A-Zone Poison Oak

[MaxHenderson]

For those of you that hunt A zone, is poison oak pretty much a constant throughout the whole zone? I get it pretty terribly.


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[Pro953]

In my experience yes... you just have to learn what areas it’s more concentrated and avoid it. Though you cannot control where they go when you need to track something you hit.

My wife is just used to it as she art of my “look” that time of the year. The worst of the face around the eyes of nose. That just drives me crazy.

Wish I had a better answer for you.


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[MaxHenderson]

In my experience yes... you just have to learn what areas it’s more concentrated and avoid it. Though you cannot control where they go when you need to track something you hit.

My wife is just used to it as she art of my “look” that time of the year. The worst of the face around the eyes of nose. That just drives me crazy.

Wish I had a better answer for you.


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I hunt quite a bit in the valley, so I know what you mean by that. I’ve had to get shots after poison oak, on the face is the worst


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[Fatcamp]

Got that stuff on my foot last summer while spearfishing and looking for arrowheads. I'm old so they gave me some steroids. Dried it right up.

Could have used a wire brush on it at times. It itched so bad.

 

[Blacktail_Packer]

I used to worry about this quite a bit but even if you do everything you can to avoid it, after the shot that animals going to go where ever it does and so will you, and they probably have oils on them also, cause I’ve heard they eat it. I just tried to up my cleaning game, ivy wipes, technu. I still get a surprise case here and there but I think I’ve built up some kind of an immunity to it.

 

[jfs82]

I've always been immune to it but yes, it's everywhere. There are creams that can sorta protect you from it that have worked for friends. The issue is that then you end up getting it later when you put boots back on, do laundry etc.

 

[Bubblehide]

DWP, PG&E... use a soap/lotion that they leave on as a protective layer. You might look into it. I've done a lot of research into Poison Oak in the past. You get it from the oil in the plat, that can be carried in the wind. I have seen it blowing through the air, from the plant. You can also get it from handling animals that have it on their skin, including pets. The plant spews oil heavily at certain times of the year.

As far as having/getting a reaction to it. Subsequent exposures in general get worse and worse reactions; you do NOT build immunity. It enters your bloodstream through the skin, so it doesn't matter where it lands on you; because wherever you scratch, it WILL pop-up there (don't scratch your balls). I simply try to avoid it, as I get some very serious reactions.

 

[Azone]

It's every where out here and the deer love to bed in it. At times walking through it is the only option to get from point A to point B. I rarely get it too bad, I will get blotches on my forearms occasionally but nothing requiring medical attention. As Bubblehide mentioned people can get it from touching animals that have been in contact with it, and anything else that has made contact with the oils will cause problems. Dealing with poison oak is just the cost of doing business outhere.

 

[MeatBuck]

In A zone there are 2 things you can count on, hot weather and poison oak.
The A-buck I killed this year was all balled up in it when I found him. Think he was munching it when I shot him.

 

[amassi]

Yes
Every poison oak brush also has a rattlesnake under it
Above it: yellowjackets nest
I used to get it terribly as a kid. Seem to be immune to it now. My buddy gets it pretty bad but has had great results with tecnu extreme cream
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[jfs82]

Yes
Every poison oak brush also has a rattlesnake under it
Above it: yellowjackets nest
I used to get it terribly as a kid. Seem to be immune to it now. My buddy gets it pretty bad but has had great results with tecnu extreme cream
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Don't forget our ticks riding the on yellowjackets backs to get you.

 

[slick]

I work in the Siskiyou’s just across the border. I have it in a varying degree of severity ALL year round. Sometimes I have to walk directly through it, sometimes my dog does, or on my boots or pants, the laundry, working up a critter that’s covered in it, finding a collar that’s in the middle of it, etc.

I frequently have it on my junk cause every time I take a leak I spread a little bit of the oil from my hands to sensitive areas.

I’ve found it to go best if I just take a hot shower with Dawn dish soap at the end of the day- especially if I knowingly walked through it, and washing those clothes separately. Pretty sure it’s been on washed towels too, and that’s no bueno.

 

[MaxHenderson]

In A zone there are 2 things you can count on, hot weather and poison oak.
The A-buck I killed this year was all balled up in it when I found him. Think he was munching it when I shot him.
View attachment 138401

Nice buck!!


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[MeatBuck]

Buddy of mine goes straight to the bleach... Soaks the itchy areas in it and says its gone within a day or two.
I'm not recommending this, just sharing.

 

[jfs82]

Had a friend who would get it so badly he couldnt leave the house, eyes swollen shut etc. he'd wrap affected areas with cloth in rubbing alcohol to dry it all out.

 

[MaxHenderson]

Buddy of mine goes straight to the bleach... Soaks the itchy areas in it and says its gone within a day or two.
I'm not recommending this, just sharing.

I’ve heard of this, also heard of using peroxide.


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[Mattyq17]

I have used rubbing alcohol and it works well. My son gets it more than I do and the rubbing alcohol works well for him. I have also heard that jumping in the ocean helps dry the oils out as well.

 

[805Bowhunter]

In A zone there are 2 things you can count on, hot weather and poison oak.
The A-buck I killed this year was all balled up in it when I found him. Think he was munching it when I shot him.
View attachment 138401

That is an outstanding buck but looking at what he is in gives me a full panic attack. I have hunted A zone blacktail for many many years and get poison oak incredibly bad. So much so that it has changed where I have hunted in recent years due to PO overgrowth.

Some things I have learned are, you cannot avoid it so do everything you can to take precautions. When I get an animal on the ground, I am hyper aware of gloves and covering everything that will be touching the animal. Also learn to wash you clothes very well and the right way. What I mean by that is take your clothes off (anything that has potentially touched PO) and put them straight into the washer. I have made the mistake of throwing my clothes on the ground, getting in the shower, then carrying my clothes to the washer, only to have PO show up all over my chest/arms etc from exposure due to carrying the clothes.

Lastly, and this sounds kinda weak but I learned this from my brother who is a firefighter. Not sure if you all are aware of Dr. Bronner's Peppermint soap? Its kind of a hippy soap that you can get at Trader Joes and sometimes Costco. Anyhow, the peppermint suppresses the PO oils. I thought this was bs but my brother and all of the firemen he knows do this. Put some of that Bronners in a ziploc bag with some wipes of some kind. At the end of each day on a backpack hunt (only in PO territory), I wipe myself down with a wipe. It smells really good and also has completely suppressed my breakouts. If I do get PO, it is very mild compared to what it used to be. I cannot recommend this enough as hippy dippy as it sounds.

 

[Beendare]

We ran dogs for hogs in CA.....I think I had a patch of PO somewhere on me for about 8 years straight

Wear nitrile gloves when handling animals

If you think you touched PO, washing ASAP with water...better yet soap and water works. Then wash your hands after removing your clothes and boots.


PO isn't a big deal if you do a little prep.
...

 

[MeatBuck]

Anybody got into smoke from burning poison oak?

I hear u can get it in the lungs and in your mouth, eyes, nose, etc.