Car versus Elk
by Mary
(Salem, OR)
I was headed to work traveling on Highway 101 in Oregon early one morning. It was wet and rainy (what is new?), and I saw something out of the corner of my eye. It was a huge elk that smacked right into my passenger, front quarter panel.
He slid along the side, which was lucky for me since the window would have been a disaster. He exited the back of my small Oldsmobile Alero after leaving a few hairs stuck in my door jams. He took off, hopefully with minor injuries.
I was shook up and hurting a bit, but I drove to my destination and finished up my work projects. It was not until that night that I felt all of the pain from my neck to my arms to my legs. I was lucky that it was just minor bruising. There was over $1,000 in damage to the car along the front quarter panel and the door.
Since there are many roaming deer, elk, cows, and rodents on the roads in Oregon, I have encountered them numerous times. One time I was driving a van on Highway 26 and looked over from my driver window to be staring a elk right in the face. Luckily we did not make contact. What an experience!!
