Secretly, I have been on a stealth campaign to spot a moose for a number of years. I have passed hundreds of moose warning signs in Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and Quebec. Nary a moose. But here in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, the ranger assured me that “of course” I would see a moose. They even feature moose on the promotional brochure. A moose in broad daylight, refuting the idea that they only show up in early morning and early evening.

I really tried all day to see a moose. No go. I did see a dead whale on the beach. And we saw moose poop, evidence that there must at some point have been a moose at that spot. They say that there are 5000 moose on Cape Breton. I saw moose t-shirts, moose mugs, moose signs, moose paintings and moose candy. Maybe that is what they are counting!

Next year in Newfoundland? They are supposed to have 150,000.