Blaze orange and hunter in area signs, do you use them?

[Junmity]

Went out for my first Moose hunt near PG and got lucky in the first three days. There was three other camps in the area and everyone was friendly and shared info.

As I was hunting though I noticed that the old timers to the area would park their vehicles in plain sight to show that someone was there and they always wore blaze orange vests and hats. I quite like there approach and started making myself more visable as the moose were sparse and you could feel that the other groups were getting anxious....

As a new hunter, I'd like to know if:

- you use blaze orange vests and hats?
- you use signs or stategies to let people know you're hunting in an area?
- you think the orange hinders your hunt?
- what other things do you do to avoid accidents?

I wish I could say I felt as safe around all the hunters as I did the oldtimers, but I really didn't as some of them really prefered stelth over visibility.

thanks for you info!

[skibum]

- you use blaze orange vests and hats?
KIDS ALWAYS DO, MYSELF, SOMETIMES. USUALLY WHEN HUNTING NEAR TOWN.

- you use signs or stategies to let people know you're hunting in an area?
NO

- you think the orange hinders your hunt?
NO

- what other things do you do to avoid accidents?
I HAVE MOVED AREAS AWAY FROM SOME IDIOTS, OTHER THAN THAT NOTHING THAN BE POLITE AND AWARE OF YOUR SURROUNDINGS. WEAR AN ORANGE HAT IF IT MAKES YOU FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE. I HAVE.

[Drillbit]

I hunt for real in Saskatchewan, everyone has a suit on! In BC I wear whatever I have on at the time (hunt pretty much every day varmints).

From my experience being a "poster" when a bush gets "pushed" is that smell and colour don't mean much. I've been almost run over many, many times by all sorts of game (elk/moose/deer/coyote).

The key is to not make noise and to not move when they look at you.

If orange makes you feel comfy, good for you, wear it. I wear clothes that work for dealing with sweat/weather when hunting and don't really care about what colour they are (although salmon is a "tough" fish, I don't try to be "tough" while hunting!).

I HATE signs so no I don't post a sign that I'm in the area. That would simply draw negative attention.

**For sale Balze Orange CCM hockey helmet, for ultimate hunter safety, size 7-8", will be Mandatory by 2020!! ........JK:)

[Kudu]

There is a lot to be said about that blaze orange camouflage - just look at how many yanks get shot while wearing it!

[warnniklz]

As a new hunter, I'd like to know if:

1 - you use blaze orange vests and hats?
2 - you use signs or stategies to let people know you're hunting in an area?
3 - you think the orange hinders your hunt?
4 - what other things do you do to avoid accidents?

I wish I could say I felt as safe around all the hunters as I did the oldtimers, but I really didn't as some of them really prefered stelth over visibility.

thanks for you info!

1 - no
2 - no/none
3 - don't know
4 - try to find an area with no one else in it

[Gateholio]

Thankfully we don't need to wear a pumpkin suit in BC

[Sofa King]

I never wear the blaze hats/vests.
no strategy to make others aware i'm in an area.
yes, blaze would hinder my hunt because i'd feel uncomfortable wearing it.
to avoid accidents, I avoid other hunters. I'll go wherever I need to to ensure i'm relatively alone out there.

[Dannybuoy]

Thankfully we don't need to wear a pumpkin suit in BC

Some of us don't look like pumpkins whilst wearing orange :-D

[limit time]

Some of us don't look like pumpkins whilst wearing orange :-D
Maybe a carrot?

[dd3boss]

I always carry a blaze orange toque and a blaze orange safety vest. I put them on when I am retrieving my game. I don't want to be shot while I am packing out my deer because someone only saw antlers moving.

[ROM]

Yes and recommend all new hunters to do the same
No
No
Hunt with safe people. lots of dangerous hunters out there. Each to their own I guess but safety has to be number one for me to hunt with a person. I'm not a huge fan of hunting alone but I always get more game when I do.

[huntwriter]

Went out for my first Moose hunt near PG and got lucky in the first three days. There was three other camps in the area and everyone was friendly and shared info.

- you use blaze orange vests and hats?
Yes I do


- you think the orange hinders your hunt?
If you mean with this that game can see blaze orange then the answer in NO it does not hinder your hunt because deer and such can't see blaze orange.

- what other things do you do to avoid accidents?
Try to avoid areas where other hunters are and get off the beaten track because that is where the animals go too when the hunting season begins. :)

[Darksith]

I bet its pretty rare that someone gets shot by accident. And when it does happen, its probably way more common in the shotgun (bird and rabbit) hunts where there are several people hunting "together" and they are tracking a fast moving target (dick chainey) rather than in the rifle/large game hunts. So no, I don't wear orange or advertise where I am. I also don't feel concerned, and I try to avoid crowds. Generally if on foot, thats not an issue. I have bumped into other hunters walking, but they didn't know I was there, unless I wanted them too

[steel_ram]

I usually have a blaze vest in my pack I will put on when If I get something and am carrying/dragging game. As long as the fabric is quiet colour makes no difference to game.
Bright clothes would make it easier to be spotted by rescuers if the need ever occurs.

As for safety around other hunters, I think your better off not being seen at all.

[deer nut]

I always carry a blaze orange toque and a blaze orange safety vest. I put them on when I am retrieving my game. I don't want to be shot while I am packing out my deer because someone's only saw antlers moving.
Same here. I must say I get nervous when I know other hunters are in the same area where I am skulking around in camo.

