Trending
UPPER PENINSULA -- With the Michigan firearm deer season starting Sunday, the Department of Natural Resources is offering some safety reminders, including tips for those enjoying other outdoor activities.
Whether you’re hiking, biking or taking your dog for a walk, it’s important to stay visible to hunters.
"Wearing hunter orange is an easy way to help hunters spot you and keep everyone safe on the trails," the DNR said in a news release.
If you’re bringing your four-legged friend along, be sure to keep your pet on a leash no longer than 6 feet and consider dressing them in a hunter orange vest, bandana or harness to help hunters see them. Keep pets close and discourage them from chasing wildlife or wandering into hunting areas.
During the firearm deer season, all deer hunters, including archery, must wear blaze, flame, or fluorescent orange. Hunter orange garments, including camouflage -- which must be at least 50% hunter orange — must be worn as the outer layer of clothing and must be visible from all directions.
“A successful hunt is when you safely return home so you are able to share your stories with family and friends, regardless of whether or not your tag was filled,” said Lt. Tom Wanless, supervisor of the DNR Law Enforcement Division’s Recreational Safety, Education and Enforcement Section.
All firearm deer hunters should:
• Treat every firearm as if it is loaded.
• Be aware of surroundings -- know your target and what is beyond it, and make sure you have a clear, ethical shot.
• Unload firearms when crossing obstacles and/or getting in or out of an elevated stand.
• Obey “no trespassing” signs; they are there for a reason.
• Obtain landowner permission to retrieve tracked game that may have wandered onto private property.
Michigan's firearm season runs through Nov. 30. The muzzleloader-only season in the Upper Peninsula is Dec. 4-6.