There are 19 states where if you see purple paint on trees or fence posts while out hiking, you should leave immediately. That’s because purple paint denotes private property in these areas, which means you’re trespassing and could open yourself up to criminal prosecution. What’s more, in a country where citizens have the constitutional right to bear arms, disregarding these markings could put your life in danger as well. States that have purple paint laws include:
Alabama
Arkansas
Florida
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Missouri
New Hampshire
North Carolina
Pennsylvania
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
Virginia
West Virginia
It’s important to note that in North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia, purple paint is not for deterring criminal trespassers. It’s solely used to notify people that they’re not allowed to hunt or fish in the marked area. The remaining states use different colors:
• Idaho, Montana and Nevada rely on orange paint to alert trespassers.
• Arizona also uses orange paint, but only to prohibit hunting on private property.
• Utah uses yellow paint to prohibit hunting on private property.
• Maryland uses blue paint to denote no trespassing areas.
• Nebraska uses red paint to denote no trespassing areas.
