View Full Version : Hunting Season dangers/concerns
Mrs Baggins
09-14-2009, 16:30
We just realized that we'll be in southern NC on the trail during deer hunting season. While I realize there are responsible hunters that aren't going to shoot at everything that moves, I am well aware there are plenty of the ones that will shoot at anything that moves. So okay, we wear bright orange and hope for the best. But, because I have a very active imagination, now I'm worried about hunters using the shelters as base camps and party places while they're out. I've had hunters in the family and I've heard the stories.......:eek: I really like to stay at the shelters (we tent camp there) for many reasons but this is not meant to become a forum on the "evils" of shelters. I want to know if I have a legitimate concern or not. We could try to switch all of our plans to either Shenandoah or GSMP to get out of the "rifle range" of the hunters........and then my imagination and huge fear of bears kicks in. I know this is when they are getting very active, searching out food before hibernation.
I was raised by parents who saw monsters and murderers behind every rock and tree and I've worked very hard all my life to get over that (the fact that I've gotten into hiking/backpacking at all is a very huge deal in my family because "you'll get killed out there" is their favorite chant) but heavily armed, and possibly drunk, hunters and very hungry bears on the hunt are very real things - not phantom murderers behind rocks.
We're packed and ready to leave in a few days. Shuttles are all arranged. Hubby, who used to be a hunter, agrees that my fears about them are a very real concern but he has no fear of the bears.
I'm just talking out loud here I guess. I want to go but finding out about hunting season has really crushed my excitement. :(
Plenty of orange, front and back.
http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/files/5/0/2/5/dontshoot.jpg (http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=20883&original=1&c=member&orderby=title&direction=ASC&imageuser=5025&cutoffdate=-1)
Most hunters in the east drive out in the morning, hunt, go home. Then drive back in the afternoon, hunt, go home.
Shelters shouldn't be much of a big issue.
Mrs Baggins
09-14-2009, 18:49
We talked it over. We're going to hold off on our hike til much later in the Fall/early Winter when hunting season is over and bears have calmed down. Call me chicken. I really don't care. Instead we're taking our tent trailer up to Maine to do lots of day hikes in Arcadia National Park. Maine is one of 3 states we have not been to (Vermont and Rhode Island are the last two) so this trip will take care of that.
I hiked SOBO on the AT last year. I was in Virginia / Tennesee / North Carolina during hunting season. I saw a fair number of hunters, never at shelters, and they where always very courteous. Most of them even gave us spare water and food.
It's important to wear orange blaze, but I was glad the hunters where out there. Just more friendly folks you meet on the trail.
Jayboflavin04
09-14-2009, 19:17
I think you have a legit concern. Maybe not enough to halt your plans but HYOH. My uncle is a avid hunter and was the first at the seen of a accident were a kid took a blind shot down over the hill. The kid got himself a head shot in. My uncle said it made him half sick. Grey matter everywhere. The guy was still breathing because the kid shot the guy in the front part of the head. Said he wish he could have done the guy a favor and put him out of his misery.
MikenSalem
09-14-2009, 19:19
Just a guess but most southern hunters aren't going to walk more than 30 minutes to hunt. The biggest reason is ya' got to drag it out after you kill it. It's to hot down here to hang one, even in NC, and it's go to come to the car. Second; I ain't dragging it over a bunch of hill and mountains to get it out, I'll just go to Ingles and get my meat. And I don't want to get all sweaty walking through the woods to my stand that scares the deer off. I understand the roads run up to the trail but you're probably safer with uncle bubba than eating a McBurger. Most urbanite hunters won't go near a wilderness because there all holed up on a hunting club somewhere. Up North like Maine, I'm guessing the urbanites have easier access to the woods than in NC.
Just speculating:-?
DO wear Orange, DO NOT WEAR WHITE Deer tails wag white, thats the fast way to be watched through a scope.
Mrs Baggins
09-14-2009, 19:25
I think you have a legit concern. Maybe not enough to halt your plans but HYOH. My uncle is a avid hunter and was the first at the seen of a accident were a kid took a blind shot down over the hill. The kid got himself a head shot in. My uncle said it made him half sick. Grey matter everywhere. The guy was still breathing because the kid shot the guy in the front part of the head. Said he wish he could have done the guy a favor and put him out of his misery.
