The Inn On Golden Pond

Well after 26 years in business you’d think we would have seen it all, but this past weekend we had a first at the Inn On Golden Pond. A wonderful couple visiting us from the Philippines collided with a Moose while driving to visit their sons at camp! First, I want to report that neither passenger was injured. Second, the Moose while stunned managed to remove himself from the top of their car hood and wander off into the woods on the side of the road. No report on how he felt when he woke up the next day. Damage to the car – dented hood.

There are an estimated 6,000 Moose in New Hampshire, the majority of them found in the Great North Woods and New Hampshire’s Lakes Region. Over 200 are killed by cars each year. Given the average size of Moose (some weigh between 800 and 1,000 lbs.) the cars and sometimes the drivers don’t make out any better than the Moose in a collision. We’re very thankful our guests were unscathed, although very shaken, by their close encounter with this Moose.

Seeing a Moose ranks high on the wish lists of our guests. While sightings are somewhat rare we have seen Moose in the yard of our Squam Lake bed and breakfast/country inn numerous times over the years. It’s always a thrill. The heavily wooded areas of Holderness, Ashland and Sandwich, NH which surround the lake provide excellent habitat for Moose. Clearly wildlife like this and the beautiful landscape of our state are prime reasons that people like to stay in NH inns.

All of the rooms in our inn are named after native New Hampshire animals and birds, but we don’t have a Moose room. Perhaps we’ll have to think about renaming one of them. And by the way, can you imagine the conversation our guests had when they called the car rental company to report their accident?

Hope you enjoy this short video.