Police say a moose had to swim the width of Okanagan Lake — twice — because she was too scared to come ashore near Peachland where a crowd had gathered at Beach Avenue.

On June 17, just before 8 a.m. the moose was spotted swimming towards Peachland from Okanagan Mountain Park across the lake, a roughly three kilometer swim.

"However, she was scared off by a number of people crowding the shoreline attempting to see and photograph her. In response to the attention, the moose swam back across the lake again," Kelowna RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Jocelyn Noseworthy said in a news release.

Police — and the moose — would have preferred that people cleared the area to give her room. It could have been dangerous for the moose and people and could have also resulted in a fine under the B.C. Wildlife Act.

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