As cold weather and snow descend on the lofty mountains around Estes Park, Colorado, herds of elk begin their annual trek to lower meadows in Rocky Mountain National Park where food is still abundant.
In winter, the elk move to lower ground within Rocky Mountain National Park.
© Deborah Erickson
Here, the mating ritual, known as the rut, takes place as the massive herd bulls round up their harems of cows. Their distinctive bugle sound echoes through the air as they let other bulls know to stay away from their “ladies.”
The majestic bull elk bugles out a warning to other males in the area.
© Deborah Erickson
After mating, many of the elk make their way down the road to Estes Park, where they seem to think the town belongs to them. They have been known to walk into downtown shops, gallop en masse down Elkhorn Avenue, birth calves in backyards, and become squatters on the golf course.
An elk-jam in downtown Estes Park
(Photo courtesy of enjoyestespark.com)
In the early 1990s, one bigger-than-life bull, in need of rest and recuperation after the exertion of the rut, found his way to the grounds of the YMCA of the Rockies’ Estes Park Center. For about six years, he would return to roam the grounds to the delight of staff and guests, showing off his 1,000 pound body and massive seven-by-eight point rack of antlers. Employees in the center’s maintenance department named him “Samson” after another who was legendary in strength. Samson would savor his winter pasture, eating and sunning, before returning to higher ground in the spring.
This photo is not of Samson, but of another elk wandering through the grounds of the YMCA of the Rockies Estes Park Center.
(Photo courtesy of estespark.com)
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Today, more than 20 years later, the legacy of Samson lives on. His head and antlers are mounted above the fireplace in the Estes Park Center’s administration building, where he continues to inspire awe among visitors to the Y.
Samson resides still at the YMCA of the Rockies.
© Deborah Erickson
A larger-than-life-size bronze sculpture greets visitors and residents at the intersection of Highways 7 and 36 in downtown Estes Park, a memorial to the town’s local celebrity.
Samson greets visitors to Estes Park.
© Deborah Erickson
Tougher anti-poaching legislation—”Samson’s Law”—was enacted in Colorado soon after Samson’s death. But perhaps Samson’s most enduring legacy is found in the great number of his descendants who call the Rocky Mountains home.
Could any of these elk be descendants of Samson? More than likely!
© Deborah Erickson
Gone but not forgotten, Colorado’s Samson the elk lives on!
