I have flushed turkeys off their roost while going to my stand using a white flashlight. Is a red light less likely to alarm birds on the roost?
I have heard that green is better than red and have used both but have not had problems with either. I use one of those Ameristep LED lights in my blind with the white light taped off and only the green lights showing and have never had a problem. I have even gotten into the blind with green and found out later that I was directly under the turkey when s/he? flew off while I was in the blind.
I have always heard that Turkeys see color. I never use a light going into an area. I either know the location very well or move in when there is barley enough light to see.
There was a post on here a few years back from a fellow that raised turkeys from wild stock. He said when he went out at night they were calm with green light, slightly nervous with red, and real agitated by white.
If I have to use a light, I use green. Helps keep your peripheral vision and absolutely will not spook deer. I know from experience that I've walked under roosted birds that were 50 yards away (little to no canopy) that did not spook.
Fool proof? I doubt it, but I think it's a definite advantage.
*I prefer not to use a light at all... but when you need to climb the mountain in rocky, forested terrain an hour before it even thinks about breaking dawn, you gotta do what you gotta do. The crashing and cursing trying to do it without some type of light will spook far more.
Here's a link to a great little light that doesn't take up much room or brake the bank:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01HBR4OZQ/ref=cm_wl_huc_continue
White, red, green I ain't using no light ever!! Alway have one on me incase sh!t hits the fan but have never had to use it.
I use green and have used red without spooking very close turkeys
In my opinion I think they can see the red light just fine. But it's also been my experience that birds are hesitant to pitch off the roost when it's completely dark. I've walked under them in the dark with a red light and got some commotion but they didn't fly off. I've also walked under birds in the daylight and they didn't booger out. That said I use my light to get into the area but turn it off and let my eyes adjust for a few minutes and then go the rest of the way without a light.
Way back in the old days the way folks hunted turkeys was to roost them and silhouette them againt the moon and bust them off the branch.
I'm sure some folks still do.
I have never used a light to walk in. And I never try to get to were i am walking in under birds on the roost. I do carry a light in case if other people walking in on me.i find if I just take a little time after I get out if the truck my eyes a just to the dark and I can walk in just fine without a light..i also plain my rout to avoid spoiling birds
Quote from: dutch@fx4 on April 18, 2018, 08:33:57 PM
I have never used a light to walk in. And I never try to get to were i am walking in under birds on the roost. I do carry a light in case if other people walking in on me.i find if I just take a little time after I get out if the truck my eyes a just to the dark and I can walk in just fine without a light..i also plain my rout to avoid spoiling birds
Good advise if the terrain allows for it, not always great in some woods though. I am doing the same more often.
Where I hunt in Dixie, you're bound to step on a snake, branch, leaves, pine cones, etc. So I use a single red light headlamp when I head in pitch blackness. If it's a good moon, or cracking dawn, I go without a light.
I typically don't use a light to go int the woods but do have this visor headlamp that I use when I pull my truck into my spot to get all my last minute stuff in my pack, load gun, grab keys etc (never use my interior lights). When I do, it's usually on green.
https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/browning-night-seeker-rgb-led-cap-light?hvarAID=shopping_googleproductextensions
Sent from my XT1710-02 using Tapatalk
Use no light
What do you folks who use no light do when it's pitch black and you have to walk a couple hundred yards or further to your listening area in the woods? I'm talking about no moon and you can't see your hand in front of your face dark. Ya'll must be hunting fields and go in at twilight or listen from the truck and wait on daybreak to go into the woods.
Quote from: dublelung on April 19, 2018, 09:13:51 AM
What do you folks who use no light do when it's pitch black and you have to walk a couple hundred yards or further to your listening area in the woods? I'm talking about no moon and you can't see your hand in front of your face dark. Ya'll must be hunting fields and go in at twilight or listen from the truck and wait on daybreak to go into the woods.
Walk slow is the answer. I hunt no fields and go in real early. It's important to leave even earlier when it's dark cause walking is tougher but possible. Couple hundred yards wouldn't be far enough to block a light.
Quote from: Bowguy on April 19, 2018, 09:19:45 AM
Quote from: dublelung on April 19, 2018, 09:13:51 AM
What do you folks who use no light do when it's pitch black and you have to walk a couple hundred yards or further to your listening area in the woods? I'm talking about no moon and you can't see your hand in front of your face dark. Ya'll must be hunting fields and go in at twilight or listen from the truck and wait on daybreak to go into the woods.
Walk slow is the answer. I hunt no fields and go in real early. It's important to leave even earlier when it's dark cause walking is tougher but possible. Couple hundred yards wouldn't be far enough to block a light.
I suppose you just have better eyes than me. Black dark is black and regardless of how slow I'm moving or not moving at all I can't see my feet or what's beyond them. I can see doing what you're talking about with a slight moon.
I doubt it. My eyes aren't great. One eye was even sewed shut this fall and I walked through the woods to deer sets the same way. Plus my balance is off. If I can do it anyone can. If you hit a real brutal spot take a pen light and diffuse it with your fingers for a second at a time so tiny light "cracks" come through. That seems not to spook em but I'd still be super limited doing that, not more than a second or so every few minutes. You're guaranteed to be a focal point that night in the woods if anything is awake/awoken though
I have a light that is white and a green lens that slides over real easy. When its time to head into the cypress I use the green light. I try not to use it at all but falling on a cypress knee in the dark is no joke. We set up in a spot this year that we didnt know a bird was as close as he was... my buddy had a red and I had a green light. He came in on a string withe hens in tow. He was roosted maybe 70 yds from where we sat down.
