Favorite orange hat?

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Macchina

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Here in Michigan we have to wear Orange when we hunt. I have quite a collection of orange hats but never feel like I’ve found a really nice one.

I have full brimmed hats, ball caps, and Stormy Kromers.

My favorite so far is a Tilley Paddlers hat. I wish it was cotton like my other Tilley and the orange isn’t as bright as what most consider blaze orange so I’m again looking for another hat.

What do you wear for blaze orange hats?
 
I like the Browning baseball hat , but if it is real cold a stocking hat .
 
I have always been partial to the "booney" style hats for out in the field, (when wearing modern hunting clothes) the wrap around brim keeps sunlight at dawn or sunset from coming into my eyes at an angle which the baseball caps did not.... BUT this year I noticed that numerous injuries to my neck now means cold air and such on the back of my neck causes my arthritis to flare, and with it at times not being cold enough for me to wear a muffler or turtle neck I have gone with a blaze orange fishing hat that has a back flap. I got it rather large so that I can wear a fleece skull cap under it in cold weather. Cutting that breeze helps a lot.
BLOONY BLAZE.JPG

Now I'm using this:
ORANGE FISH HAT.JPG

LD
 
We must wear orange during firearms seasons. The law actually states "solid blaze orange". So give-away hats with an emblem on them have to be altered. I have taken to a solid blaze orange stocking cap. It can be worn over a favorite hat or cap.(the law doesnt state how many hats you can wear...lol) I'm wearing one over my stetson in my avatar <<<.
I also have a favorite ball cap with led lights in the hat bill. I wear an orange stocking hat over that too.
I just stuff it in a pocket when I'm in a blind.
 
I have always been partial to the "booney" style hats for out in the field, (when wearing modern hunting clothes) the wrap around brim keeps sunlight at dawn or sunset from coming into my eyes at an angle which the baseball caps did not.... BUT this year I noticed that numerous injuries to my neck now means cold air and such on the back of my neck causes my arthritis to flare, and with it at times not being cold enough for me to wear a muffler or turtle neck I have gone with a blaze orange fishing hat that has a back flap. I got it rather large so that I can wear a fleece skull cap under it in cold weather. Cutting that breeze helps a lot.
View attachment 889466

Now I'm using this:
View attachment 889467

LD

Too late for me. I used to get neck burns with my favorite boonie hats all the time when fishing. I hunted ducks mostly, but in 1988 bought some hunting land and did terrorize the deer and hog populations there. :D I still have that land, but mostly hunt where we've moved 100 miles from there. I haven't been down there in years. But, it was fishing and motorcycling that forced me to go to the dermatologist regularly in my old age, got an appointment tomorrow. I've had surgeries on my face and neck taking off various squamous and basal cell cancers and one melanoma that was successfully removed along with half my nose. They did some surgery to patch THAT up, but I have this bump on my nose, now, and stitch marks on my face and numbness that bothers me. I could have used a hat with neck coverage like that hat for all those years on the bay. You live and learn.

Today, I wear wide brim stuff, camo. I have a western hat that's camo that I like, sorta Ted Nugent style, and I have a vented (mesh around the top to allow air flow) camo wide brim summer hat and I wear one of these when I go out the door. I have a boonie hat rolled up in a cargo pocket just in case I forget the hat, I'll have SOMEthing. I think I'm in the beginnings of dementia, have this forgetfulness and memory problem that's not been getting better.

Fortunately, in Texas, we have no orange law. I camo out for hunting. Really don't matter in a box blind, though. :D I hunt private land. We don't have much public hunting and what we have is a joke. Most of the public land we DO have has orange rules and, frankly, you'd be an idiot NOT to wear orange some the places I've seen. It was 35 years ago when I hunted public, until I had my own land or for a while I was in a private hunting club. I never actually killed a hog or deer on public land. The only decent land they had was for waterfowl. THAT was great, but of course there was no orange law on ducks. :D
 
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Lots of warm weather hunters here I see;). Here in MN, my favorite is an ancient polar fleece lined ball cap style with big Elmer Fudd style earflaps that come down and tie around. I think the nylon/cotton shell is treated with a water repellent material. They don't make them anymore, only poor imitations that are not nearly as warm or water/snow resistant. When it's really cold, a natural rabbit fur bomber hat dyed blaze orange. I don't like the black interior that covers the orange with flaps up, but I'm usually only wearing it in a stationary position, so not too much compromise, and even in that configuration it's still a legal 50%+. My walking around hat is a blaze Stormy Kromer. If they made one big enough for my Norwegian square head with actual functional earflaps and a fleece lining for real cold, I'd buy it at any price.
 
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GA law requires 500 sq inches of solid orange when big game hunting with a rifle. Not needed for any other hunting and no headwear requirement. I wear a vest that meets the legal limit, but really don't like orange on my head. I picked up a $5 cheapy ball cap from Sportsmans Warehouse to meet the legal requirement when I hunted Colorado .
 
GA law requires 500 sq inches of solid orange when big game hunting with a rifle. Not needed for any other hunting and no headwear requirement. I wear a vest that meets the legal limit, but really don't like orange on my head. I picked up a $5 cheapy ball cap from Sportsmans Warehouse to meet the legal requirement when I hunted Colorado .

I think the bit of orange on our heads it the most important bit, if visibility by other hunters is the objective. Were I making the regs, I'd drop the requirement for orange on the body if a hunter was wearing an orange hat.

