Travelling N.L. highways at dusk? Watch out for that moose and the other one

This column is an opinion by Gord Follett, former editor ofNewfoundland Sportsman. For more information aboutCBC's Opinion section, please see theFAQ.

It was evening when I almost hit the moose.

We call it "duckish" the time between sunset and full dark.

There were light showers, but I was paying attention and driving to conditions.

I had just grabbed a coffee for the short, 45-kilometre drive to Butterpot Park and then back home to Mount Pearl.

Just long enough to clear my head.

I was doing about nine kilometres under the speed limit when I spotted the young bull from about 100 metres awayas it was climbing the smallbank onto the highway near Paddy's Pond, so I didn't have to nailthe brakes tostop about as hard as you would approaching an amber lightwhen you notice cops stopped at the intersection.

My Corolla stopped with about 20 metres to spare between me andthe moose.

The animal stopped, turned its head in my direction forfive seconds, then trotted across to the woods on the other side,forcing the driver of an eastbound pickup to "lock 'er up" to avoid a crash.

But even though that moose had moved on, I was looking for another possible danger the trailing moose.

A second moose

Here's the scenario: you're driving the highway and see a moose crossingthe road up ahead. You never really come close to hitting it, but you slow down just a little to have a look at the animal. Whileadmiring the moose that just crossed the road, another one comes out of the woods 15 or 20 seconds behind it, and that could be the animal you hitbecause you were preoccupied watching the first one.

This is one of countless driving distractionsthat result inaccidents. Using cellphones, reaching for something in the glove box,turning your head to talk to the kids in back the list goes on.

Speeding, of course, is another factor. And when they strike an animalwith their vehicle, it's usually "those damn moose" who get the blame.

This time of year is when drivers are more likelyto encounter moose, particularly one-year-old animals.

In late April,May and even early June pregnant cows are gettingready to deliver new calvesand are driving off their yearlings. These young animals become somewhat confused anddisoriented on their own and can end up on roads and highways.

Drive to conditions

I cannot stress enough the importance of "driving according toconditions."

If it's dark and pouring rain in a 100 km/h zone, forexample, drop your speed 10 to 15 km/h.

A friend of mine struck a moose on the Trans-Canada Highway near Whitbourne in May2018. There wasn't too much damage to his vehicle and the moose hobbledoff into the woods, but my buddy still curses the animal any timethe crash ismentioned because he was "only doing the speed limit."

"What time of day was it?" I asked.

"9:00,9:15," he replied.

"At night?"

"Yup."

"And what were the roads and conditions like?"

"A bit foggy and raining but I was only doing 100."

He wasn't impressed when I told him I would have cut my speed to 85 or90 in those conditions and I probably wouldn't have even come close tohitting the animal.

I won't elaborate here about us continuously encroaching on theirterritory with subdivisions, box stores and the like. And some peoplestill blame the moose!

Are there exceptions? Could a driver be doing everything he or she issupposed to, and still hit a moose that just popped out on the road?

It's possible, and I'm certainly not about to argue with somebodywho has been seriously injured or with a family who lost a loved one ina moose-vehicle accident.

But I've told my wife a number of times over the years, "If I ever hit amoose while driving, don't blame the animal. I was either shaggin'around with something in the car or driving faster than conditionswarranted."

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