Why did the turtle cross the road?

I saw this little guy trying to cross our road yesterday.  I was so worried about coming home later and finding him smushified that I pulled over and waited for him to cross before I left again.  When he saw me walking toward him, however, he went into hiding, which did not at all help my cause.  So, I got back in the van and moved up a few yards, then watched until he finally did go for it.  This is not the first time I've stopped traffic for a turtle-crossing.  One time Jesse and I got out of my truck in the middle of busy route 28 in Wolfeboro.  Summer traffic was stopped on both sides of the highway while we used a towel to sort of "tempt" a tiny turtle across the pavement.  I like to think all the beeping cars were cheering us on.