The beast scrutinized me with its piercing eyes. I was not expecting it to be there. As I turned the corner in the dark cavernous space, I saw a dim light up ahead, and suddenly I was in the presence of the life-sized monster. A photograph does not do justice to the sense of scale that one perceives when in the presence of this lord of prehistory- the woolly mammoth.
In misty tundra and dense forests, across grassy plains and barren terrain, the woolly mammoth roamed the rugged Canadian wilderness. Its massive curved tusks reached upwards on either side of its long trunk. It was an imposing figure with its shaggy coat painted in earthy hues, offering protections against the bitter cold winters of the Great White North.
I have to admit that I was surprised to see it and felt a sense of awe and danger. Combined with the excellent work done on the surrounding environment, I truly felt as if I had traveled back in time. The hairs on the back of my neck bristled. Some part of me started wondering how I would attack or get away from such a large animal in a real-world situation. The odds were not good, I thought grimly. Kudos to our ancestors who took on the challenge of hunting it (but not for driving it to extinction).
This specimen is on display at the Royal BC Museum in Victoria, British Columbia. I snapped the pic with my Pixel 7 smartphone.
