Soule: Would I Have To Unload My Cattle On Route 4 In Northwood?

First was the explosion, then husband Bruce yelled, "Pull over!" With nowhere to pull over as smoke poured from the Ford F450 pickup and plumed up behind the stock trailer, I stopped on the highway, turned off the engine, pulled the hood release, and reached for the fire extinguisher. Bruce leaped from the cab to check under the hood.

Earlier that day, we had picked up three head of cattle in Freeport, Maine. Salty, moist air filled my lungs as we set up the trailer to load three fat Scottish Highlanders.

It was in Northwood, on the only section of the highway with two eastbound lanes, where the truck engine blew up. The truck was parked on the road; fortunately, traffic could use the passing lane to get by. What would we have done if it had caught fire? If I wanted to save the cows, I'd have to let them loose...on Route 4...during rush hour. It didn't come to that, but I did have to figure out how to get the rig home. Would we have to unhook the trailer and get another truck to haul the cows? Would that be possible with traffic whizzing by in the other lanes?

The magic of the internet saved the day. After I called 911, I found just the right tow service in nearby Concord. The dispatcher said he'd send a rig that could tow the truck with the loaded trailer attached. When he arrived 45 minutes later, David, the driver, attached his lift to our disabled truck, disconnected our truck's drive-shaft, then, with truck and trailer with cattle, we were on our way home.

Half an hour later, David dropped the loaded trailer at the farm, and Bruce used our tractor to back the trailer up to the holding pen and unload the cattle. David then left the truck at Glen's Truck Service in Belmont.

The cattle settled in, but I needed a break after this drama.

Read More

Carole Soule is co-owner of Miles Smith Farm, in Loudon, N.H., where she raises and sells beef, pork, lamb, eggs, and other local products. She can be reached at carolesoule60@gmail.com.