We talked about all of that. My husband hunted in northern California, east of the Bay Area. He said it would have been almost impossible to make an accidental shot because the area is very clear - they could always see at least 300 yards (yards, not feet) across the ground. But in the east there is just too much forest land/trees and a hunter trying to sight through that is far more likely to make a very fatal mistake. Bow hunters have to be much closer to their target so they're less apt to fire on something that is not game. But rifle hunters, many in the east just sit up in deer stands in trees, are going to go on movement more than seeing the whole animal and they can fire from much further away.
Arcadia National Park
Acadia National Park
When is deer season over in VA for people who hunt with rifles? Doesn't it vary by county? As a whole, I had the impression that it extended through December.
Tuckahoe
09-14-2009, 19:56
Hey folks, here is a link to the Virginia 2009-2010 Hunting and Trapping Regulations -- http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/hunting/regulations/
Mrs Baggins
09-14-2009, 20:25
When is deer season over in VA for people who hunt with rifles? Doesn't it vary by county? As a whole, I had the impression that it extended through December.
We weren't hiking in VA. It was going to be Dicks Creek Gap GA to Franklin NC.
And yes, I know it's ACadia, not ARcadia. There is an ARcadia in northern California. Easy mistake.
bigcranky
09-14-2009, 20:33
How long are you going to be out? Modern firearms season for deer begins October 17 in Georgia (http://www.georgiawildlife.org/content/displaycontent.asp?txtDocument=606) and on the same date in North Carolina (http://www.northeasternhunting.com/prices.html). I don't worry about muzzle loaders or archers -- they have to be a lot closer.
Late September to early October is a great time to be on the trail in the South.
Jayboflavin04
09-14-2009, 20:35
Well I have to admit I dont remember the exact details of this young man making a fatal shot! The story is true though.
Jayboflavin04
09-14-2009, 20:38
oops....I misread your response. I thought you were calling me a liar. Anyway true story.
Call me chicken. I really don't care. Chicken. :rolleyes::D
We weren't hiking in VA. It was going to be Dicks Creek Gap GA to Franklin NC.
And yes, I know it's ACadia, not ARcadia. There is an ARcadia in northern California. Easy mistake.
We have an Arcadia here in RI. It doesn't matter anyhow, we pronounce it AHcadia, and Acadia becomes UHcadia.:D
Hikerhead
09-15-2009, 00:42
We weren't hiking in VA. It was going to be Dicks Creek Gap GA to Franklin NC.
And yes, I know it's ACadia, not ARcadia. There is an ARcadia in northern California. Easy mistake.
There's a Arcadia Va too, 3 or 4 miles from the AT as the crow flies.
http://www.bing.com/maps/default.aspx?wip=2&v=2&rtp=~&FORM=MSNNAV#JndoZXJlMT1hcmNhZGlhK3ZhJmJiPTQ5LjI2Nz gwNDU1MDYzNzUlN2UtNTkuNTg5ODQzNzUlN2UyMi45OTg4NTE1 OTQxNDI5JTdlLTEwMC4zNzEwOTM3NQ==
Jim Adams
09-15-2009, 01:00
Way too much worry! I don't know of any hunters that would be staying at shelters...too much hassle getting to the bar at night. If you stay in camp until say 9am when the sun is high and the light bright and stop hiking around 4pm while the light is still good I don't think that you would have much danger. Although there are some dangerous hunters out there, most "shoot at anything moving" accidents happen very early or late in poor light. DO wear orange! Be safe and have fun.
geek
[quote=Mrs Baggins;893861]We weren't hiking in VA. It was going to be Dicks Creek Gap GA to Franklin NC.
[quote]
FFS, I didn't say you were hiking in VA. But your initial post said, "We could try to switch all of our plans to either Shenandoah or GSMP...", which is why I asked about VA.
No clue at all why so many think it's cool to try to engage in tetraplyloctomy.
Whatever.
Nearly Normal
09-15-2009, 09:43
I've seen threads on how many hikers were known murdered on the trail.
I don't remember seeing how many were shot by hunters while wearing orange.
Anyone know?
Wearing a little blaze orange the chance is probably less than being murdered.
sixhusbands
09-15-2009, 10:01
I agree that you should be more visable to them and while orange is a good color, the safety green is much more visble in lower light conditions. Most of your highway folks have swiched over to it and it does "pop" much better than the orange.
bronconite
09-15-2009, 13:05
There is a lot of misleading info in this thread. If I were a hiker who knew nothing about hunting, I would think hunters, as a group, where pretty dangerous after reading it. This is simply not true. In reality the vast majority of hunters are not hunting while drunk or drinking and do not shoot at movement rather they do their best to place a kill shot, usually the heart.
