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NH Couple Charged By A Moose While Snowmobiling In Maine

JACKMAN, MAINE (CBS) - A Belmont, New Hampshire couple had quite a scare while they were snowmobiling up in northern Maine on Friday.

Janis and Bob Powell were on a trail deep in the woods around 2:30 p.m. near Jackman, Maine, which is near the Canadian border, when a moose ran out in front of them.

They followed the moose for a short distance before it suddenly veered off the snowmobile track, turned around and charged them. The moose proceeded to charge several more times, one time even grazing Bob Powell, during the frightening standoff that lasted about two minutes.

Janis told WBZ-TV that she thought her husband was going to be seriously injured or killed.

Janis noted that there were no trees nearby, so they had nowhere to take cover. Eventually, she managed to get a handgun out of her coat, and fired it into the air in order to scare away the moose.

The couple was not injured.

Powell, who noted she has a license for the gun and was "in the middle of nowhere," says they reported the entire incident to authorities, who told them that the situation was handled properly.

Powell also said that she and her husband have been snowmobiling for years, and have come across moose on numerous occasions in the past, but never had any issues.

This time was different. Powell notes that the moose was mangy and sickly looking, and that there was blood on the trail that they spotted after the moose left.

Snowmobiler moose attack in Jackman, Maine by snowboatatv on YouTube

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