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Geocaching, Hunters And Safety Vests


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Aaaahhhh Yesssss!

The annual "drunken hunters v. liberal tree hugger" argument.

 

Hunter/fisherman/biologist/cacher here. I personally stay out of the hunting areas (unless hunting) during the season. A lot of preseason work goes into a hunting spot and I don't want to ruin somebodies hunting season. It is a respect thing. Yes, it is public land and the cacher has every right to be there, just like the hunter. Just because the cacher doesn't like the hunter DOES NOT give him the right to purposely interfere. If you are caching and determine that a cache is very near a hunter.....get it later. It is common courtesy. If you were going after a cache in a city park and saw that it was going to be at a park pavilion where a wedding was taking place, would you go blasting through there? Common courtesy.

 

WEAR THE ORANGE!!!!!

 

Carry on!

That is very good advice you gave! <_<

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These statistics were provided by the National Safety Council, Statistics Unit in Chicago for 1995 for the (ENTIRE) U.S. If you are interested in additional numbers, they can be contacted at 1-800-621-7615 extension 2365. The numbers for hunting are from 1996 and do not include numbers from Canada.

 

Outdoor Activity Deaths

Boating 836

Hang Gliding 28

Sky Diving 28

Football 4

Personal Watercraft 79

Hunting 87

Scuba Diving 97

Swimming 1,700

 

eta: looks like some people better give up hydro caching if they're really concerned about safety. otherwise they're just another alarmist, reinforcing stereotypes at the expense of facts. when farmers do this it's called fertilizing, and it's acceptable.

Edited by denali7
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Boy this thing went way off course.

Clarification time, I don't have a problem with hunters, I like venison jerky as much as the next person, I have a problem with hunters that drink before going hunting, but when you live in an area that you can buy ammunition, a hunting permit, and beer in the same store, makes you wonder dosen't it. There used to be a law in Omaha NE that if you sold beer at your 7-11 store you couldn't sell gas, and vice versa, interesting concept, huh? I use to go fishing, but I don't have the time now, or maybe it is the patience I am lacking instead, not sure. I will be ordering my blaze vest soon btw., or maybe a whole suit, hat gloves the works.

Cabelas here I come!

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It's not really off course. Where some of us have been going is the perception most people have is nothing like reality. A hiker or geocacher is much more likely to get struck by lightning or win the lottery then they are to get accidental shot by a legal hunter.

Does that mean you don't really need to wear blaze orange? No, of course not. The fact that so many people know to do this (in fact it's a law in many states that non-hunters must wear x square inches of blaze orange if they are going to be in a hunting area), along with the fact that the VAST majority of hunters are NOT beer-swilling Bubbas, is a testament to the fact that in many states there are years or even decades between accidental non-hunter shootings.

 

So absolutely play it safe and legal in the woods (all the time, not just hunting season), but there is certainly no need to be paranoid.

 

And for the more shall we say frugal cachers, one year after hunting season was over I picked up about a dozen cheap vests at walmart for .25 each (all they had left or I woulda bought more). Left them all in caches in hunting areas.

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Hunting                        87

Gee, only 87?

And of those 87, how many were NOT other hunters?

Anyone? Bueller?

Going from rough memory, the few accidents that have made the news here were often hunters who got injured. I remember one odd one where the guy tripped over his dog, the gun went flying, and then somehow fired and shot him in the leg. I also remember another where another hunter was shot, but I don't remember details. I think it was another wierd mis-firing thing though. There aren't a bunch of injuries out here. With less people and such hunters often don't even see another person when out. When I went with my dad as a kid, we rarely saw another person.

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"Cabelas here I come!"

 

you are truly blessed, shaker.  are you really close?  :mad:

New Cabelas going up in La Vista (suburb of Omaha) expected opening fall 2006. Bass Pro Shops should be opening in Council Bluffs in a month or so.

 

Bad for my budget.....

Yep! Me too! :D Fortunately it is just enough of a drive to keep me from spending too much. But I am a sucker for outdoor stores. And with winter coming, I can think of all sorts of winter caching clothes that I want. :huh:

Edited by carleenp
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yeah, the one in PA is only about a two-hour drive from me, so i'd say close enough to be easy, but not around the corner enough to be BIG trouble, like carleen's. snowmobiling season is just around the corner (i go every weekend, dec-mar), and i LOVE winter gear. i plan on getting in lots of trouble saturday, blowing off a day "stuck" at cabela's while the little 'un is in class (who knew cabela's had classrooms?). heck, i think there's even a cache somewhere outside the building! :D

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"Cabelas here I come!"

