New Moose Warning for I-93 Franconia

[Waumbek]

Exits 36-38 are especally bad. Here's the new warning system under consideration. In the meanwhile, drive carefully. We don't call the ER physicians at Littleton Regional Hospital "moose docs" for nothing.

To quote one of LRH's "moose docs": "Dr. Campbell McLaren has found that many accidents take place in a five-mile section of Interstate 93 stretching north of Franconia Notch."

 

[Raymond]

I ran into one south of Franconia Notch on Friday, May 13. I think it was near Tripoli Road, but I wouldn't swear to it.

It was about 6:30 a.m., not much traffic. A tractor-trailer slowed way down and began blowing its horn. I didn't know why it was doing that, so I tried to pass. Lucky for me, I was doing it cautiously, because suddenly a moose bolted around the front of the truck and into my path. Doubly lucky for me, I'd just had my car's front brakes replaced three days earlier, so, while I hit the moose, it was not too hard. I sent him sprawling into the dirt at the side of the road, then he went galloping up the slope.

He left a big blob of blood on my car's hood and broke the left side of the grill and parking light.

 

[proszach]

That's exactly where my friend and I spotted one as well. We had hiked out of Nauman and go to the parking lot around 7:30-8:00 PM. Lucky for us a car going the opposite way flashed us. We were confused at first, then I told my friend to slow down because it might be a moose. Sure enough he jumped out of the woods to our right, and we stopped easily in time to watch him trot to the other side. Scary and always exhilirating.

 

[Artex]

It's nice to see they're exploring new methods. On a side note of sorts, I always chuckle at the "Brake for Moose" signs. That seems pretty common sensical. Oh yeah, and the secondary "HUNDREDS OF COLLISIONS" signs are even more amusing, though I'm not sure why.

 

[peakbagger]

The first year the state put the signs up, they actually posted an actual number on the sign, after a season of a lot of accidents they switched to the 100's of collisions.

 

[Mr. X]

The first year the state put the signs up, they actually posted an actual number on the sign, after a season of a lot of accidents they switched to the 100's of collisions.

I remember that. I was bucking to be the next collision, up the number!

 

[sapblatt]

The only moose I have ever seen in NH was on the northbound side right at the Twin MOuntan exit...sadly, the moose had been struck and was dead.

 

[KayakDan]

I have had several close calls,and most in the Bethlehem-Franconia area. Closest one was within a foot of clocking a humungous bull late at night on the Kanc,near the pass.
Now,when I drive at dusk or later,anyplace north of Lincoln,I drive like an old lady,and Mrs.KD is on "moose watch". I don't need Bullwinkle as a hood ornament!
Just as scary,are the tourists who stop and get out for a photo op whentheysee a moose."Honey,take my picture standing next to this big moose"
I had to stop one day and explain to a tourist why standing between a calf on the edge of the road,and the woods was gonna get him killed-no clue!

 

[Quack]

On a side note of sorts, I always chuckle at the "Brake for Moose" signs. That seems pretty common sensical.

When I was taking drivers ed' back home in Northern NY, the teachers would tell us that if a deer entered the road and we could not avoid hitting it, we shouldn't slam on the brakes and risk losing control of the vehicle. In fact, some locals are proponents of speeding up. Anyway, I remember seeing those brake for moose signs for the first time after I moved to New England and assumed that they were attempting to combat popular deer knowledge / mis-information. I have no idea which is the correct action with a deer, I've been luck never to hit one head on, but they're so common back home that I know it's only a matter of time.

 

[David Metsky]

On a side note of sorts, I always chuckle at the "Brake for Moose" signs. That seems pretty common sensical.

The problem with common sense is that it's so rare. Many folks assume that moose will mosey out of the way when they see a car approaching, not knowing that the moose may be expecting the same thing of the car.

Oh yeah, and the secondary "HUNDREDS OF COLLISIONS" signs are even more amusing, though I'm not sure why.

That's the NH way, frugal. There used to be new signs every year with the number of collisions, but that meant paying for new signs each year. This avoided the problem of having to buy new signs.

-dave-

 

[kerry13]

One moose jumped out of the woods in front of the car in front of me on the Kanc last fall. I was heading toward Lincoln and the sighting was about a mile from the pass where the road gets some grade. The darn thing kept going up the middle of the road for a good couple hundred yards and the car in front wasn't far behind it. I kept waiting for someone to come down around one of the corners. It would have been one heck of a show. Luckily the moose exited on the south side just before three tour buses came around the corner. It would have been a real mess had they been a couple seconds later. I couldn't believe the car in front of me was tailing the moose. Some folks just have no common sense.

