August 30, 2022 |
Archery season antlered mule deer and white-tailed deer opens Thursday in several hunt areas here in Carbon County. Rifle season for doe or fawn white-tailed deer also opens this week in Hunt Areas 78, 79, 80 and 81.
The Wyoming Game and Fish Department is urging safety first to make sure your hunt does not turn into tragedy.
The key pieces of advice are:
• Treat every firearm as if it’s loaded.
• Always point your muzzle in a safe direction.
• Be sure of your target and what’s beyond it.
• Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to shoot.
Katie Simpson, Wyoming Game and Fish Department hunter education coordinator said in a department news release that one of the most common hunting-related accidents in Wyoming involves vehicles. These include guns discharging while a person is entering or exiting a vehicle with the firearm, or riding bumping the trigger while riding on an ATV.
It is not illegal to drive with a loaded firearm in Wyoming, but it isn’t always safe. Simpson said if hunters choose to drive with a loaded firearm, it’s advised they don’t have a round in the chamber.
Simpson used an example near Cheyenne several years ago about the importance of knowing what’s behind your target. A hunter was after pronghorn and took a shot at one atop a ridgeline. The bullet missed but traveled about a mile past its target and hit a car driving along Interstate 80. No one was hurt, but the bullet broke a window.
Have a happy and safe hunt.