 

you are truly blessed, shaker.  are you really close?  :mad:

New Cabelas going up in La Vista (suburb of Omaha) expected opening fall 2006. Bass Pro Shops should be opening in Council Bluffs in a month or so.

 

Bad for my budget.....

Yep! Me too! :D Fortunately it is just enough of a drive to keep me from spending too much. But I am a sucker for outdoor stores. And with winter coming, I can think of all sorts of winter caching clothes that I want. :huh:

yeah....see, the new cabelas is going to be less than 10 miles from my sister's apartment, and I have to drive past the new bass pro shops to get to her place...

 

Not good.

 

Back on-topic (sorta) those injury numbers include incidents such as hunters falling out of treestands, breaking a leg in a fall and freezing to death, and even a case where a hunter was posing his game for a photo, his puppy stepped on the shotgun and it went of and shot him.

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yeah, the one in PA is only about a two-hour drive from me, so i'd say close enough to be easy, but not around the corner enough to be BIG trouble, like carleen's.  snowmobiling season is just around the corner (i go every weekend, dec-mar), and i LOVE winter gear.  i plan on getting in lots of trouble saturday, blowing off a day "stuck" at cabela's while the little 'un is in class (who knew cabela's had classrooms?).  heck, i think there's even a cache somewhere outside the building!  :D

You actually have enough snow for snowmobiling?, If we were so lucky.

Edited by earthshaker
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I just avoid the woods during the hunting seasons around here. I don't feel like being Cooter, Booger, and Cletuses trophy for the alcohol soaked weekend "hunt"

Some people are just paranoid. You stand a much better chance of being in a car wreck on the way to finding a cache

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i drive almost 4 hours each way, every weekend, just to get that snow. i LOVE winter!!

seriously, there's always the occasional bad winter, which, by my definition, means no snow. that hasn't happened in quite a while, though. the trail system i belong to is in the northeastern corner of PA, sort of near binghamton, NY. we get significantly more snow up there than the philadelphia area, just because of the geography and altitude. most winters, it gets pretty cold, and stays that way. that's fine, as the trail association runs groomers to make the most of whatever snow we get. we do run through state gamelands on our trail system, but the hunters can hear us coming so it's not as hairy a situation as with caching. some of the hunters actually say that they like when we come through, as we tend to drive the deer. it's funny when conversations like this come up, it seems there's always a factional situation. as with hunters, some people hate snowmobilers, and lump us all together as a bunch of drunken speed-demons, tearing up and polluting the forests. they'd be pretty surprised to see how many groups, like mine, consist of women, children, old guys, you name it. heck, we have three generations in our family gang, all out enjoying the scenery at a pace not much faster than a bicycle tour. you don't enjoy seeing deer, foxes, and eagles tearing around like a madman anyway! :D

Edited by denali7
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Unlike Snat, who says he would be unlikely to be mistaken for a deer, I am very likely to be mistaken for, um, something - furry brown hair, brown skin, and I like to "bound" around in the woods.

 

I have encountered hunters while caching - if I am bushwhacking, I get back to the trail pronto to give them their space.

 

And, let's not forget that you don't need to worry solely about legit hunters - just a few days ago I was on a hunt in a pretty dense wood (I did not see any signs permitting - or excluding - hunting, but the season has not yet opened here) and I heard gunfire VERY close by - too close, creeped me right out. On a return trip to the area for another cache, we came upon an area of shot up bottles, signs, appliances, car wrecks - shot gun shells galore. Obviously kids playing around - and I'd be more worried about teens with firearms shooting for thrills than hunters with a clue.

 

Wear your orange!

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Somebody was asking for some statistics, so I did a little research on last years hunting seasons in WI:

 

There were 644,000 resident Gun Deer liscenses sold last year- this does not include other hunting liscenses or non-resident liscenses.

