose is a completely different animal during the rut, when it wages savage fights for dominance with other males.
In the fall of 1915, 57-year-old Theodore Roosevelt went big game hunting for the last time. It would prove to be one of the strangest hunts he’d ever experienced. TR had been invited by his friend, Dr. Alexander Lambert, to hunt in Quebec, Canada, where they would be based at the Tourilli Club, which offered hunts for eastern bull moose, caribou and beaver. They had two guides, Odilon Genest and Arthur Lirette, who were both familiar with the Lake Croche area. For the hunt, TR had purchased a big game license that allowed him to kill one moose.
On September 19 they headed out in separate canoes and were lucky to bag a large bull by midday. Happy with his trophy, TR and Lirette started back around three o’clock, paddling across the lake to the west bank, where a portage trail led to their camp.
The bank was in full shadow from the tall trees, but as they drew nearer to shore, the men could make out a large shape moving on the embankment. They soon realized it was a bull moose. The men fully expected it to take off as they paddled closer, but the huge animal refused to leave. Instead, it patrolled back and forth along the water’s edge, preventing them from landing.
The men turned their canoes and angled toward another possible landing spot farther up the shore. But once again the bull blocked their way. As the canoes turned, so did the bull, never taking his eyes off the approaching hunters.
Even when the moose was downwind of the men, it stood its ground. Every now and then the hair on its withers would stand up, and he would lower his head and shake his antlers in a threatening manner.
TR realized the bull was not going to let them land. With that in mind, they changed direction in the hopes of finding another place even farther up the shore.
To their amazement, the moose continued to parallel their movement, giving a threatening shake of his head every so often. The men made sure not to venture too close in the shallow water, fearing the moose would charge. So they continued to cruise along the bank, venturing close to shore only where the water was deep.
As a late-afternoon mist crept across the lake, the moose was still patrolling, its breath clearly visible as it marched back and forth. Every now and then it would stomp the ground or thrash a small tree with his antlers. At one point, the bull began wading toward them in the shallows, forcing the men to quickly retreat.
Once again TR and his guide headed back to the portage trail, but as they drew nearer, they realized the moose had beaten them to the spot and was sniffing their tracks from that morning. Finally, it began walking up the trail and stepped into the woods.
TR started to drag his canoe ashore, assuming the bull had tired of the game and moved on. But to their amazement, it suddenly reappeared, standing firmly in the center of the trail. The men hurried back to their canoes and pushed off into deep water as the moose trotted down the trail toward them.
They shouted and did everything they could to frighten it, mindful they could not shoot, because killing the animal would exceed the limit allowed on TR’s license. Ignoring their scare tactics, the moose continued to aggressively guard the bank.
For over an hour TR and Lirette floated a safe distance from shore, watching the beast gamboling about in circles, grunting and making the occasional mock charge. Finally, it ambled up a small stream parallel to the trail and disappeared from view. The men were more cautious this time and sat some 50 yards off shore until they were confident the moose was gone for good.
Eventually, they landed and started along the portage trail toward camp. They had been hiking about ten minutes when they converged on the little stream that ran back to the lake. To their horror, the moose appeared from nowhere out of the darkened forest, the low sunlight reflecting off his massive antlers as he rushed the startled men.
TR, who was in the lead, grabbed his trusty Springfield from his pack and raised it to his shoulder. The bull was closing fast and Lirette, who was also the club’s game warden, shouted “Shoot, Monsieur!”
TR fired just over the bull’s head in the hope of frightening it away. It didn’t work. His ears back, the moose kept coming. Once again Lirette urged TR to shoot and this time the president sent a bullet into the monster’s chest, dropping the bull only 20 paces away.
As the men went to where the moose had fallen, they were shocked to see the bull struggle to its feet and step menacingly toward them.
TR killed the moose with one final shot.
Roosevelt said later that he had no choice but to shoot as the animal would have most certainly injured if not killed one or both of them. He was brought in front of a Canadian Government Official to explain the incident and attend a deposition. TR told the whole story in his own inimitable manner and no charges were filed.
The large-format, 200-page book covers Roosevelt’s most active years as an outdoorsman from the 1870s until his death in 1919. It also relives the hunting and exploratory expeditions of his two sons in the Far East. It opens with Roosevelt’s first deer hunt as a teenager, then continues chronologically as he pursues such dangerous game as grizzlies, lions, and elephants in Africa and North America.
In Seerey-Lester’s rich paintings, you will feel the danger, taste the dust, and smell the campfire smoke. In the foreword for this landmark book, Tweed Roosevelt, TR’s great-grandson, writes: ‘Seerey-Lester has an extraordinary ability to bring to life the high drama of the hunt. TR, of course, could supply him with an almost unending series of opportunities for displaying his unique artistry.
Acclaimed wildlife artist and the preeminent painter of Theodore Roosevelt, John Seerey-Lester takes you on a historic journey to some of the most interesting places on earth. John’s paintings and writings will make you feel as though you are there, sharing the exciting adventures of the former president. Shop Now
