As the weather turns crisp and the final leaves fall from the trees, hikers head out for one last trek before the snow falls to take in the beauty of the outdoors. Yet hunters are also polishing off their rifles for the upcoming deer hunting season, leading the College to urge hikers to take precautions to avoid being mistaken for game.
Deer hunting season with regular firearms lasts from Nov. 10 until Dec. 5, according to the state Fish and Game Department. But deer hunting season with muzzleloaders firearms with shorter ranges than rifles began on Oct. 30 and will continue until Nov. 9.
Although hunters are not allowed to use firearms in densely populated areas, hunting is legal in many areas around the College where members of the Dartmouth community hike, placing hikers at risk of being shot accidentally, according to Brian Kunz, deputy director of the Outdoor Programs Office.
On rare occasions in the past, hunters have failed to recognize their targets and have accidentally shot other people, Kunz said, adding that he was not aware of such incidents involving Dartmouth students.
In 1990, a hunter in Maine shot and killed a woman after mistaking her white mittens for the tail of a deer, an incident that drew national attention, Kunz said.
To help prevent similar tragedies from occurring at Dartmouth, OPO sent an e-mail to campus last week about the risks of venturing out into the woods during hunting season and encouraging those who do choose to go outdoors to wear "bright orange" so they can be seen clearly by hunters. Hikers should also avoid wearing pieces of white fabric that could be mistaken for the tail of a deer, Kunz said.
The Dartmouth Outing Club has bright "hunter-orange" vests that students can borrow to wear outdoors during hunting season, according to Kunz.
Hikers are often not aware that they are in a hunting zone and therefore do not take the necessary precautions to protect themselves against hunters, Kunz said. Although hunting is illegal in Compact Zones areas in which there are six or more people within 300 feet of one another it is legal in less densely populated areas as long as there is no sign explicitly prohibiting hunting in that area.
Hikers should use "common sense" when going outdoors during hunting season by wearing orange, hiking with friends, staying on trails and "making lots of noise," said Preston McBride '11, the co-chair of Bait and Bullet, the hunting and fishing club within the DOC.
Although hikers should take measures to minimize their risk of being shot, there is little interaction between hikers and hunters because hunters generally do not hunt near trails, Marshall Bartlett '11, the co-chair of Bait and Bullet, said.
Bartlett emphasized that most students are not generally at risk of being shot.
"You're not going to get shot walking across the Green," he said.
While deer hunting poses risks to hikers, hunting for other game can be equally, if not more, dangerous to hunters themselves, Kunz said. Turkey hunters, for example, dress in camouflage and make turkey noises to attract game, and other hunters may have trouble recognizing them.
Unlike deer, turkeys can see color, making the bright orange outfits that deer hunters typically wear unsuitable for turkey hunting, Kunz said. Hunters have mistakenly shot other hunters on several occasions in the past after thinking they were turkeys.
Although some outdoor enthusiasts oppose hunting, hunters have a right to hunt and others are not allowed to harass them or intentionally chase away game, Kunz said.
"He or she should be free from having someone deliberately chasing the prey away," Kunz said.
McBride and Bartlett both said that they had never heard of student hunters from the College facing harassment from individuals who oppose hunting.
"If the hiker is harassing [the hunter], the hunter has the gun," Bartlett joked.
Bartlett said he has not gone hunting yet in New Hampshire, although he hunts often near his home in Mississippi. The logistics of finding a place to clean and store the meat without an off-campus house can be a challenge, and the College has not been clear about where people can and cannot hunt, he said.
McBride added that it is "expensive" for an out-of-state resident to obtain a New Hampshire hunting license.
An annual hunting license costs $22 for New Hampshire residents and $103 for non-residents, according to the state Fish and Game Department.
All hunters are required to take a hunter safety course and obtain a hunting license in order to hunt in the state. Students must store guns with Safety and Security, as firearms are prohibited in residential buildings.
The College offers hunter safety courses that students can take for physical education credit, Kunz said.