 

There were a total of 41 incidents defined as:

"that in which a person is injured by the discharge of a hunting firearm or

bow and arrow outside of the home and arising from the activity of hunting, including travel to and from the hunting field."

 

This gives a accident rate of 6 per 100,000 hunters (double the year before) or .006%

 

Of those 41 incidents:

 

2 were fatal (1 was self inflicted)

 

Overall:

 

59% shotguns, 34% rifles, 3% bows.

 

31% were self inflicted

 

93% of 2 party incidents were members of the same hunting party

 

68% of 2 party incidents the victim was NOT wearing orange

 

I could find No examples of a non-hunter being involved in any of the incidents.

 

Numbers for the 2003 season were much the same, no non-hunters that year, either.

 

2004 WI hunting accident report

Edited by Docapi
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The CNN story posted above doesn't count. That was a bow hunter shot by someone (illegally? I havent heard anything the the squirrel hunter was doing so legally. Sounds more like a dumb@a** without a license) squirrel hunting.

My point here was it's not even deer season (gun) yet and there are people getting killed or hurt in the woods. It is Turkey time though.

 

You should always be aware where you are and whether or not hunting is allowed there. Assume that the hunters don't know you’re around so it’s your responsibility for YOUR own safety.

 

So the story counts to prove that it is DANGEROUS.... Its was very recently.

Edited by pcfrog
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yeah, the one in PA is only about a two-hour drive from me, so i'd say close enough to be easy, but not around the corner enough to be BIG trouble, like carleen's.  snowmobiling season is just around the corner (i go every weekend, dec-mar), and i LOVE winter gear.  i plan on getting in lots of trouble saturday, blowing off a day "stuck" at cabela's while the little 'un is in class (who knew cabela's had classrooms?).  heck, i think there's even a cache somewhere outside the building!  :P

Yeah there is a parking lot micro there and another thingy hidden across the road at the Cracker Barrel, but if you want to expore an interesting area...driive a short ways down Route 61 and do This Cache.

 

Try to find the trail mentioned on the cache page and take that in. A bushwack from the backside really spoils what this cache is all about. It will also keep your feet dry! We were able to park right beside the trail during the winter last year even with plowed snow there, but it may of changed. This cache takes about an hour or two depending on your pace.

 

The cache is on a SGL so consider wearing orange even outside the Mid Nov to Mid December required dates.

 

Salvelinus

 

edited for clarity

Edited by Salvelinus
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So the story counts to prove that it is DANGEROUS.... Its was very recently.

In that case, statistically, waking up in the morning is dangerous. Actually leaving the confines of your house is insane, and getting in a car is pure lunacy. What's your point? Everything we do has risks attatched; we cope by recognizing those risks and taking steps to minimize them. Smoke detectors, seat belts, etc. When geocaching or hiking in hunting seasons, those steps include wearing orange if you go out, or just avoiding the area if there's hunters present.

 

I can assure you, around here the only time I would be concerned being in the woods would be during the shotgun seasons, just for the sheer number of hunters out. The rest of hunting season, I stay out of the woods out of respect for the fewer hunters there, and would appreciate the same when I'm out hunting.

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My point here was it's not even deer season (gun) yet and there are people getting killed or hurt in the woods.  It is Turkey time though. 

 

 

So the story counts to prove that it is DANGEROUS....  Its was very recently.

 

The fact that it made national news shows that it is rare enough to be newsworthy, not a common occurence. Not like a drunken driving accident, for example, which MIGHT make the local paper, if that.

 

Yes, it is possible for there to be an accident, but the statistics show that it is more likely that you will be killed in an accident on the way there than to be killed by a hunter once you are there.

 

Did you see the stats I posted? in the last 2 years, 1.3 Million liscenses sold, and exactly 0 accidents involving non-hunters.

 

Heck, Statistically, Geocaching itself is more dangerous than being in the woods during hunting seasons- a quick search of the forums shows many cases where geocachers were injured (even killed) while looking for a cache.

Edited by Docapi
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And for the more shall we say frugal cachers, one year after hunting season was over I picked up about a dozen cheap vests at walmart for .25 each (all they had left or I woulda bought more). Left them all in caches in hunting areas.

A great swag idea Mopar. I'll keep my eyes open for some after season bargains.