Quote from: dublelung on April 19, 2018, 09:13:51 AM
What do you folks who use no light do when it's pitch black and you have to walk a couple hundred yards or further to your listening area in the woods? I'm talking about no moon and you can't see your hand in front of your face dark. Ya'll must be hunting fields and go in at twilight or listen from the truck and wait on daybreak to go into the woods.
It may take 10 minutes but your eyes do adjust to the dark quite well. (Don't use any kind of light at all or your eyes will not adjust) Also knowing the area helps quite a bit.
I should add also that lighter boots like bean boots have a thin sole. That helps feel snags. I've have people actually put their hand on my shoulders to navigate behind me so maybe those who haven't practiced it might find it harder.
Had a brain problem and the Dr said I shouldn't have even been walking never mind walking like that in the dark. It honestly wasn't even challenging. Somehow he said I had compensated around the issue. Point is go slow and try it. It gets easier. No trudging to work type walks.
I have always had excellent night vision. I don't like using lights anywhere near where I am planning on hunting. If given a few minutes to let my eyes adjust I can typically see well enough to walk around. Maybe it's from spending lots of time underground in mines. That's can't see your hand in front of your face dark!
You can always do with the pirates did...
Wear an eyepatch over one eye as you are getting ready at the truck and let the patched eye dark adapt... Once the lights are off, and you are heading out, take the patch off...
Quote from: Marc on April 19, 2018, 08:45:37 PM
You can always do with the pirates did...
Wear an eyepatch over one eye as you are getting ready at the truck and let the patched eye dark adapt... Once the lights are off, and you are heading out, take the patch off...
Deep sky telescope viewing too! They are sold for exactly that. Works great.
Quote from: dublelung on April 19, 2018, 09:13:51 AM
What do you folks who use no light do when it's pitch black and you have to walk a couple hundred yards or further to your listening area in the woods? I'm talking about no moon and you can't see your hand in front of your face dark. Ya'll must be hunting fields and go in at twilight or listen from the truck and wait on daybreak to go into the woods.
I do not use a light. It has never been so dark that I could not make out trees and such. Maybe I have better night vision than others. As has been said just go slow and it is fine.
As long as you don't have a bright flashlight, and keep it aimed down don't think it really matters in thick woods. More open country would be a different story. The army used red lights for night, they say it can't be seen as far vs a white light. Some day I'd like to test this out, have someone walk through the woods with various lights and see the difference. I personally use a small pen light, with my finger over the end to diffuse the light. And I also use a cheap clip on hat light from Walmart with red marker covering the lens. A trick I learn is you can cover the lens with clear scotch tape and color it with a red marker, and build a couple layers for the desired darkness you want. It would work for green also.
I'm night blind in a bad way. I can see pretty well at night if there's a decent moon, but if it's a new moon or just a sliver, I might as well be blindfolded. I use a green Streamlight stylus pen light held in my fist with the light recessed in my palm. I can adjust the amount of light by how tightly I keep my fist clenched and pointed down right in front of me. That technique has kept me from stepping on poisonous snakes that would have more than ended my hunt early. I'd also rather take the slim chance that turkeys might negatively react to a small amount of light than to end up tripping over unseen limbs or low growing brush.
Jim
FULL MOON ,PINE FLATS NO LIGHT BUT GOING THROUGH SWOMP OF MIX BOTTOM I USE A
BLUE LIGHT FLASHLIGHT TO GET WHERE IM GOING
PS: GPS ALSO
Quote from: snapper1982 on April 19, 2018, 09:54:45 PM
Quote from: dublelung on April 19, 2018, 09:13:51 AM
What do you folks who use no light do when it's pitch black and you have to walk a couple hundred yards or further to your listening area in the woods? I'm talking about no moon and you can't see your hand in front of your face dark. Ya'll must be hunting fields and go in at twilight or listen from the truck and wait on daybreak to go into the woods.
I do not use a light. It has never been so dark that I could not make out trees and such. Maybe I have better night vision than others. As has been said just go slow and it is fine.
X2 for me
My wife has better vision than me, but my ability to see in the dark is much better than hers - so I know some people can see better than others in the dark. I use a red light but use it as little as possible. I also try to get out there while the birds are still asleep or barely waking up. The darker/earlier it is, the more you can get away with.
But in general, I would say it depends on the person's ability to see in the dark, how much moonlight there is, and what the ground is like (a road or ground with some contrast to surroundings, vs deep forest floor, vs open fields)
I walk with out a light if and when possible . like others said you just have to slow down. But there are times I use one. what i do is point it straight down and cover/cup the lens in my hand . This way I can adjust to get absolute minim amount of light i need. I dont shine it ahead of me or into the trees.
On another note I recently purchased a GPS . Dont really need it but always want to try one. I marked a tree In an area I havent hunted before . I wanted to be there yesterday morn and walked in from a different direction straight to it, no light at all just checked my direction on the devise occasionally. I thought that was pretty sweet.
The one place I do use a light a lot is in my blind, now that is pitch black, you can's see a thing and I use it to set up calls where I want them, pile of leaves where I want them so I can scratch in them after doing a fly down cackle but not kick them when I move my legs around and I movie my legs a lot because of injuries and so on. Also do the same during archery season to get set up during the season, I bought one of these and put black tape over the white light for in the blind or just use a green clip on on my hat if I don't need much light. http://www.ameristep.com/hunters-led-light
Tried it this morning......................
Had two birds blow off the roost 0-dark:30 using a small red light to watch for limbs in the eyes.