How do you protect yourself when woods hunting?

[njnydigger]

Quick question guys and gals...

I'm going to start getting more into the hunting of woods sites here in NJ. Cellar holes, old trails, etc. I'm not normally one to go alone into the woods by myself, so, will probably be bringing along a hunting buddy or two of mine. Question is...

How do all of you protect yourself when out detecting in the deep woods? You know, from bears, snakes, loonies walking around in the sticks, ticks, etc. Any advice to a newb woods hunter is greatly appreciated. Oh yeah, do most of you prefer to hunt in the Spring and Fall when the vegetation dies down or do ya'll just "brave it" all year long?

Finally, any strange or scary situations that has happened to any of you while out in the woods seems like a good topic post. So, fire away!!!

 

[lumbercamp]

My digging is always in the woods by myself. I may be 4 miles back in from my truck and I have never been concerned about any danger in the woods, In NJ you would have black bears and they won't hurt you. Consider yourself lucky if you see one because they are a shy animal. I have trudged out after dark numerous times and enjoyed walking in the dark. I don't know what kind of snakes are in your area, but any non poisonous snake I have come across has 100% crawled away from me and I am one to pick up rocks looking for them. Ticks would be a concern, but there is spray to keep them at bay. There is no animal in the woods that would attack you unless you come across a rabid animal. Enjoy yourself and don't worry at all about any wild creature. My digging is mainly Oct to May. The weeds are too tall in the summer for me to go out.

 

[luvsdux]

I carry a pistol. Don't ever expect to need it, but if the one time ever happens, I'm prepared.
lusdux

 

[eagleeye299]

I'm new to this form and recently got back into MDing after a 10 year lay off, also living in N.J. and having spent way to much time in the woods of our state doing many diffrent activities I can tell you for certain you have nothing to fear. I would be far more worried hunting in many local parks than out in the woods. Bears won't bother you, if you make enough noise they will be long gone before you see them, as for ticks, spray your clothing with "Permonone" a bug spray you can get at most outdoor stores. Spray yourself with a 40% Deet bug spray. Don't run into to many crazies in the woods, mostly hikers, have never had a problem even when carrying thousands worth of photo equipment. Carrying a good digging tool like a Lesche should give you all the protection you need since we can't carry firearms in this state. Get out there and enjoy.

 

[Deepdiger60]

I love hunting the deep woods where you walk for a hour and come upon a stone wall or chimney always good pickings i hunt alone but i pack a punch .40cal and a cell phone in my back pack cause you just never know who or what is out there personally i wouldn't worry about wild animals they keep there distance its the bugs you gotta worry about use spray lots of it even then i still pick ticks off me when i get home besides now the fields are like cement dry and dust out the woods is still soft soil and if you smoke ? don't the woods on the North East coast right now are like a fire bomb just waiting to go off ,if you walk for a few hours and find a good remains of a very old home stead mark it on your GPS so you can find it again also mark where you parked on GPS cause you gotta get back Good luck Dd60

 

[KYBuzzBox]

I am normally alone when I am detecting deep in the forrest and cornfields usually miles away from the SUV. I always use a good 40% deet bugspray, I carry a small backpack with water (two 2 1/2 quart canteens - attached to the pack), rubber poncho, a survival kit (MRE, matches, flashlight, ect..), first-aid kit, extra batteries, Coils (2). I also have my S&W model-19 .357 loaded with +p hydra-shocks, Cellphone, Lesche digging tool, and a folding Entrenching tool on my pistol belt (US Army Vietnam surplus with quick release).

I was raised in the backcountry of WVA and KY, so being by myself is not an issue. The only issues I have ever encountered in the deep woods are Ticks, an occasional Rattle Snake, and worrying about falling and breaking a leg. A good map and compass (GPS) is a must if hunting in unfamiliar territory. Make sure you have permmission from the land owners and tell someone where you are going and when you expect to be back.