[Big Lew]

When rifle hunting I wear a red hat and use a vest when carrying game. Apparently deer are colour blind, so reds and oranges don't stand out as we see them. I avoid bright blue which they seem to notice more than any other colours. In low light conditions, most regular clothing that's not specifically designed for quality camo can actually shine in a deer's world because of the phosphates in it's makeup or from normal washing soaps.

[hare_assassin]

This thread and another current thread have got me thinking about all this much more than I have in the past. There's obviously a lot of unsafe hunters out there. Way more than I ever thought there was.

Blaze orange won't protect us from random bullets, but it might help protect us from people who shoot at any moving object. I dunno...

[markt308]

My dad and grandfather all use to hunt in red jackets and bright hats. I loved it when hiking with them cause if we were hiking and side hilling a hundred yards apart it was always so easy to spot thm and keep at a good distance. And they have both shot dozens and dozens of bucks so the brightness, like everyone has said, really not a factor.

A good reason to consider wearing the blaze is that a lot of idiots like to I.D objects by looking through their scope rather than their bino's. If you are huning with somebody and you see them do this, REMIND THEM why this is a terrible idea! Loaded or unloaded, I don't want anyone's gun pointing at me.

[Steelpulse]

I wear a full blaze jacket or blaze backed upland jacket, im from ontario where it's mandatory 60 percent upper body coverage I believe, no it doesn't hinder you, I feel safe with it on and I like the colour also can see miles away I think at least a hat is pretty smart but in the end not necessary

[Sofa King]

most shooting accidents wouldn't be prevented by blaze.
lots are people mishandling their weapons.
and blaze ain't protecting you when someone is blasting away at a skylit deer.
or like that picture I posted, when a dummy puts a can on a twig on the crest of a hill to use as target practice.
it doesn't hurt any though, for those that choose to wear it.

[TheProvider]

Ill bring flagging tape with me and hang lots of it off my back when bring out game. I grew up in ontario so a hat and vest was mandatory. Did it make us any safer? Probably not as alot of people like to use theirs scopes as binos. It was nice for moose hunting when you were set up in an area. If new hunters came into the area most of the time they would see the blaze orange and realize hunters were already there and go elsewhere.
The only thing I will do is if I have to cross a wide opening at dusk or once it gets dark is turn a headlamp or light on. Dont need anyone thinking I am an animal coming out just after dark.

You have to think most hunters are in stands blinds or sitting somewhere tucked away from prying eyes. You can be wsaring blaze orange and still be well hidden so dont think your safe just because you are wearing it. But if it makes you feel better do it.

[Gateholio]

Most dangerous part of your hunting trip is anywhere around a motor vehicle. Doubly so if operators have had a few drinks. Gunshot hunting accidents in BC are very rare, and when they happen they are almost always self inflicted or shooting your partner, and most often when mounting/ dismounting a pickup truck.

If blaze makes you feel safe then wear it, but there isn't any evidence that shows hunting would be safer while wearing it.

[Darksith]

There's obviously a lot of unsafe hunters out there. Way more than I ever thought there was.

Blaze orange won't protect us from random bullets, but it might help protect us from people who shoot at any moving object. I dunno...

why is there obviously a lot of unsafe hunters out there? I don't see, or hear of many people simply shooting at anything that moves. Especially hunters. If someone is shooting at anything that moves, most likely a young child or someone that isn't a hunter, but just a person with a gun. Anyway, very rare. I think gatehouse pretty much nailed it.

[skibum]

If you wear an orange hat, you are going to been seen for miles around by other hunters in an open sight line, I don't see any real need for an orange vest or jacket - personally I don't see really any additional benefit to covering yourself in orange.

For me it is more of a comfort thing, I wear the orange hat 50% of the time. I had a friend get scoped by an idiot.

I guess it is a bit comfort knowing that it is in my hands telling someone else that I am there.

Saying all that, kids are covered in the orange Sh..t.

[skibum]

I had a guy parallel me about 50 feet away for a while last year. He was walking a road above, myself the drainage. Had to whistle at him to let him know I was there before I turn my back to him to head another direction.

I guess some orange would have kept me quiet

[Jagermeister]

One of my 'unting partners from the late '70s. Overlooking the Nazko river south of Nazko just in case you were wondering.
hare_assassin stated,
Blaze orange won't protect us from random bullets, but it might help protect us from people who shoot at any moving object.http://i1168.photobucket.com/albums/r496/Leaveoff/redjacket.jpg

The full camo rage was actually started by the archery people. This interest in achery hunting was starting to build in the '80s due to hunting shows which featured Fred Bear and others. This fraternity of hunters used military surplus camo gear. I know, I had some. It was the "mandatory" requirement for bowhunters.

As you can see, my friend has the jacket and hat which were not required by law. Personal preference for most, he used it releigiously while I preferred to maybe use a blaze orange hat on occasion. I preferred a red/black Mackinaw jacket.

Although deer do not see the color spectrum except bright blue as BigLew stated, they do see contrast. The large defined shape of the blaze orange jacket would be noticeable because the pattern is unbroken, that is why those suits of blaze orange are now broken pattern.

We have been quite lucky in this province that hunter mortality is low due to careless hunters, but I remind you of that fellow that was shot while astride his ATV in the Peace Region a while back. You just can't always protect yourself from STUPID.