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Should I temporarily disable during big game hunting season four caches I hid in PA's State Game Lands? I included a couple of warnings example on the web page that hunting season has started and told people to wear flourescent orange, but who needs to be responsible if some dumb cacher doesn't read the warning and goes out in camo clothes and gets shot by some slightly inebriated hunter. There are morons on both sides, let's face it.

 

Or would you just leave the caches active and be convinced that if something happens, your concience would be clear?

 

(Honesty in disclosure requires me to mention that I myself never cache in hunting areas during big game season. I'm not nuts. Orange or no orange. Fortunately there are enough woods around that prohibit hunting that I can cache in during those times.)

 

What do you think?

 

edit=clarity

Edited by Alan2
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You've got to do what you feel is right. The cache I have in a hunting area (~300 yards from my deer stand) I placed several warnings on the cache page that hunting season has opened, and will likely temp. disable the cache during the shotgun slug season due to the large number of people that hunt that area.

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You know, I'd never really thought of it before. As a former hunter I know that here in Oklahoma Archery season is over three months long, and anybody who believes you can't be killed by a compound bow needs to check the facts and rethink their position. Also, if you stop and think of all the different varmits you can hunt then it's almost always gun season for SOMETHING.

 

I know where most of the public hunting lands are hereabouts, and of course I don't have cause to be geocaching on private property, but I think I'll have to get out all my old gear and start wearing it when I'm caching in the woods. And maybe purchase some for my kids too. (course, when my kids are in the woods, they make enough racket to be identified a mile away.)

 

As for the drunk talk going around, there could be drunks in ANY hobby or group. And a guy doesn't even have to be drunk to shoot you, he just has to have buck fever.

 

But just because a few are irresponsible doesn't mean we should generalize them. Shoot, with all the unmaintained caches we've all seen, should I just assume that all geocachers are irresponsible?

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This happens to be my favorte time of year...as an avid geocacher as well as an avid hunter I combine the two into one trip...I try to find 2 or 3 unfound caches in an area that has fair deer and elk hunting and go for it...I personaly don't wear much hunter orange...I'm just funny that way...the joke around here has always been if they can see you than your a better target...I truely believe that sometimes...Mondays the day and I can't wait...

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Should I temporarily disable during big game hunting season four caches I hid in PA's State Game Lands?  I included a couple of warnings example  on the web page that hunting season has started and told people to wear flourescent orange, but who needs to be responsible if some dumb cacher doesn't read the warning and goes out in camo clothes and gets shot by some slightly inebriated hunter.  There are morons on both sides, let's face it.

 

Or would you just leave the caches active and be convinced that if something happens, your concience would be clear?

 

(Honesty in disclosure requires me to mention that I myself never cache in hunting areas during big game season.  I'm not nuts.  Orange or no orange.  Fortunately there are enough woods around that prohibit hunting that I can cache in during those times.)

 

What do you think?

 

edit=clarity

It won't do any good to just disable it in order to "clear you conscience". You would also have to physically remove it and even then its not 100% certain you won't have cachers looking for it. I see all the time in logs where a DNF was posted on a temp archived cache with the message "I should of read the cache page before I went looking for this one".

 

I think you also need to keep things in perspective. The person looking for your cache on the gamelands has a far greater chance of having a car accident while driving to the gamelands than actually being involved in a hunting accident there.

For some reason we have no problem accepting the far greater risk of automobile accidents while caching but seem to overract to issues of far less risk...like hunting, snakebites, bear attacks, ticks, etc...

 

I personally don't cache in SGL's during hunting season only because I respect the idea that it is the hunter's opportunity to enjoy those lands they have pretty much paid for.

 

Salvelinus

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Hunters, drunk or otherwise, aren't as big a concern out here (AZ) as plinkers. It's very easy to accidentally get yourself downrange of someone who has set up for a day of marksmanship practice.