Hope this helps....
KYBuzzBox

 

[dick99344]

I hunt the Salmo-Priest Wilderness for gold by panning and MD when permitted. The Sullivan Creek area will be open to prospecting for the month of August. I stay at a camp ground that has been known to have Grizzly bears visit. This area is a Griz recovery area. I pack two large containers of bear spray and make plenty of noise when going from one stream to another. In camp, I have a Remington 30-06. If you shoot a Griz, even in self defense, you will receive a heavy fine and possible jail time. As a camper in his territory, you are expected to be familiar with the ways and means to avoid a bear encounter. We have black bear in this area as well. I had an encounter with one when he stuck his head through the door of my tent. I smacked him on the end of his nose with a heavy flashlight. He did not hang around after that. All the campers were alerted and he was not seen again. I, of course, had to change my shorts after that and remained awake for the rest of the night. I heard later that he was tranquilized and moved out of the area. The bears will attack you here under the right conditions. There are too many people feeding them when they are not supposed to. If you smell like a meal, you can be dragged from your tent and you will become a meal. I always take my dog with me, he alerts me as to anything that may be outside the tent at night. There are too many people and too many bear trying to coexist in this area. They were here first.

We have Wolves here again. Cougars, Badgers, Raccoons, Moose, Mountain Caribo, and Timber Rattlers to watch out for. Mosquitoes as big as Shetland ponies and Ticks. I go prepared to deal with them all. No, I don't pack a saddle for the Mosquitoes. I do not go alone on these hunts for good reason. HH

 

[Frankn]

I just spent 3 days MD for 6 hours a day in the woods of Pa. I stopped on a trail to take a GPS reading and noticed a movement about 4' away under the fern. It was a 4'dia. app. 3' long timber rattler. They can strike 3' out! I slowly backed away. The easy part was the mosquitos and black winged flyes. 100 % deet held them off for 4 hrs. Only saw two pinhead size ticks the whole trip. Thinking about snake proof boots!

​

 

[Woodland Detectors]

357 accompanied by ,158 grain, flat nose rounds. That's enough to bust a bears front shoulder with minimal recoil.

What?

 

[bootybay]

I yell... DONT SHOOT ME I AM NOT A DEER.. and I carry pepper spray and a big knife

 

[Woodland Detectors]

 

[Swartzie]

All good suggestions. I would add to keep in mind your local hunting seasons. You should be able to find a website with local hunting seasons listed. Deer gun season I will stay way clear of the woods. All others I feel okay. The areas I metal detect in are also public hunting. I do wear a bright orange hat in the colder months and now that it's warm I just wear a mesh orange safety vest. I want to make sure I'm seen by anyone carrying a weapon. I also carry a little can of pepper spray. It attaches right to my pouch. I carry mosquito spray with me right now too.

Woods hunting is awesome. Seems like the finds are not near as deep and are older. Plus the ground freezes later in the woods than in a park or homesite. Which means more detecting time.

-Swartzie

 

[coin finder]

ice - pick work well

 

[leddel]

yes wild animals are a reality. well its very simple really , you bring a partner thats not as fast a runner as you .

Dan

 

[Smudge]

I sprinkle bear urine on my boots.




I don't know why.

 

[spartacus53]

Carrying a good digging tool like a Lesche should give you all the protection you need since we can't carry firearms in this state. Get out there and enjoy.

Nonsense, you can carry a firearm, it's just not legal, that's all..

My only advise is make sure you have a "working" cell phone, meaning you still have a signal in that area. Secondly, if their are telephone poles, just remember the number you are parked near in case you do get turned around. All the numbers on all poles are in consecutive order. Last but not least, if you see wild berries, the only ones that are safe to eat will have a star on their bottom, same goes for all fruit. A poisonous berry will have a circle.

If pinebarrens reads this, maybe we should all get together for a hunt.

 

[Shortstack]

I sprinkle bear urine on my boots.
I don't know why.

Do you have much trouble getting a bear to wee-wee on your boots or do you have to get really PHYSICAL with him??

 

[teleman 2525]

im a vermont hillbilly love the woods safer there then in local parks the woods animals are sane live by good rules not druged up jerks in the citys ticks use good repelant check your self after get them of early no trouble i hear then need 30 somthing hours to infect you so go to the woods step back in time be a brave adventurer have a blast youll love it

 

[d2]

Is it legal in NJ to even look at a picture of a pistol d2

 

[spartacus53]

Is it legal in NJ to even look at a picture of a pistol d2

Of course it is silly - Anyway the best all round protection is sunscreen and bug spray
Can I get an Amen