There are some unsafe hunters out there, but the number of people shot, that are mistaken for game, are very low. Most firearm accidents while hunting are due to accidental discharge, not mistaken targets.
But rifle hunters, many in the east just sit up in deer stands in trees, are going to go on movement more than seeing the whole animal and they can fire from much further away.
This is so wrong. First of all, stereotyping hunters like this is like a hunter saying all hikers are dope smoking hippies. It's simply untrue.
Hunters, as a group, DO NOT fire on movement, they fire on a specific target, which is the vital area of the game being pursued. You may be able to site an example of an individual hunter firing on movement, but it is completely unfair to judge an entire group by a very few of its individuals.
PGC's fluorescent orange sign (http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=28523&catid=member&orderby=title&direction=ASC&imageuser=6796&cutoffdate=-1) at all public access areas sums up this thread well. I thought it should be posted in WhiteBlaze's gallery too.
At least a fluorescent orange hat is required by law by everyone on State Game Lands from November 15 to December 15, a period which includes the general firearms deer season.
I've seen threads on how many hikers were known murdered on the trail.
I don't remember seeing how many were shot by hunters while wearing orange.
Anyone know?
Wearing a little blaze orange the chance is probably less than being murdered.
yea really, I have no idea what people are so scared of.
A.T. hikers have been shot and seriously injured during rifle deer seasons on at least two separate occasions. They were not wearing fluorescent orange.
Information may be found on ATC's Hunting and the A.T. page which I linked only yesterday. I'm linked out and other more important things are calling.
Orange Smorange....I wear this (http://www.sportsmansguide.com/zoom/zoompop.asp?i=162839_ts.JPG&h=&w=&bgc=&ui=&mc=&cf=&nv=&c=&adid=534538) in the "scentblocker" so that the Florida/Georgia hunters can't see or smell me.
With the pants and headnet of course
warraghiyagey
09-15-2009, 18:48
http://www.costume-shop.com/images/products/cs32a.jpg
Bulldawg
09-15-2009, 19:02
We weren't hiking in VA. It was going to be Dicks Creek Gap GA to Franklin NC.
And yes, I know it's ACadia, not ARcadia. There is an ARcadia in northern California. Easy mistake.
How long are you going to be out? Modern firearms season for deer begins October 17 in Georgia (http://www.georgiawildlife.org/content/displaycontent.asp?txtDocument=606) and on the same date in North Carolina (http://www.northeasternhunting.com/prices.html). I don't worry about muzzle loaders or archers -- they have to be a lot closer.
Late September to early October is a great time to be on the trail in the South.
Umm, yeah, beat me too it. And in those areas, you aren't going to see too many hunters. Much of this area is bordered by WMAs, which don't follow the standard "open" season for hunting. Muzzle loading season is open now in both states, but those hunters have to get almost as close as an archer. I wouldn't change or even second guess my hike. I'd go, with the bright orange on.
Rockhound
09-15-2009, 19:17
The best thing to do during hunting season is to make sure that you present as small a target as possible for the hunter. Some of us have an easier time with this than others.
http://lh5.ggpht.com/_uwSHmzsdw8Y/SrAjbclzePI/AAAAAAAAAoM/pT6SLTYg1NI/elmer_fudd.jpg
bigcranky
09-15-2009, 19:30
The best thing to do during hunting season is to make sure that you present as small a target as possible for the hunter. Some of us have an easier time with this than others.
You talkin' to me? Huh? YOU TALKIN' TO ME?
Heh. :eek:
warraghiyagey
09-15-2009, 20:14
http://lh5.ggpht.com/_uwSHmzsdw8Y/SrAjbclzePI/AAAAAAAAAoM/pT6SLTYg1NI/elmer_fudd.jpg
Sweet pic . . . :)
Those little red x's are so cute. . .
Cool AT Breeze
09-15-2009, 21:10
You don't see big ole hooters.
You don't see big ole hooters.http://images.icanhascheezburger.com/completestore/2008/7/18/bighooters128608789014537484.jpg
sheepdog
09-15-2009, 21:24
Being a hunter, I have never exceeded my limit of hikers.
Bilge Rat
09-15-2009, 22:11
If I can get a friend to go with me I'll be there for the day. I carry a sword. I won't be hard to find.
I'm too small for that and I would be the one in the group that any predator would pursue. I'm not much bigger than an average black bear.
