What should we do when approaching a moose on the road in a vehicle?
Don’t speed up, that’s for sure. But don’t jam on the brakes, either (you might cause an accident). Put on four-way flashers, slow down and stop as soon as you can, and keep in mind that, because of their long legs, moose can get to the middle of the road quickly. Drive past, slowly. If the moose steps into the middle of the road and stops, there isn’t much you can do—other than honk the horn, wave your arms, yell out the window, and wait until it leaves. Do not get out of your car—no matter how tempted you are by this sweet photo op. Moose are usually non-aggressive but they can be unpredictable. This is especially true of males during the September and October mating season, when they’ve been known to charge vehicles. As well, the more humans interact with moose, the less fearful they become.
Encountering a moose while you’re traveling quickly down a highway is a different situation. Don’t swerve. If you swerve left, you’ll drive into oncoming traffic, and if you swerve right, you’ll hit the soft shoulder and risk losing control and flipping the car. In this case, you brake. And if impact is unavoidable, you duck: You want to get as low in the seat as possible, because if you hit a moose, it will come through the windshield.
