"Blood trailing" light?

[David Petersen]

#3701

I just bought a new headlamp. In addition to the usual settings of high and low beam, it also has a red lamp that it claims makes blood highly visible in the dark. This is not why I bought the light and in fact long ago quit hunting right up to dark precisely to avoid blood-trailing by flashlight. Yet I’m curious if red light actually makes blood more visible, or if this is just another sales gimmick, like “scent proof” clothing. Thanks for sharing your experience, Dave

[Br549]

#22614

Dave, from what I read, the reviews are not that good. The way I understand it, the red light fuses over green to give a somewhat yellow light that is supposed to make the blood more reflective. the reviews said it made the blood look darker. I have heard of so many little tips and tricks like misting hydrogen peroxide and the such, but I have always stuck to a flashlight and moving very slowly. I was a deer and turkey guide in Kentucky for almost ten years, and this would be perfect for the type of guys we had show up at camp looking like the poster child for Cabelas. Just another sales gimmick like you said Dave, as if we don’t have enough of that on the market. But as you and I both know, people will buy it. I am currently working on a new pair of hunters underwear that allows you to pass gas through a filter that converts the odor into the scent of deer pheromone and there is device built in that will produce grunt’s, bleat’s, and snort-wheeze’s as well. I think I will finally make my fortune.

[wildschwein]

#22621

What!!! Br549 you stole my idea! Oh well back to the drawing board:lol:.

[Jason Wesbrock]

#22648

There was a friend of a friend in deer camp last year who had one of those fancy red/green blood trailing lights. One evening we were tracking a wounded deer — his, if I recall — and he decided everyone should turn off their lights so he could find the deer with his little gizmo. I think it took about ten seconds before someone told him to put that useless thing away.

In the world of dumb hunting products, I’d rank them somewhere around the Deer View Mirror, the Acorn Cruncher, and those little baggies of deer poop that Primos sells.

[Br549]

#22650

Well Wildschwein, I am looking for a business partner as well as investors. Being that you are in Canada, You can handle all sales North of the border. We can even extend our line to include moose drawers and bear as well. We can have different filters, as well as a universal call. We will just have to include a list of what foods one must eat the night before the hunt to produce the the correct sound of the animal being hunted.- Chris:P

[wildschwein]

#22680

😛

[WICanner]

#22687

We tried one of those flashlights and had mixed results. If the blood droplet was large, and still wet, it was easy to see. But you don’t need a special flashlight for that. It’s the dried, little spots where it flunked out. I don’t think anything beats a Coleman lantern for blood trailing other than a blood trailing dog. The lantern broadcasts a bright light in every direction, vs the direction beam of a flash light. I think that this allows those small little droplets to be seen to the side of the trail, rather than walking right by them. And no issues with dying batteries. JMHO

[Ralph]

#22778

I agree with the Coleman lantern even if there not always be one handy when in the boonies (one of those little backpacking models is mighty handy). As for a red light, the last time I tried to use one of them it wasn’t for a blood trail (which I have tried with nil result), I was trying to sneak into my spot using it since I read that the red light wouldn’t bother animals. I will take my chances from now on with regular light cause I couldn’t see where I was going nor could I see that dang rattlesnake I could hear. Real light and patience for this old man from now on. There’s lots of scary noises in the dark and to me a rattlesnake is right up top since there ain’t no bears or lions or any of those kind of critters here in the Texas panhandle. Now mtn. lions??? Ain’t gonna see or here one them anyway probably!

[strait-aero]

#22805

I haven’t heard much good about the red tracking lights,Dave… I use a Coleman lantern on tracking in the dark. You can see all the sprays to the side and the like. More light for my money! But,you are right about stopping hunting earlier so as not to have to put yourself in those situations. 🙄
Wayne

[bruc]

#22817

I agree with the Coleman lantern people. In fact, I would go so far as to say, that the small droplets of blood almost shine in its light! Two people with two lanterns works really well. Only drawback is that it is pretty easy to get dis-oriented at night
Bruce

[Troy Breeding]

#22857

I’ve got one of those head lamps with the red setting. As for seeing blood? Good luck…..

It is great for shining game from the stand without spooking them.

Afew years ago I took acouple of weeks off and hunted everyday. Most days all day long in the stand.

