Slow Down, Enjoy The Scenery

To the Editor:

On the first of September, while driving east on Huntingtown Road in the Monroe portion, I was forced off the road by a light-colored SUV or van coming around a blind curve well into my lane, just West of Sycamore Drive. As a result, my ‘98 Dodge Caravan struck an obstruction, damaging both tires and the rim on the right side and puncturing the radiator.

In the course of my daily rounds of cleaning horse barns in the Newtown, Easton, Redding areas, I get the pleasure of driving many picturesque narrow twisting roads. I grant you that the brush along the side of the road tends to be overgrown at this time of year and can make the road even narrower so that people want to drive down the middle of the road. Unfortunately, with traffic constantly increasing, this becomes a bygone luxury. Also complicating negotiating these roads are the school buses, cyclists, horses, dog walkers, joggers, and deer. Not to mention the landscapers, towing extra-wide trailers, taking up more than half of the road.

The lesson here is that we all need to coexist and cooperate. Certainly, we don’t want these roads widened and have their rural charm spoiled. If you have recently moved here because you want to live in the country, please don’t ask that the “country” be obliterated. Drive a bit more slowly, stay in your lane, and be alert and enjoy the scenery. It changes with each season. When you come upon horses in the road, be courteous and slow up and wait for the rider to signal you that it is ok to pass. Give them a wide berth and don’t beep the horn. Sudden noises can spook some horses and put the horse and rider in jeopardy.

Let us enjoy the natural beauty of the woods and streams, the hills and valleys, which God has so richly blessed us.

Paul G. Littlefield

4 Daniels Farm Road, Trumbull                                                                     September 9, 2008