 

As far as hunters go, I try to avoid bushwhacking through their favorite areas in-season 'cause I'd scare off the game. As for a drunk hunter mistaking me for an animal and shooting--it's probably safer to be his intended target than just in the general area, as the various hunting-incident anecdote illustrate. Heck, probably worst of all is to be his buddy or his dog :unsure:

Edited by Mule Ears
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I'd just like to say as a hunter/fisherman/new cacher please do not judge all hunters based one's actions. Those who told about hunters who litter and are careless and or drunk, let me assure you that's not how I do things, nor do any of my friends or family that hunt. From reading in these forums the past few days I can clearly see there are slob geocachers that can make the whole bunch look bad to non-cachers. The same thing happens to hunters, a few slobs make the whole bunch look bad. :lol:

 

I would avoid caching in public hunting areas when hunters are in the area, there is nothing more frustrating to a hunter to be sitting there enjoying nature, waiting for the animals, only to have someone walk right in front of you. I once had a few kids walk out the woods right past me while bowhunting, they never knew I was there, but they definitely ruined the hunt because I saw nothing that night, and to top it off they were trespassing. I've only been caching a few weeks but it seems to me there are enough urban caches to keep a cacher busy during hunting season.

 

(btw if it's bow season, hunter orange is always not required for the hunters, and today's camo makes someone really hard to spot while up in a tree, I've talked to a lot of fellow hunters who tell me about people that walked right under their stands without ever knowing they are there, just because you didn't see a hunter doesn't mean they were not there, you can ruin someone else's experiences outdoors without ever knowing it if you are not careful.)

 

If you absolutely must go out in hunting areas please do wear hunter orange because there are some idiots out there, and as someone else said, it gives a hunter a better peace of mind while hunting in a public area if everyone is wearing orange because then they can look and make sure there is no one behind the animal they are shooting at. In my area, I even see people walking down the road wear orange this time of year, around here people are used to it, if you are in the woods for any reason always wear orange.

 

Oh and just for the record I don't drink at all. Never have and never plan to actually, just the way I was raised, the #1 thing I think about while hunting is always saftey. So I take some offense to the "drunken hunter" remark I sometimes hear from non-hunters.

Edited by Tsmola
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Archery season is over three months long, and anybody who believes you can't be killed by a compound bow needs to check the facts and rethink their position.

 

I don't think anybody doubts that a bow can kill people. Heck they were used for that purpose for thousands of years. But because a bowhunter has to be very close to his quarry for him to be effective, its very unlikely he would mistake a person for a deer.

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Archery season is over three months long, and anybody who believes you can't be killed by a compound bow needs to check the facts and rethink their position.

 

I don't think anybody doubts that a bow can kill people. Heck they were used for that purpose for thousands of years. But because a bowhunter has to be very close to his quarry for him to be effective, its very unlikely he would mistake a person for a deer.

It's also not as easy to "bang away" at rustling bushes.

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any good hunter would not mistake a person for a deer anyway, it's continutally said during hunter saftey courses: "always identify your target before you shoot" In addition to other hunters, non-hunters in the woods there's also a lot of other critters out there, and sometimes the sounds of them walking can sound a lot alike. That's one big reason why hunting accidents do happen, someone wasn't identifying what it was they heard or was looking at before shooting, which is silly because you think that would be common sense ya know?

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A little bit more of hunting education for non-hunters who may be concerned.

 

Part of the reason it is so critical for a bowhunter to identify his/her target is because of the primitive nature of the bow/arrow, shot placement is CRITICAL. As is avoiding detection by the animal. So, what usually happens is as the game comes into a range, the hunter must pick an instant in time where the animal cannot see him and draw the bow. Modern adult compound bows have a draw weight of 50-80 lbs, and require between 30-50% of that effort to hold them at full draw. So, you definitely don't want to sit there at full draw and 'wait' for something, you only draw once you have identified the animal and are sure you'll get a clear shot.

 

And, you will never surprise a bowhunter on stand. This time of year, you will be heard approaching quite a ways away, since the hunter is sitting there listening to every single sound that happens in the woods.

 

While the 'danger' to you as a human in the woods, specifically during bow seasons, is extremely minimal, it is a matter of respect that should keep you out. A quick walk through a timber can screw up the day for a hunter. In example, while walking in to my stand tonight, I was spotted by 4 deer, which bolted and probably ran to the next county. Didn't see another animal the rest of the night.

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Archery season is over three months long, and anybody who believes you can't be killed by a compound bow needs to check the facts and rethink their position.

 

I don't think anybody doubts that a bow can kill people. Heck they were used for that purpose for thousands of years. But because a bowhunter has to be very close to his quarry for him to be effective, its very unlikely he would mistake a person for a deer.

