The dangerous and elusive Swamp Moose has been spotted again, roaming the Bighorn Mountains.
Many people enjoying Independence Day weekend saw the fuzzy green bipedal cryptid wandering through forests and along popular hiking trails near Burgess Junction. Just as soon as it reappeared, it disappeared.
Where did the Swamp Moose go? Back to Cheyenne with his family.
The Swamp Moose is actually Bridger Knox, 9, who was enjoying the annual family vacation to the Bighorns. Bridger and his father, Steve, decided to resurrect the monster for another year because they had so much fun last year.
“How could we not? The post went viral, and Bridger loved and had so much fun with it, so we did two days of shenanigans with the Swamp Moose,” Steve Knox told Cowboy State Daily.
Rise Of The Swamp Moose
The Swamp Moose was a spontaneous idea that spawned from a green ghillie suit the Knox Family brought with them during their annual camping trip in the Bighorns in 2025.
“We’ve been camping at that same area for two weeks around the Fourth of July for 30-plus years,” Knox said. “My sister-in-law and her kids wanted to scare her husband near the river with the ghillie suit, and we wondered what the tour buses (on U.S. Highway 14) would do if they saw someone walking around in a ghillie suit.”
The Swamp Moose first emerged from the Pine Island Group Campground. The shed moose antler, found by Bridger, was the extra ingredient that made it that much more fun.
As soon as the Swamp Moose was spotted, it was turning heads and stopping cars.
“Cars coming down the highway were noticing Bridger and slamming on their brakes,” Knox said. “We could see their faces in their vehicles, wondering what in the world they were looking at.”
When Knox shared photos and videos on social media, the Swamp Moose went viral. After last year’s outing, a newspaper in New York called Knox to share the story.
With all that attention, the Swamp Moose’s return was inevitable.
Revenge Of The Swamp Moose
When the Knox Family returned to the Bighorns in 2026, the Swamp Moose came with them. Bridger donned the same green ghillie suit with a slightly smaller antler.
“The other one was too big and made his arms tired, so we used a different one,” Knox said.
This year, the Knox family camped near Porcupine Falls, west of Burgess Junction and farther from the highway than the Pine Island Group Campground.
That reduced the potential visibility of the Swamp Moose’s mysterious return, but that didn’t dissuade Bridger. He got ghillied up and began to roam around Porcupine Falls.
“He walked up and down the road a little bit, right there by our campground, and stood by the sign,” Knox said. “Porcupine Falls is a much less trafficked area, so he couldn't get that tour bus exposure, but it was still super awesome.”
Still, Bridger had higher aspirations for the Swamp Moose. When a perfect opportunity suddenly presented itself, he fully grabbed the Swamp Moose by the antler.
The Swamp Moose Strikes Back
Steve and Bridger were hiking up to Porcupine Falls. That’s when they encountered more than 40 people heading for the same destination.
This was the moment Bridger had been waiting for. He and his father sped past the church group to reach Porcupine Falls before they did.
When the group arrived at the picturesque falls, they were under the watchful eyes of the elusive Swamp Moose.
“Bridger wanted to go stand up on top of the rock and let everybody see him from a different view,” Knox said. “He and I hiked to the top of the hill, he changed into his outfit and emerged from the rocks.”
The Swamp Moose silently moved through the large hiking group. Reactions were mixed.
“Some ignored him, others laughed and pointed, and some took pictures,” Knox said. “It was pretty funny.”
That wasn’t enough for one hiker, a man from Sheridan who knew the lore of the Swamp Moose. That’s when Knox said his son had “his 15 minutes of fame.”
“The Sheridan gentlemen asked if the Swamp Moose talked,” he said. “I said, ‘Of course,’ and we sat and chatted with his family for a little while. One of the gals remembered his story from last year, and Bridger thought that was pretty cool.”
The coup de grâce of the Porcupine Falls sighting was an utterly baffled couple from Mississippi.
“They saw us walking with Porcupine Falls with the antler, which they were curious about, but when they saw Bridger in the suit, they didn't know what the heck was going on.”
After an eventful and entertaining day, the Swamp Moose spent the evening being chased around the campsite.
“The camp host thought it was pretty clever,” Knox said. "We had a good time, and it was pretty funny.”
Return Of The Swamp Moose
The Knox family has returned to Cheyenne, which means the Swamp Moose has disappeared once again. The cryptid likely won’t re-emerge until Bridger gets back to the Bighorns.
“It’s become part of our long-standing family tradition, but only there,” Knox said. “The ghillie suit was put away when we got home last year and didn't come out again until this year.”
What Knox finds intriguing is how much of an impact their spontaneous prank has had on the area. He was informed that the story of the Swamp Moose has been enshrined near the spot where it was first sighted.
“The Cowboy State Daily story from last year was printed and hung in a display case at the Burgess Junction Visitor Center,” he said. “Someone sent us a photo of it last summer, and every time somebody stops in, they tell us it’s still there.”
Knox credits the strange success of the Swamp Moose to his son’s “great sense of humor.” As long as Bridger wants to walk through the wilderness in a ghillie suit with a moose antler over his head, Knox expects to continue sharing the story of the celebrity Swamp Moose.
“I'd imagine you'll see the Swamp Moose back for the next couple of years, at least,” he said.
Andrew Rossi can be reached at arossi@cowboystatedaily.com.