Well let me tell you, it wears on the brain and body. One day I fell asleep in the stand 🙄 (yea I know, not real bright but I did have one my fall restrant system). Anyway when I woke up it was stone dark. As I started getting my stuff ready to lower I used my red light hoping not to spook game that might have slipped in. Just as I was about to lower my bow I heard something walking afew yards from me.:shock: When I finally picked it out it was one heck of a buck. I stood there not making a sound. He walked around me for what seemed like 10 minutes picking up acorns. The red light never seemed to bother him. Luckly I was hunting private land and didn’t have to worry about conservation. Otherwise I would have had a heck of a time convincing them I fell asleep.:twisted:

Troy

[Pop Pop]

#23000

The greatest thing for blood trailing ~ I’ve recently discovered ~ is bifocals!

Will

[rnorris]

#23212

We track a lot of deer every year, usually at least 1 per day up at Shrewhaven. We have tried lots of lights….the red and blue “tracking lights” are junk, in my opinion. The crazy bright tactical lights work pretty well, but burn through the batteries. LaClair and I were on a trail in a snow storm one night, he had a new Surefire….I bet he used 10 batteries.

After much trial and error, we rely on the good old Coleman lantern.

[rnorris]

#23218

Preparing the lights for a night time bloodtrail at Shrewhaven…this trail eventualy took us into Wisconsin!:lol:

[David Petersen]

#23953

Thanks, fellers. I’d have been surprised if you had said it worked. Again, I didn’t buy the lamp for that; it just came with the deal. I too have used a Coleman for blood trailing, but it doesn’t help when the animal just stops bleeding. Best tool for blood-trailing in my experience is a low pass-through lung shot; you could follow a hit like that by Braille. On red lights no spooking game–I have seen many infrared trail cam pics with various animals staring right into the cam, which has a small red light that glows when it fires. Deer and elk can’t see red, but they’re seeing something that gets their attention. Thanks for all the info, Dave

[SteveMcD]

#25033

I’m “biting my tongue”. so to speak. :P:lol::twisted:

[William Warren]

#25287

I can’t speak to the red or blue lenses that are used for blood trailing since I’ve never used them. I have used Coleman lanterns and various flashlights. I’m a sucker for one of those red 200A’s like the one in rnorris’ pic. but my favorite is a propane lamp. I have used the mini mag lights for years because of their light weight but recently I have found the headlamps with LED’s are great. I recently found a three pack of headlamps (an off brand)on sale for 15.00 and they are as good as any brand name lamp I have used.

Duncan

[David Petersen]

#25378

Steve McD — Well, if you bite your tongue hard enough to make it bleed, I can find you with my new red headlamp! 😀 Knowing you teach trailing classes, let’s please hear what you’re holding back.

[SteveMcD]

#26148

Hi, Dave… out of all the new light gadgets out there. Roger nailed it. The Lantern seems to be the tried and true old standby. I just shake my head at some of the gimmicks these snake oil salesman come up with. Red- Blue – Purple will it work YES it’s a Light, of course it will work. To what degree is the question. To date, nothing really seems to work better than a lantern in picking up signs of blood though.

Personally, I do not like night time tracking, everything is different at night, and very easy to lose sense of direction. Other concern is confidence of the hit on the animal. Unless it is going to rain or snow overnight, best bet is to back out and resume the track in the morning. When tracking animals you have to assume you are trailing an animal, that may be still alive, and will certainly be watching their backtrail, if they are alive. Better to let them bed and come back in the A.M. if you run out of daylight and into darkness. Again, exception being weather, and also if it is a shoulder hit, in which case I would push the animal hard and pray for a quick bleed out & death.

[George D. Stout]

#28534

Carry a little spray bottle of hydrogen peroxide; it will foam when in contact with blood and can help discern the blood from natures red hues. Ninety percent of this ingenious crap for sale nowadays is useless and pretty much just extra bulk taking up space. Heck I know guys who buy hundred dollar flashlights just for hunting, and they turn up their noses at my Maglite….that I have used for twenty years now. They claim theres is much brighter, which I guess will come in handy should they need to signal the Starship Enterprise. 🙄

[Rogue]

#28562

I too have the red filter on a headlamp, cant say wether or not it helps blood trailing but it does seem to allow your eyes to adjust faster to the dark when switching it off as opposed to the whiter light.

Br549 while I haven’t marketed them I do own several pairs of bear drawers that durring extreme encounters will automatically make the wearer smell very unappetizing.

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