It's also not as easy to "bang away" at rustling bushes.

Both of you raise good points, but what I'm thinking about (notice I didn't say "worries", we'll get to that later) is the novice out there with Buck Fever. While I don't sound anything like a deer when I walk through the woods, (steady pace, not stopping, WAY too much noise), a novice might not be aware of that. And that novice might pull back to full draw just before I come through the edge of the brush, and when I do come out, "Buck Fever" takes over.

 

Now, the likelyhood of that is slim, and most novice hunters are going to be accompanied by a more experienced hunter that's going to point out... "That ain't a deer, that sounds like some dumb guy crashing through the woods". That's why I say I "think about it".

 

I for one remember my own Buck Fever. I had the Hunter's Ed course, I talked extensively with experienced hunters, I quoted firearms safety in my sleep. But I think the first four days of the season, until I got to fill my tag with a 150 lb buck, I was probably on the edge of a breakdown the entire time. Now that I look back, I wonder why my Dad even had the guts to take me in the woods. I'd have been scared. Maybe I didn't look insane on the outside, but I was long gone on the inside.

 

What it all boils down too.... Am I worried? No. Have I had a bit of food for thought? You bet. I'm going to start planning ahead a bit better than I usually do, and make sure that if I do get close to hunting land I'm wearing my orange and am keeping my eyes peeled a little better. As others have pointed out in this thread, watching for signs of hunters is as much a courtesy to keep from spooking the game as the fear of being fired upon. I can always get a cache later.

 

Now, as for what "worries" me? That I might get the urge to go hunting again myself. The time required for it might cut into my fishing and caching time.... lol.

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Yes, better safe than sorry. Hear that everyone?! A vest costs like 5 bucks. A hat is a luxury item at 10 bucks.

What's your excuse for not wearing them? Hm? Afraid of looking silly?

 

[puts hand on hip and casts a narrow-eyed scowl at you] WEAR YOUR SAFETY ORANGE, if not for anything else, but cause *I* said so. :ph34r: And trust me, you don't want to piss me off.

 

:lol:

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The muggles have just as much right ot the woods as the geocachers. So what if the hunters get annoyed? So what if the geocacher gets annoyed? If it is public property and you have the right ot be there, so what? If the area is closed during hunting season, then that should be respected. If not, then noone is doing anything wrong.

 

For me its not so much about right, but about sharing and repect. I just totally avoid hunting areas during popular days (most game is taken on opening day/weekend of the seasons) and popular seasons (first and second shotgun deer season!). There are lots of hunters out, they're using slugs, and I don't much care for shotgun blasts as background music for geocaching <_< .

Some seasons run for MONTHS or are continuous so theres no way to totally avoid all hunters, but I can choose to cache during the low activatly times/seasons.

 

oh, and be careful about your "I can be here anytime" attitude, some states (Iowa at least) has laws about not purposely interfering with legal hunters. I don't know what the punishment is, or even that geocaching would qualify, but why try to tick people off for no reason? In most cases wait a couple weeks and that season ends anyways.

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I have the feeling that the dog and I would have gotten shot today if we had not headed the other direction, a long story short, there was a tree stand within 200 feet of the cache and while looking for it, someone was up in the stand slappin some antlers together. We headed in the other direction. For everyone in Illinois, archery season is in full effect. I kinda wish I had paid better attention to the cache page and seen it said don't hunt this cache during hunting season, and better yet, I wish the cache owner would temporarily disable his cache during hunting season, or atleast post when hunting season is on the cache page instead of just expecting everyone to know.

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I have the feeling that the dog and I would have gotten shot today if we had not headed the other direction, a long story short, there was a tree stand within 200 feet of the cache and while looking for it, someone was up in the stand slappin some antlers together.  We headed in the other direction.  For everyone in Illinois, archery season is in full effect.  I kinda wish I had paid better attention to the cache page and seen it said don't hunt this cache during hunting season, and better yet, I wish the cache owner would temporarily disable his cache during hunting season, or atleast post when hunting season is on the cache page instead of just expecting everyone to know.

