Moose Dropping Festival

Moose Dropping Festival

Second weekend in July

When the snow melts on Denali (Mount McKinley) during the Alaskan summer, the citizens of nearby Talkeetna start gathering moose droppings in preparation for their annual July festival. Varnished moose droppings are turned into jewelry and other decorative and useful objects. Some droppings are also put aside for such festival events as the Moose Nugget Toss, where participants throw them at a target resembling a moose. The Mountain Mother Contest is another festival highlight. These supermoms show what they're capable of by mastering a number of feats within a short time period, such as carrying a baby doll and grocery bags across a river, changing diapers, splitting wood, and baking a pie.

CONTACTS:
Moose Dropping Festival
c/o Talkeetna Historical Society
P.O. Box 76
Talkeetna, AK 99676
907-733-2487; fax: 907-733-2484
www.talkeetnahistoricalsociety.org

SOURCES:
WildPlanet-1995, p. 616

Celebration days:
2011: Jul 9; Jul 10
2012: Jul 14; Jul 15
2013: Jul 13; Jul 14
2014: Jul 12; Jul 13
2015: Jul 11; Jul 12