Sketcher

I've never been hunting before, but hopefully next year I'll be able to go deer hunting for the first time. I will be using a rifle. Anyway, I was reading through the requirements of wearing hunters orange in my state. For my state (Connecticut), the law says that you must wear 400 square inches of flourescent orange. Does this include camoflage orange and solid orange, or is it just solid orange?

Also, I might also be hunting in West Virginia and the law there just says 400 square inches of hunter orange must be worn. It doesn't specify what kind, so can that also include camoflage orange?

m.t.hands

welcome sketcher, best bet would be call the dnr in that local, here we are required to were solid blaze orange unless 12' off the ground, so once your up a tree you can remove the orange, if your huntin around other people it would be advisable to wear the orange regardless of the law, i have already heard of 2 people being mistaken for squirrells this year[:@], one in wis. the other here in bama, guy shot his own cousin here[&o]just 15 miles from where i live, they had hunted for years together, anyway thats another story[&o]

Sketcher

Yeah, I plan on wearing orange regardless, but I was just wondering if comoflage orange is allowed in states that don't specify which orange. Because I was just reading reviews of comoflage orange and every review said that it breaks up your silouette much better. I don't think wearing a solid color will help much when hunting deer, although I could be wrong since I'm still new at this.

By the way, thanks for the welcome.

m.t.hands

the red/orange camo probably would work better, not legal here though[&o], deer are very good a picking up movement, so anything to break-up you outline would help, also if you got a lot to learn your in the right place this is a great group of guys, most of the time anyhow

tj_cubin

dumbest law ever.
i can see requiring orange, but solid orange? thats stupid, i dont know anyone that would prefer solid over camo orange. As long as its blaze orange, people will see you whether its solid or camo, but deer will definitely pick you out better with the solid.

im glad NY doesnt have an orange requirement, im not getting out a ruler and emasuring how many inches or orange i have on. Ill wear the amount of orange that i think is fit.

TomFromTheShade

I think that camouflage orange would be OK. I don't know any game warden that would cite you for wearing a completely blaze orange camo jacket. That would be rediculous.

skeeter 7MM

tj..you want to hear stupid when it comes to outer clothing requirements. In Saskatchewan(canada) where I hunt, during a biggame rifle season a hunter must be in a complete solid dress of the following colours only; Blaze Orange, Scarlet Red, Bright Yellow, White or any combination of these solid colours. Head wear can only consist of Blaze, Red or yellow (no white). Camo pattern is not acceptable. Now here's where it gets really stupid in the busiest/most hunted season Rifle whitetail deer which in most parts of the province is Nov, I can legally wear a solid white suit with a coloured hat. During this time of year we usually are snow covered. So please tell me how wearing white is safer than wearing camo blaze? In low light red turns brown and vanishes, when do most shots materialize? They just don't get it!!!

Another odd one is shotgun deer hunters mustadhere to thissolid dress code, while the Muzzleloading guys don't. With todays ML's their is little doubt these old rules no longer apply to modern day hunting.

Buy the orange jacket and your good to go. Having hunted in solid the most important thing is wind direction,movement and backing. Make sure the wind is blowing away from the deer or where you expect them to enter your shooting lane. Don't sit on top of a ridge rather sit the back or near side of it. Stand or sit leaning against a tree or fence post. Try to blend in to your surroundings vs stick out like a sore thumb. If you do this and watch your movements you'll have no troubles.

krub6b

In Missouri a solid blaze orange hat and vest is the minimum required during rifle season. I've never in my life spooked a deer from wearing orange and if your worried about it modify ur gun stands so that ur head and shoulders are all that's visible and then just don't make any sudden movements.

zekeskar

I have to repeat the advice someone gave you that you really need to know what your state requires. I wouln't assume anything. Some states require solid, some allow camo. Some allow camo as long as the blaze part meets the square inc requirement. For instance, the blaze requirement could be met with a vest and cap, but you choose to go blaze camo, you might have to wear a full jacket and cap.

Every state is different. Don't listen to anyone who gives you advice based on what they think seems reasonable or makes sense. Game laws don't always make sense, and the people enforcing them may or may not be "reasonable" people when it comes to making judgements on citations and the "spirit" vs "letter" of the law. Stick to the letter of the law in your state.

I personally prefer blaze camo and do feel it is better at concealment. I'd even go so far as to say that for deer's eyes, blaze camo is probably as good as any natural color camo, maybe better than a lot of them because it is a simple light/dark break up for the deer's eye (which I think is generally best regardless of the color). The blaze color probably looks similar to a neutral grayish/brownish hue to the deer. Straight blaze has the risk of looking like a light gray blob and a simple, sparse, dark spotting pattern turns this into an excellent break up camo. Many so-called natural camo patterns are far too dark to effectively break up your figure in the woods. You end up looking like a dark siloutte.

Based on me watching people walk through the thick woods in dim dusk/dawn light, I am also very confident that blaze camo is just as visible as straight camo - they're both extremely visible and I can't tell any difference in how soon or clearly I can see the person whether they're wearing straight or camo blaze.

All that said, if you're still, use the wind and also use the woods to help break up your siloutte, plain blaze won't cause you any problem. I regularly get out hunted by people who wear full plain blaze coveralls and cap just because they're better hunters. It's not a huge factor either way.

kevin1

A solid blaze cap is all you have to wear here ,camo blaze doesn't count. Bow hunters aren't required to wear it during our archery seasons . Check your own state's regs .