As we walked side by side down the old logging road just north of Piseco, I looked over at my hunting partner.

"Hey, mind pointing that thing the other way?" I yelled as I looked down the barrel of his shotgun. I couldn’t believe that someone who has hunted his whole life could be so careless. He should have known better than to point a loaded gun toward anyone.

Later that day, it happened again, so that was the last time I hunted with him.

With deer season opening Saturday, we all should put an emphasis on gun safety. It’s a proven fact that most hunting accidents involve members of the same hunting party.

A few years ago, I was hunting up north with a group of friends. One day, we were joined by an old-timer who had hunted that same area for dozens of years. When we decided to hunt on the lower end of Upper Pine Mountain, he told us about a hunting accident on that same drive many years ago.

Several watchers were strategically placed over the ridge while another group started up near the top and tried to push deer down to the waiting hunters. All went well until a shot was fired. A young hunter in the group thought he saw a red fox trotting down through the timber, so he shot it. The "fox" turned out to be a dark-red, plaid hunting hat. It was a tragic accident that could have been avoided.

Last year was the safest New York hunting season in history. There were 29 injuries statewide _ 15 of which were in deer season _ and three fatalities. Safer gun handling probably could have reduced these low numbers even further.

Hunting can be safer and more enjoyable if you follow a few simple rules.

1, Assume every gun is loaded. How many times have we heard somebody say, "I thought it wasn’t loaded," after the fact. You simply can’t take that chance.

2, Control your muzzle. Always point your gun in a safe direction.[an error occurred while processing this directive]

3, Keep your fingers off the trigger until you’re ready to pull it.

4, Be sure of your target and beyond. Before you shoot something, make sure you know what it is. Also, now that rifles are legal in our area, make sure that there’s nothing beyond your target that could get hit should you miss. Bullets can travel great distances _ even after passing through animals.

You should avoid shooting at game on the horizon as well. And, if you shoot at running game, be aware of your hunting buddies because your concentration will be on the animal.

5, Wear hunter orange. I like to be seen, and even a small bit of blaze orange will stand out in a world of dark green and gray. It’s better to be safe than dead.

Nothing will prevent hunting accidents from happening all together, but these rules should help limit the possibilities.

It’s safer to replace that old 2x4 platform with a good, portable treestand this year, too. Wood rots and nails rust as the years go by, so that "permanent" wooden stand you put up in the old oak tree a few years ago is probably a hazard by now.

Remember to use safety belts and harnesses when hunting from treestands, too. I still can’t believe how many hunters ignore this equipment. Falls can be crippling _ even fatal _ so buckle up.

Don’t jump the gun: Those who will hunt bears in the new areas this year _ in Unit 4F, for example _ are reminded that bear season starts Monday ... two days after deer season opens. In short, no big, black, furry critters this weekend.

Rick Brockway writes a weekly outdoors column for The Daily Star. E-mail him at robrockway@hotmail.com.