A family in Estes Park, Colorado, apparently returning home, encountered a wild elk just roaming around. Instead of taking their distance, one family member decided to snap a picture of the majestic, albeit dangerous animal. As a result, the elk’s antlers almost hit the family after several unsuccessful charges.
Estes Park Concierge shared the scary moment online. As its bio indicates, the account often shares various animals seen during private guided tours, including elk. With several viral videos up its sleeve, the attached video quickly became the account’s biggest yet. It garnered 2.3 million views, 158,300 likes, and more than 6,000 comments.
The clip started with a Colorado family walking down a street, potentially returning home. According to Estes Park Concierge, the family had been warned about the yet-to-be-seen elk, but chose to ignore the warning. One member said, “They’re almost scary,” referring to elk in general.
Round Of Miracles
As they walked down the street, one man, whom the Estes Park Concierge decided to call Greg, chose to stop in his tracks, take out his phone, and start either recording the elk or taking pictures of it. Almost immediately, the elk approached Greg and charged at him, stopping right before hitting the man with its antlers. Greg immediately ran away, and so did the rest of his party.
Estes Park Concierge called this close call “miracle #1.”
Miracle #2 came right after, as one lady who remained alongside Greg walked toward the rest of her family. At that moment, the elk charged at her, even more aggressively than it had at Greg. Fortunately, no contact was made, but lots of screaming could be heard across the Colorado town. Miracle #3 followed shortly, as the elk charged at the group to the left. No one was hit.
Greg, left alone to the right of the screen, walked away and down the hill. Estes Park Concierge wrote, “Don’t be a Greg! Always respect wildlife and give them plenty of space. It’s the animal that suffers when they are stressed by ignorant humans.”
Reactions
The video sparked multiple responses, mostly from viewers who bashed the family for their reckless behavior around the elk. One said, “I hate people, but mostly Greg.” Another one commented, “They should be legally charged with a fine.”
Others declared their infatuation with the elk and sided with the animal without hesitation. One wrote, “I’m so rooting for the Elk!” Another one added, “Omg. Is he ok? The elk, is he ok?“
The National Park Service recommends staying 100 feet from all elk. Should someone encounter an aggressive elk, they should back away slowly. After all, these are big creatures that, in mature bull elk, can weigh 700 pounds. That’s a huge and dangerous animal if they choose to chase humans off.
