It is important to realize that hunting occurs on most private (and all public) lands during hunting seasons! When you see a hunting closure on a Finger Lakes Trail map, it was at the request of a private landowner; in this case the trail is closed for hiking during the indicated dates. Otherwise the trail is open for hiking, but there may be hunting occurring!
Current hunting seasons can be found at the FLTC website or clicking on this: http://www.fltconference.org/trails/index.php/hike-the-trail/trail-conditions1/hunting-season-schedules/
Gun season for deer is coming up soon; best to stay out of the woods (especially opening day!) and/or wear blaze orange.
source: Java Joe via the FLTC email news
Lynda Rummel added:
Please be aware that you may encounter hunters hunting from the trail or near the trail on lands that do not have hunting closures. You will find them on lands that are posted and on lands that aren’t, because the landowner determines who can hunt on his/her land, though sometimes they are there without the landowner’s permission. If/when you do encounter hunters on private lands during hunting seasons, please just drop us a note and please do not challenge the hunters themselves.
Perhaps it isn’t clear that it’s the landowner’s decision, not the FLTC’s, whether the trail segment is closed during hunting season. We appreciate it when private landowners don’t close their lands, because it gives hikers the opportunity to go out on the trail year-round, if they choose to do so, and it allows the FLTC to get main trail and Onondaga Trail segments certified by the National Park Service as official North Country Trail. We also appreciate it because it shifts the decision of whether to hike during hunting seasons to the hiker, which is one more act of generosity on the part of our landowners. However, it means that we hikers have to decide whether we want to go out during hunting season; and it’s up to us hikers to wear high-viz clothing if/when we do. It’s also up to us hikers to make as little disturbance as we can, so that the hunters don’t get irritated and then close the trail during hunting season or, worse yet, kick the trail off. In sum, it’s up to us hikers to wear a lot of blaze orange (and make sure any dogs are also wearing blaze orange and are on-leash) and be respectful of the hunters’ rights to be there and to hunt.
In the past, we’ve had many exchanges about the real or imagined dangers of hiking during various hunting seasons; we’ve had discussions about the sanity of those who do choose to hike in any of the various seasons; and we’ve had debates about the morality of hunting. I do not want to start up any of this again — I just want to make sure everyone understands that they may encounter hunters on or near the trail on lands where there is no hunting closure; it’s the landowners’ decision, not ours, whether to close the trail during hunting season; and if you do choose to hike during hunting season, wear a lot of blaze orange.
