Watch for the Second Deer

On my last trip to Rocky Mountain House, AB, Barry told me about his foreman at a safety meeting talking about deer on the highway.  They have numerous deer in that area.  The foreman said, "If you see a deer on the road or in the ditch, slow down and watch for the second one."

I hadn't known this before but it stuck in my head.  Thankfully.  This trip I slowed down for over half a dozen different pairs of deer.  If I had not heard that saying, I may have hit the second one crossing the road on several of the occasions.  They do seem to travel in pairs and have trouble deciding what they want to do.  One may cross and the other stands for a bit before deciding to join the first.  Or they stand on either side of the road until one decides to make the move to the other side.

Plus, keeping a lookout for deer, made me more alert and I was lucky to react quickly enough to miss a moose that had decided to cross.  Now that would have been messy because they are huge!  It stumbled up out of the ditch and stood on the road for a few seconds before lurching off to the other side.  Not enough time to snap a pic but long enough for me to have to come to a complete stop.  Whew!  Too close!

So a warning to travellers driving through the foothills or in areas where there is bush growing near the highway whether travelling at dusk or on cloudy days - Watch for the second deer! It may save its life and your vehicle!