New Brunswick man spent much of 2020 stalking moose

A typical weekend for Nathan Robinson involves getting up at 4:30 in the morning and making the three-hour trek from Fredericton to "moose valley" near Edmundston.

He's spent almost every weekend this year, from dawn to dusk, silently stalking moose for the perfect photo.

"This year was really when I decided that I really wanted to target moose and I wanted to spend as much time in 2020 as I could in moose country and try to figure them out," said Robinson.

And his dedication has paid off.

Robinson has compiled a year's worth of moose photos, a showcase of the animals big and small from all corners of the province in every season.

Depending on the time of year Robinson has employed different strategies to photograph moose.Sometimeshe tracks them in snowshoes, sometimes they come to him in his kayak.

"I'll go to bogs and I'll spend two to three days right on the bog in my kayak, floating up and down the bog looking for moose," said Robinson.

It's led to some close calls. He was nearly stepped on bya moose that didn't even know he was there.

"I try not to get too close, but in wildlife you never know," said Robinson.

Amateur N.B. photographer snags stunning moose photos in 2020

4 years ago

Duration 1:30

Nathan Robinson had a goal to get outside more. Armed with a camera and ambition, he collected a treasure trove of encounters with New Brunswicks wildlife.

Robinson, who works as an auto-detailer in Fredericton, saidhe feels lucky to be able to spend weekends isolated in the wilderness with just moose for company.

"I've got a great wife that supports me 150 per cent," he said. "We also live in a condo, so I've got no yard work to do. Whenever I've got freetime, I'mjust able to go to the woods."

The moose valley location is what sparked Robinson to spend the year photographing moose earlier this year, but he's since crisscrossed the province, keeping his favourite moose spots only tohimself.

Spending days at a time in the forest means Robinson is always encountering wildlife beyond moose. Lynx, bobcats, bears, and skunks have all be caught by his camera. And his favourite encounter of 2020 didn't involve moose at all.

While scouting the big animals, he came across two newborn fawns that he predicts were only a few minutes old.

"They didn't even have their eyes open," said Robinson.

He said he froze, not wanting to startle them or their mother, who he predicted was nearby.

He took a few pictures, and that's when the fawns took their first few shaky steps.

"Then they imprinted on me," said Robinson. "As I was the firstthingthey saw they thought I was their mother."

Robinson saidhe had a hard time trying to get the fawns to stop following him, but eventually they did when their mother returned.

"You just never know what else you're going to see when you're out there."