Back-to-school moose

A bull moose made an appearance at Woodland Middle School on Tuesday.

Coeur d'Alene School District spokesman Scott Maben said the students were able to all safely leave when school let out, but release took about a half-hour longer than usual because the moose had hunkered down by the bike rack near the west entrance of the school.

Coeur d'Alene Police and Fish and Game officials were on scene to ensure the animal was out of high-traffic areas. Students whose bikes were on the racks near the moose were assisted by officers. The students gave the officers their lock combinations and descriptions of their bikes, and officers carefully retrieved the bikes without disturbing the moose.

"They had some police help and staff out front to make sure students didn't go anywhere near where the moose was," Maben said.

The moose was still hanging out around 5 p.m. Maben said Fish and Game personnel who normally tranquilize and transfer big game were not in on Tuesday, but with remote learning Wednesday, no students will be on campus to encounter the moose if he decides to linger longer.

The moose attracted attention, as at one point six vehicles with people inside watching it were in the parking lot.

Penny Byers drove over from Post Falls when she heard it was there, and sat in the safety of her car taking pictures of it resting in a cool corner of the school grounds.

“He’s just relaxing, taking it easy in the shade,” she said.

Byers said she wanted to be sure to give it plenty of space as moose can be unpredictable.

“They’re my favorite animals,” she said.

Right as she said that, the moose rose and began walking and trotting around the school, as a Fish and Game officer in a truck kept onlookers at bay, repeatedly waving away those who ventured too close.

Devin Drake said he heard the moose had been around the area since Sunday and said he was driving by with his mom on Tuesday when he saw it near the school.

He returned on his bicycle and watched the scene unfold for a few hours.

He said when the moose wandered near the front of the school and toward children in a field, police officers shot it twice with a projectile, he believed a bean bag, to scare it away.

It seemed to work, Drake said.

“He ran around and laid down on the grass,” Drake said.

Coeur d’Alene Police Capt. Dave Hagar said he could not confirm police used a projectile on the moose, but said if they did, it was to scare it away from people, and not to harm it.

The moose later ran across the school parking lot, across the street and into a treed area near the North Idaho Centennial Trail.