Pg
There are pullouts and two other roads like 225 joining 50 before Garfield.
MOO he wanted to go where he was going.
Yes. To my mind the question of whether he could see the Elk is the wrong question.
His statement allows for them to be close to the intersection, such that he could have seen them silhouetted in the road when he looks left to turn right. But following them in the truck, in the dark, is nonsense, and he could easily turn much sooner as you point out.