Didn’t know which category to put this in….
In between sits in Australia, I spent a lovely day walking 12 miles yesterday in a National park on the south coast in NSW. On the way back to my apartment a kangaroo leapt in front of my hire car and I collided with it, which was a shock. I had no chance to avoid it and was sure it was seriously injured, but it got up and bounced off into the bush. Minor damage to the plastic grille and number plate. Wish I knew how the roo was.
Has anyone else experienced this?
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@Smiley , that must have been scary but you did exactly what they recommend. You should not swerve to avoid hitting a deer (and I assume, a kangaroo). It could have been much worse, at least you were not hurt. A novel housesitting adventure / misadventure you can include in your memoir!
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Thanks @mars I didn’t have a chance to stop/swerve or whatever. Fortunately in 50kph limit otherwise could have been a whole different story. I’ve been told that kangaroos are very resilient and it probably wasn’t too hurt.
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@Smiley OMGoodness so glad you are OK what a fright that must have been well done you and as @mars says you did the right thing not swerving, I’m sure the animal was just shaken up, much like you were.
Thanks for sharing and in there lies another story for the Aussie chapter of “Smiley’s Traveling Tails”
Time to relax & chill, stay safe and have a great weekend 
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We came very close to the same situation during our time in Australia. A whole herd (is that what a group of Kangaroos is called?) came across the road we were traveling on and one nearly hit us! I had no idea how massive some kangaroos can get, if we had hit it it probably would have done a lot of damage. So glad you’re okay! and I am sure the kangaroo is too…from what I’ve heard they’re very resilient.
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I figured that’s not uncommon in parts of Australia, because roo bars are a thing: https://www.irvinbullbars.com.au/bullbar/bullbars-roo-bars-save-lives/.
The closest my husband and I’ve gotten to that are deer, moose or such in parts of the U.S., when we’ve road tripped.
One morning, we were headed to the Grand Canyon in the dark, to arrive in time for sunrise. The road in is quite long and has no lighting. We nearly hit a huge elk with a giant rack that was standing in the middle of the road. Luckily, my husband braked hard and we didn’t hit it or spin out. It then took its sweet time moseying off the road.
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We ‘usually reside’ In Australia when we’re not being nomadic 
Yes, this is a real shocker when it happens. We have narrowly missed on quite a few occasions, especially at night. On one dark night, I was driving on a mountain pass and had to brake sharply for a kangaroo. My heart was still pounding, and then, just as I rounded the bend, at a much slower pace, a large (and very slow) wombat was sitting right in front of me. If I didn’t brake for the kangaroo, I would certainly have collided with the wombat and the damage would have been much worse.
Tasmania is my favourite place on earth. But oh dear, I don’t drive between dusk and dawn. There are just too much wildlife (and so much roadkill, which again attracts other animals that get hit…sad cycle).
-try and avoid driving between dusk and dawn. Especially regional roads.
-if you do drive during this time, the only way to react and avoid, is to drive between 40-50kph.
-even in our neighbourhood, close to mountains/forests, there have been 6 koala deaths this year alone. So it’s widespread and not just kangaroos.
-the ‘general rule of thumb’ is: if you hit a kangaroo or koala, to stop and check their pouch for a baby. It is amazing how many babies survive when the mother perishes. Unfortunately, if you don’t stop and check, they eventually perish too.
-most roads have boards with numbers for the local wildlife rescue teams to assist.
@Smiley sounds like you did everything right.
Safe travels.
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So glad you’re okay @Smiley. That’s one of the hazards we face in Australia and kangaroos can come out of the bush so quickly they’re on top of you before you know it. If it jumped away, I’m thinking it will be okay. You didn’t need that experience after a great day’s walking.
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Relieved to know you were not injured though nerve racking. Do hope the animal also just had a good scare.
You did your best as we do.
Never an encounter like yours but deer, unfortunately yes.
Be well @Smiley
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That was a close shave. Years ago my mother (long since dead) hit a deer that just jumped into the road. Unfortunately it was badly injured and a policeman came and put it out of its misery. My mother was extremely shaken by the incident, which could have been a whole lot worse for her.
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Thanks. I don’t tend to drive between dusk and dawn and was driving less than 50kph when the roo jumped in front of me….
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Thanks. I just think how much worse it could have been if it had bounced through the windscreen……
I live in Australia and currently on a sit in a rural area just outside suburban Brisbane. Kangaroos graze in the paddock behind the house here and I see them every day. Today I went shopping and a huge roo was dead on the side of the road, not an uncommon thing to see in rural Oz. Many, many people write there cars off totally after hitting one, they are very strong. Usually the poor Roo comes off worst and dies. My first encounter on hitting one, we had to euthanase it on the spot as it wasn’t going to survive, it was horrible. As many have mentioned, never drive in bushland areas at dusk or dawn when they tend to skip across the roads, it happens so quickly you rarely get a chance to see and avoid them. If you hit one and survive with little damage to yourself or your car, you are one of the lucky ones. The roos normally aren’t so lucky I’m afraid.
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