I'd stay out of the woods too...............might scare some of those dope smoking hippie hikers.
So Baggins is scared of hunters and bears. Any other irrational fears? Bigfoot? The boogeyman? Martians, perhaps? :rolleyes:
So Baggins is scared of hunters and bears. Any other irrational fears? Bigfoot? The boogeyman? Martians, perhaps? :rolleyes:
Nazgul...:eek:
saimyoji
09-15-2009, 22:35
you guys should be nicer to baggins.....she obviously has enough issues to deal with without the internet taunting from y'all....
Cool AT Breeze
09-15-2009, 22:35
They are all kin to her.
Bulldawg
09-15-2009, 22:35
Obviously.
The message you have entered is too short. Please lengthen your message to at least 10 characters.
you guys should be nicer to baggins.....she obviously has enough issues to deal with without the internet taunting from y'all...."Silence! I kill you!" - Achmed the Dead Terrorist
you guys should be nicer to baggins.....she obviously has enough issues to deal with without the internet taunting from y'all....
I concur...
BobTheBuilder
09-15-2009, 22:58
Mrs. B - I'm go for a week-long section every fall. I hear rifle reports sometimes, but have never had even the slightest incident with hunters. It is a great time to hike, but if you would be uncomfortably worried, I agree that you should wait until the season closes. Of course, I'm from New Orleans, so I have a natural immunity to the sound of gunfire, so my advice is somewhat skewed.
Bilge Rat
09-15-2009, 23:38
They are all kin to her.
ARE NOT!:banana
http://www.tuckborough.net/images/baggins-tree.gif
We have a girl group that hikes in Arkansas in deer gun season. It is about the only time we can get together. The worst danger was when I wore an orange Auburn shirt the very weekend they were playing Arkansas. I thought I was going to get murdered in the campground.
Anyhew...the hunters are petty decent inthe campground where we stage for our hike out early Saturday AM. We are usually the only women there for Friday night and get alot of "can we get that snake out of your tent" banter but they are friendly and fine and usually retire early. We wear alot of orange and make alot of racket on the hike. We do wear orange shirts, hats and put orange on our packs. We do the same routine for turkey season in the spring. Which is why I have an Auburn t shirt and a U. Tennessee hat.
We talked it over. We're going to hold off on our hike til much later in the Fall/early Winter when hunting season is over and bears have calmed down. Call me chicken. I really don't care. Instead we're taking our tent trailer up to Maine to do lots of day hikes in Arcadia National Park. Maine is one of 3 states we have not been to (Vermont and Rhode Island are the last two) so this trip will take care of that.
eh, you're too small to be mistaken for a chicken.
warraghiyagey
09-16-2009, 08:05
So Baggins is scared of hunters and bears. Any other irrational fears? Bigfoot? The boogeyman? Martians, perhaps? :rolleyes:
Carnies?? . . . little people, big hands, smell like cabbage. . . :)
vamelungeon
09-16-2009, 10:55
So many stereotypes about hunters...I've hunted all my life and nobody I personally know is shooting at movement or hunting drunk. If they were nobody would hunt with them...think about it. How's a drunk guy going to drag a heavy deer out of the woods, over the same terrain we all love to hike over except hunters will be bushwhacking while dragging this deer. All the hunters I know are interested in two things: getting a trophy buck, which means they are going to be very selective about which deer they shoot and how they shoot it, or putting meat in the freezer which means they are going to be very careful about shot placement also, since neither type of hunter wants to lose a deer, or have to track a wounded deer. Random shooting at shadows just isn't that common. Inexperienced hunters or unsupervised kids might do these things, though, but it isn't that common. I never like to hunt with some guy that was chided into deer hunting and really isn't into it.
Wear blaze orange, don't wear white, if you are with someone else talk a lot because nothing else sounds like a human voice in the woods. Don't go bushwhacking, don't go into laurel and rhododendron thickets.
Most hunting accidents involve an accidental discharge where the hunter shoots himself.
eh, you're too small to be mistaken for a chicken.
Ok, how about cornish hen? :D
So many stereotypes about hunters...I've hunted all my life and nobody I personally know is shooting at movement or hunting drunk. If they were nobody would hunt with them...think about it. How's a drunk guy going to drag a heavy deer out of the woods, over the same terrain we all love to hike over except hunters will be bushwhacking while dragging this deer. All the hunters I know are interested in two things: getting a trophy buck, which means they are going to be very selective about which deer they shoot and how they shoot it, or putting meat in the freezer which means they are going to be very careful about shot placement also, since neither type of hunter wants to lose a deer, or have to track a wounded deer. Random shooting at shadows just isn't that common. Inexperienced hunters or unsupervised kids might do these things, though, but it isn't that common. I never like to hunt with some guy that was chided into deer hunting and really isn't into it.