 

[WhiteMTHike]

Of all my trips to the WMNF I've never seen a single Moose. However, on a trip to Pittsburg,NH I saw plenty of Bullwinkle and his friends. It's true that Pittsburg has more Moose than people.

 

[Tramper Al]

A Møøse once bit my sister

With all the driving we hikers do, probably one of the most significant risks we commonly face is moose collision. They really can be quite hard to see, especially around dawn or dusk.

I think, though, if you'll excuse my saying so, if you haven't seen a moose in the White Mountains, you're probably not going there often enough.

 

[sapblatt]

I think, though, if you'll excuse my saying so, if you haven't seen a moose in the White Mountains, you're probably not going there often enough.

Al - You are so right...I have never seen a live moose in NH and I could never get to the Whites enough!

 

[WhiteMTHike]

I think, though, if you'll excuse my saying so, if you haven't seen a moose in the White Mountains, you're probably aren't going there often enough.

Unfortunetly for me, these days, that statement is true . However I do manage get up there every year to hike for a solid week. I used to get to the Whites more often but life changes and it's a long ride for me. Still though the WMNF remains a special place for me. I guess getting up there once a year is what keeps it so special.

Hopefully this will be the year I see a moose in the WMNF (alive).

 

[audrey]

Our first moose contact was on the Sandwich Notch Road. We were about to hike the Algonquin Trail when he trotted right up to our car then veered away in time. It must have unnerved him to see two speechless dummies standing there staring with their mouths wide open. He looked huge at the time.

 

[Frosty]

Our first moose contact was on the Sandwich Notch Road. We were about to hike the Algonquin Trail when he trotted right up to our car then veered away in time. It must have unnerved him to see two speechless dummies standing there staring with their mouths wide open. He looked huge at the time.

I have noticed that the moose I see when I am on foot are much larger than those I see from inside my car. Much, much larger

 

[tycho_32]

My first hike this season up to the Hancocks we saw two moose on the road. The first one I saw some mud on the road in a rather straight line. As nature abhors uniformity I told the guy driving to slow down as it might be something and sure enough it was a moose trotting down the road. the second one was just chillin on the side of the road. Last season we were doing the flags on the 48 and were going up Wildcats. I think we were on the Lost Pond Trail and came across a mother moose and her mooselet. She was standing ON the trail so we stood there watching each other for about ten minutes until she decided to swin across whatever body of water was right accross the trail. That was actually the most scared I have been in the woods. I know how my wife reacts when you mess with our baby. A moose is much much bigger than my wife and taller too. No thanks

 

[BrentD22]

Lots of moose for me...

I used to live and work at the AMC Pinkham Notch VC. One night after a long days work and a even longer night at the Shannon Door we where driving home. My car was the first to leave that night. We had 2 new crew members driving in a small car (CRX) well behind us. As I came up the hill just before the big curve near PNVC I saw a moose. I drove past it carefully hoping no one else would come across and hit the thing.

Some time past and we started to wonder where the other 2 guys where. We decided to take a drive down to see if they where OK. When we got near where the moose was when I past we saw emergancy vech's lights flashing and we soon new what happened to them. There car was small like I said, low to the ground. They must not have even seen the moose until they hit it. The moose crushed the top of the car and smashed into them. One of them had his jaw shattered and needed it to be wired back into place and the other guy had some small wounds. They where very lucky that night!

Lesson learned! It was foggy and even thought the road was a very familar road to us we all should have been driving slower and with more caution. I was lucky to see the moose. If I didn't that could have been me.




Another moose story for me was in the backcountry. Let's just say the moose bluff charged and I almost (well kinda did) crapped my pants.

 

[stopher]

I had last week off and decided to spend it tracking moose with my camera. I spent 4 days in prime moose habitat with fresh sign all around and heard a few crashes in the woods made by moose running a way from me, but no photo opportunity. The fifth day, I decided to forego moose chasing and take a hike in the mountains. So what did I see enroute, on the road in North Sandwich? Two moose. The big bull got away before I could get my camera out but the little guy just had to stop and look back after running a couple hundred feet.