A guide to spotting moose in New England

By Diane Daniel, Globe Staff

Now I know what to tell my friends who visit Maine in hopes of seeing moose and return disappointed because the only ones they spotted were inside local gift shops: Go to New Hampshire. In reality, the truth lies somewhere in between.

There may be 35,000 moose in Maine compared with about 10,000 in the Granite State, but on a moose mission last summer, I saw more in New Hampshire. Yet that's not to say they weren't out and about in Maine, and Vermont as well.

After years of feeling let down because I'd seen only two moose during 20 times as many trips to Maine, I figured I'd let the experts help - and it paid off. These days moose are a big tourist draw, so towns and businesses are aiming to please by pointing the way to hangouts and offering official moose tours by boat, bus, and even plane. So follow me, and if you're as lucky as I was, you'll see more moose than you ever thought possible.

New Hampshire
Gorham - a small town at the top of White Mountain National Forest - is home to Northern Forest Moose Tours, a minibus tour that follows Route 16 north to visit favorite haunts of these gentle giants.

Maine
Maine is synonymous with moose, and tourists get mighty disappointed when th\ ey don't see them, which is often the case.

Vermont
This state is more known for cows than moose, but it has both. The area you're most likely to find moose in is the Northeast Kingdom.

Published 05/23/99 in the Boston Suday Globe's Travel Section.