Wear blaze orange, don't wear white, if you are with someone else talk a lot because nothing else sounds like a human voice in the woods. Don't go bushwhacking, don't go into laurel and rhododendron thickets.
Most hunting accidents involve an accidental discharge where the hunter shoots himself.
i usually sing
I would suggest taking precautions during hunting season by all means if your hiking anywhere close to hunting lands but I don't see any reason to not go into the woods just because there are hunters out there too.
Mrs Baggins
09-16-2009, 16:06
file:///C:/Users/Owner/AppData/Local/Temp/moz-screenshot.jpg
file:///C:/Users/Owner/AppData/Local/Temp/moz-screenshot.jpgImage post fail. :rolleyes::D
Image post fail. :rolleyes::D
She shoots. She.... MISSES!!!
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/81/237687234_3e4bb91dfa.jpg
Toolshed
09-16-2009, 23:27
We just realized that we'll be in southern NC on the trail during deer hunting season. While I realize there are responsible hunters that aren't going to shoot at everything that moves, I am well aware there are plenty of the ones that will shoot at anything that moves. So okay, we wear bright orange and hope for the best. But, because I have a very active imagination, now I'm worried about hunters using the shelters as base camps and party places while they're out. I've had hunters in the family and I've heard the stories.......:eek: I really like to stay at the shelters (we tent camp there) for many reasons but this is not meant to become a forum on the "evils" of shelters. I want to know if I have a legitimate concern or not. We could try to switch all of our plans to either Shenandoah or GSMP to get out of the "rifle range" of the hunters........and then my imagination and huge fear of bears kicks in. I know this is when they are getting very active, searching out food before hibernation.
I was raised by parents who saw monsters and murderers behind every rock and tree and I've worked very hard all my life to get over that (the fact that I've gotten into hiking/backpacking at all is a very huge deal in my family because "you'll get killed out there" is their favorite chant) but heavily armed, and possibly drunk, hunters and very hungry bears on the hunt are very real things - not phantom murderers behind rocks.
We're packed and ready to leave in a few days. Shuttles are all arranged. Hubby, who used to be a hunter, agrees that my fears about them are a very real concern but he has no fear of the bears.
I'm just talking out loud here I guess. I want to go but finding out about hunting season has really crushed my excitement. :(
More like babbling out loud. Baggins, you are an alarmist and more than a mere annoyance. If this is such a concern why not reach out to hunter hubbie? why trust the internet when you have the "voice of experience snoring next to you (probably sleeping off a drunken hunting trip - You know how those hunters can be)
By the way - What's the difference between "armed" and "heavily armed" ??
I wouldn't worry about bears either - just hide in the cracks in the shelter floors.
bronconite
09-17-2009, 07:23
By the way - What's the difference between "armed" and "heavily armed" ??
Armed:
http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/28582/skinny_medium.jpg
and Heavily Armed
http://www.louferrigno.com/images/products/clothing/t-shirts/vintage_lou.jpg
:D
More like babbling out loud. Baggins, you are an alarmist and more than a mere annoyance. If this is such a concern why not reach out to hunter hubbie? why trust the internet when you have the "voice of experience snoring next to you (probably sleeping off a drunken hunting trip - You know how those hunters can be)
By the way - What's the difference between "armed" and "heavily armed" ??
I wouldn't worry about bears either - just hide in the cracks in the shelter floors.
armed is a 30/30 and heavily armed is a 7mm mag?...:-?
Armed:
http://www.abdolian.com/thoughts/wp-content/uploads/2007/07/armed-squirrel.jpg
Heavily armed:
http://i138.photobucket.com/albums/q263/twh106/Force%20Recon/041223-M-5578G-044.jpg
Hoop Time
09-17-2009, 08:51
Orange Smorange....I wear this (http://www.sportsmansguide.com/zoom/zoompop.asp?i=162839_ts.JPG&h=&w=&bgc=&ui=&mc=&cf=&nv=&c=&adid=534538) in the "scentblocker" so that the Florida/Georgia hunters can't see or smell me.
I clicked on that link, but all it went to was what seemed to be a blank page. I didn't see any image.