Safety during hunting season

[Traffic Jam]

I'm all ready to spend the weekend in the backcountry of Big South Fork NRA and just found out it's hunting season. Should I cancel my plans or go?

[johnnybgood]

Wear blaze orange vest and hat and keep walking. Orange backpack cover wouldn't hurt either.

[googlywoogly]

I purchased a blaze orange Walls work Tshirt from Walmart for 5 bucks (made of polyester and performed very good last weekend). Wear that and put a blaze orange hunting vest around my pack. Better safe than sorry is my motto. I wouldn't cancel my hike though.

[Sarcasm the elf]

Wear blaze orange vest and hat and keep walking. Orange backpack cover wouldn't hurt either.

This.

Hunting accidents (accidental shootings) are extremely rare and the few that happen usually involve other hunters and most often during spring turkey season. That said, wearing blaze orange is important, while the number of hunting accidents is already low, the number if incidents involving victims who were wearing blaze orange clothing is basically zero. (This is per the instructor in my hunter safety course)

Also, it's a good idea to pay attention and make some noise (human sounding noise) while you're walking, especially around dawn and dusk when animals (and therefore hunters) are most active.

[Traffic Jam]

Thanks for the encouragement! I'm going...after a visit to Wal Mart. I have several blinking lights. I wonder if I should put one on the tent.

[Bucketfoot]

Hikers worry way too much about hunters. Just wear some orange and go hiking. Someone please tell me about one incident where a hiker has been shot by a hunter.

[Tuckahoe]

Elf pretty much nails it. If you want statistics, Pennsylvania's game commision keeps probably the most detailed hunting incident statistics. I wish other states were as detailed. You'll see just how safe being in the woods during hunting season really is... especially considering that you got to the woods/trailhead in a car.

If you follow this link to the National Sport Shooting Foundations website -- http://www.nssf.org/research/researchreports.cfm#item11 -- you can look up the report "Firearms-Related Injury Statistics" which will put some of the potential for injury into perspective.

[fiddlehead]

One of the more important things to remember when wearing orange is to wear it on the front.
Most hunters who are archery hunting or sitting for deer will be first seeing you coming at them, rather than walking away.
I used to tie those caution tape pieces to my shoulder straps. A bunch of them fluttering in the breeze.
Good luck and have fun. I just heard about 40 shots down in the valley near my house. They're getting geared up.

[kayak karl]

don't forget your pet if you take one. my dog wears one of these.

[Traffic Jam]

Hikers worry way too much about hunters. Just wear some orange and go hiking. Someone please tell me about one incident where a hiker has been shot by a hunter.

I say the same thing about people who stress about bears. I guess it's fear of the unknown. I've been around bears so they don't scare me. I've never been around hunters

[Odd Man Out]

Come Nov. 15, we get the deer vs man report on the nightly news. The deer always loose, but each year, a few hunters get it - mostly by shooting themselves when climbing a tree with a loaded gun. Went for a walk last weekend on opening day of bow season. Didn't realize it until I got back to the car and saw I was wearing several shades of brown - oops.