My walking around hat is a blaze Stormy Kromer. If they made one big enough for my Norwegian square head with actual functional earflaps and a fleece lining for real cold, I'd buy it at any price.

What do you like about it? I am considering one.
 
I think the bit of orange on our heads it the most important bit, if visibility by other hunters is the objective. Were I making the regs, I'd drop the requirement for orange on the body if a hunter was wearing an orange hat.

I disagree, and here is why. The orange of a vest is easily seen by other hunters and as long as it is motionless will not spook game animals. It is movement that will spook game animals and it is impossible to hunt without moving the head around to scan your surroundings. And you need to move your hands and arms to raise the rifle to take a shot. I don't see the orange vest as much of a handicap. But don't want it on my head, arms, or hands.

And I sometimes wonder if requiring orange isn't having the opposite effect. Looking at the states that don't require orange they have fewer people being shot than in states where it is required even accounting for fewer hunters. TX does not require it and has high numbers of hunters with very few accidental shootings. Where orange is required people take the attitude that if they DON'T see orange it is OK to shoot. Just because they don't see orange doesn't mean it is safe. And not everyone in the woods is a hunter. We had a girl hiking the AT who was shot and killed by a hunter here in GA a few years ago. In places where orange isn't required people are forced to actually identify the target instead of looking for orange.
 
What do you like about it? I am considering one.

I like that it is somewhat warm but still breathable and not too warm. It's has a pretty tall, square crown, quiet fabric, and well crafted. I also like the "grumpy old man" look it conveys. I do not like the non functional earflaps, so I wear it when I don't need ear flaps.
 
Don't have a favorite.... Just depends on the air temp and my mood that day. Here's some that I had handy. Got some more but they're stashed away now and I forgot exactly where........ IMG_0349.JPG ....... IMG_0350.JPG
 
I'm a firm believer in blaze orange, and I wear it from the waist up, even though it's not required in AK. (Most folks actively oppose a blaze orange requirement.) I'm also a firm believer that deer family see patterns rather than color, so I try to always stick with orange garments that have some sort of camo pattern on them.

Current headgear is a fleece beanie and neck gaiter from Cabela's or a solid blaze synthetic baseball cap for warmer weather.(I liked the blaze camo cap from FredMeyer's, but I couldn't stomach the Remington LogoLOL)
 
A blaze orange beanie labeled "MINISTRY OF DEFENCE", got it when a buddy of mine held the post. Another is a brimmed felt hat.

I've been looking for a classic ghillie hat (think Sherlock Holmes) in blaze orange, but haven't come across one yet.
 
I disagree, and here is why. The orange of a vest is easily seen by other hunters and as long as it is motionless will not spook game animals. It is movement that will spook game animals and it is impossible to hunt without moving the head around to scan your surroundings. And you need to move your hands and arms to raise the rifle to take a shot. I don't see the orange vest as much of a handicap. But don't want it on my head, arms, or hands.

I believe that the silhouette of hats with brims gives away your presence every time you turn your head. Doesn't matter if it's blaze orange or camouflage. That's why I wear something brimless or short billed whether wearing blaze orange for gun deer or camo for turkey/archery deer. If it is billed like a ball cap it is worn backwards with the bill tight to my back. For hunting pheasants, I generally wear a blaze orange ball cap. The bill keeps the sun outta my eyes and it doesn't do anything to spook the birds.

And I sometimes wonder if requiring orange isn't having the opposite effect. Looking at the states that don't require orange they have fewer people being shot than in states where it is required even accounting for fewer hunters. TX does not require it and has high numbers of hunters with very few accidental shootings. Where orange is required people take the attitude that if they DON'T see orange it is OK to shoot. Just because they don't see orange doesn't mean it is safe. And not everyone in the woods is a hunter. We had a girl hiking the AT who was shot and killed by a hunter here in GA a few years ago. In places where orange isn't required people are forced to actually identify the target instead of looking for orange.

A few years back, Wisconsin made blaze orange no trespassing signs illegal, because of the fear that those folks that like to shoot up their neighbors no trespassing signs would accidentally mistake a hunter with a blaze orange vest for a blaze orange no trespassing sign. You can't fix stupid. Blaze orange helps identify hunters best during low light when verifying the identity of your target is the most difficult. Low light periods such as daybreak and dusk are when folks are most likely to misidentify a target......also it is when folks are the most excited because game is most active. There are many scenarios to accidental hunter shootings, but being visible does help prevent more than it contributes to. Blaze orange doesn't help when folks shoot over the horizon or other scenarios when the shooter cannot see as far as their bullet travels. It does help differentiate between a hunter and a game animal. Several shootings lately have been from folks just out walking on trails in the woods, many times during low light times and not wearing blaze orange. Yes, it is a mistake made by the shooter, but common sense should tell folks walking anywhere a deer may be, during an open hunting season, will put you at risk and blaze orange, while not always required, is generally suggested. I've never understood the policy of some states that require the shooter to wear blaze orange, but the guide and anyone else with them are not required to wear it. Why is it, only the person with the gun is at risk from other hunters?
 
Hard to find a good hat that covers my ears in a cold wind, I have a big round head hats don't want to stay on my head. I hunt from September to December and sometimes January in Minnesota. Mostly Grouse and Pheasant with deer season in November. Baseball hat in warm weather. Depends in cold weather.
 
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