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Imagine cruising at 55 mph, when a deer leaps straight through your car’s back window—then smashes out the other side. That’s exactly what happened to Roger Johnston while driving through the Adirondacks.

Johnston, a photographer from Rome, New York, was heading toward Old Forge to capture fall foliage when the terrifying crash unfolded.

“I see this deer come out of nowhere,” Johnston told NYup.com. “I swerve, and I’m like, ‘All brakes on my side.’”

But braking wasn’t enough. The deer smashed through his Kia Optima’s rear driver-side window. But it didn’t stop there. Like a missile, the animal kept going and burst out the opposite side.

“It went right through both back windows,” Johnston said. “Glass and fur everywhere—no blood, just glass and fur.”

Dodging disaster

Johnston still can’t believe he walked away unharmed.

“What just happened?” he said, describing his shock after the crash. “I was even…able to tell about it. The deer could have come through my driver’s window and…really did some severe damage to me.”

He’s thankful it was a doe, not a buck with antlers.

“Fortunately, it didn’t come through the driver’s side front window. It probably would have killed or severely hurt me,” he added.

What happened to the deer?

The impact didn’t kill the deer. Instead, it staggered into the woods. Johnston called the authorities, and a state trooper arrived at the scene.

“The state trooper ended up putting the deer down because it was so badly hurt,” Johnston explained.

The photographer went on with his day

Most people would call it a day after a crash like that. Not Johnston.

“I continued on my way,” he said. “I cleaned out as much of the glass as I could at a car wash and ended up taking some deer pictures and foliage pictures up there while I was in town.”

His windows have since been repaired, and Johnston said there was no lasting damage to the car.

The irony is that he had hoped to spot a deer on his day of photography. “I just never expected to meet one on the road like that,” he admitted.

You can hear Johnston retell the story in an interview in the YouTube video embedded below:

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Henry Cesari

Henry Cesari joined MotorBiscuit in 2021 and brings his deep interest in vintage cars, trucks, and motorcycles to the site. Having restored his first classic car at just 16 years old, Henry has wrenched on everything from overland campers to Japanese motorcycles and even pre-war Bugattis. Henry is also an avid attendee at local car shows and genuinely enjoys connecting with fellow auto enthusiasts.

Henry earned a Bachelor’s in Anthropology and English from the University of Vermont. He has since incorporated his love of the written word with his admiration of classic cars. While Henry is interested in vintage cars, he believes the golden age of cars is yet to come. He is confident journalists will play an important role in this revolution by exposing the industry as it is now and envisioning its possible future.