Would you care to elaborate on why you think you would have been shot? Did the hunter make some move of aggression towards you? Or was it simply because there was a hunter in the area? To put it simply, a bowhunter spends WAY too much sitting on a little metal platform way up in a tree to ruin that spot with human blood on the ground nearby.

 

Just to educate you a little bit, the hunter 'slapping some antlers together' was doing what we hunters call rattling. What he was trying to do is simulate the sound of two bucks sparring. If the dominant buck in the area hears this, he's going to charge in to see who's encroaching on his territory, thus giving the hunter a chance to get a shot at him. It was not in any way, shape, or form a warning to you that if you don't get out of my place, I'm gonna put an arrow in you. If anything, I'd guess it more to be a way for the hunter to say 'hey, I'm here, please respect my space' without making a human noise that might spook the deer.

 

Yes, I agree that cache owners should at least post a note on their pages stating that the cache is in public hunting area. But that's no reason to harbor unfounded fear that a random hunter in the woods is going to start taking pot shots at you.

Edited by dkwolf
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I have the feeling that the dog and I would have gotten shot today if we had not headed the other direction, a long story short, there was a tree stand within 200 feet of the cache and while looking for it, someone was up in the stand slappin some antlers together.  We headed in the other direction.  For everyone in Illinois, archery season is in full effect.  I kinda wish I had paid better attention to the cache page and seen it said don't hunt this cache during hunting season, and better yet, I wish the cache owner would temporarily disable his cache during hunting season, or atleast post when hunting season is on the cache page instead of just expecting everyone to know.

Would you care to elaborate on why you think you would have been shot? Did the hunter make some move of aggression towards you? Or was it simply because there was a hunter in the area? To put it simply, a bowhunter spends WAY too much sitting on a little metal platform way up in a tree to ruin that spot with human blood on the ground nearby.

 

Just to educate you a little bit, the hunter 'slapping some antlers together' was doing what we hunters call rattling. What he was trying to do is simulate the sound of two bucks sparring. If the dominant buck in the area hears this, he's going to charge in to see who's encroaching on his territory, thus giving the hunter a chance to get a shot at him. It was not in any way, shape, or form a warning to you that if you don't get out of my place, I'm gonna put an arrow in you. If anything, I'd guess it more to be a way for the hunter to say 'hey, I'm here, please respect my space' without making a human noise that might spook the deer.

 

Yes, I agree that cache owners should at least post a note on their pages stating that the cache is in public hunting area. But that's no reason to harbor unfounded fear that a random hunter in the woods is going to start taking pot shots at you.

The elaboration would come when I looked over at the treestand and tried to keep trees in between the dog, me and the hunter. The rattling continued as we left. If he was making a point, I got it. That had crossed my mind that he might be letting me know he was in the tree. What bothered me was that it continued as we headed back the direction we came from and didn't stop. So I ask myself, had I come into a clear shot of him or had the dog for that matter, would there be an arrow sticking out of one of us at this time? That question no one will ever be able to answer.

 

Not saying all hunters do this, but I know of a lot of hunters in this area that go up in a tree stand with some liquor and come down with none. I don't know if he was drinking in this situation since I was smart enough to leave and leave in a direction that was behind the hunter. Another thing I know is a lot of deer hunters around here will shoot a coyote if they see one when they get bored, as the season for coyotes is anytime of the year and anytime you can get a shot. If the hunter could not see me because of any trees in the way and only the dog if it decided to dart out, I might have a dead dog and that would suck.

 

I didn't mean for this to start into anything. I made my original post to let off some steam.

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Would you use one or take your chances with inebriated hunters,

Let's be carefull about generalizing. 'Ineberiated Hunters' is not really supported by any of the statictics. I have been hunting for 20 years and have never came across an 'inebriated hunter.'

 

Activity Participants Injuries Deaths

Swimming 59.5 million 83,772 1500

Bicylcing 45.1 million 49,000 700

Hunting 15.4 million 880 92

 

This was taken from the International Hunter Eductation Association

 

A large number of the deaths are from self inflicted, Accidental discharges and the injuries are from everything from falling in the woods to accidental shootings. Still the number is so low that it would be iresponsible to make the generalization that you do.

 

Do be carefull in the woods, do wear bright clothing, but don't fear hunters. They are the ones who have provided the funding for your state to keep those parks and Wildlife areas open.

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