Fishermen/waterfowl Hunter Clash..your Take?

[MarkH024]

Next weekend is the beginning of Canadian Geese hunting season for Wisconsin. Every year this season comes up I think about a run in we had with a hunter that to this day I still think his actions were completely unecessary and I have a hard time forgetting about it. I'll make this short and sweet so you guys don't become bored reading a wall of text.

It was an October morning (probably 5 years ago now)...so waterfowl hunting season was in full force. My dad, brother and I got in the boat around 6am and headed to the backside of our lake. The moment we stop the motor and are about to get situated we hear 3 shots from the farther shoreline side. I looked up in the air and not a single duck/geese was flying through the air and as soon as I start looking at my brother, we see and hear pellets landing in the water about 20 feet from us. Basically this guy in his blind was not happy with our presence. We were at least 100 yds from this guy but the lake is very small overall. 65+ acres only. He didn't have any decoys, nothing to let us even know he was out there. My dad is pretty hard guy to get fired up and as he didn't say anything, I could tell he was ready to go back to the house and retaliate. I was pretty steamed too but kind of in a shock as well.

Who's right...who's wrong here? Both fishing and hunting legal at this point. He had no indications that he was out there.

What would you have done?

I'm heading up there next weekend for my brothers bachelor party with 9 of our friends so we'll be fishing all weekend. It's opening season for Canadian geese Sept 1st, and I know this guy will be out again. Every year with fall hunting seasons opening up I think about this and it still bugs me to this day.

[kylek]

I would try and find a place to fish without hunters. Don't want to make anyone mad that has a gun in their hands...

[hooah212002]

He used a tool designed to kill as a deterrant to ward you off. I can't see how you would, in any way shape or form, NOT see him as being completely wrong. He practically shot at you..... Guns aren't toys and you aren't geese.

[MarkH024]

I would try and find a place to fish without hunters. Don't want to make anyone mad that has a gun in their hands...

I don't hunt at all.......however I was under the impression from those I personally know who do, it is the hunters obligation to make sure that other people/hunters know of there where abouts...or is that wrong?

Regardless...being shot at in any circumstances is completely unethical for a "warning" to another sportsman. Murderers, rapists, and burglars are just about the only grounds for being shot at in my book.

[tomustang]

Last time I checked it's illegal to point a gun at someone in public

[clayton86]

That's messed up I don't personally waterfowl hunt but I deer, varmint, predator, and small game hunt and during deer season I always wear orange and once to my stand or blind I wrap the vest around the tree so other hunters know I'm there and it doesn't spook the deer either. the others I don't wear orange unless its during deer season but I always call and tell who ever's property I'm going to that I will be back there and my car/truck parked at the entrance are usually sign enough that I'm out there to anyone who might stop. You would think hunting geese or any waterfowl he would have a decoy spread which as fisherman we would notice and keep away from because obviously some ones hunting. If he had shot at me like that I would of waited by his truck with the officers you said its a small lake so I'm sure you parked close to him I would a called the cops or handled it myself personally I'm not saying with violence but I would a had some not so nice words.

[kylek]

I don't hunt at all.......however I was under the impression from those I personally know who do, it is the hunters obligation to make sure that other people/hunters know of there where abouts...or is that wrong?

Regardless...being shot at in any circumstances is completely unethical for a "warning" to another sportsman. Murderers, rapists, and burglars are just about the only grounds for being shot at in my book.

If it were me in the blind I would have gotten up and said something to you that I was hunting in this spot. He never should have pointed the gun or shot in your direction. I was just saying if you know he is gonna be there and has a history of stupid stuff like this, to pick another spot. Or get there before him and flip some soft plastics around his blind to see if you can get a bite!!!

[Bluebasser86]

Never had a bad run in with waterfowlers, I've helped them out a couple times actually. A few times I've been fishing in the river of one of the power plant lakes I fish during the winter and I know where some guys are set up if I come across ducks or geese that are sat down on the water somewhere in the river I'll try to get them up and flying their direction. I've got more than a few assists to my credit with the local duck hunters

[preach4bass]

Never had a bad run in with waterfowlers, I've helped them out a couple times actually. A few times I've been fishing in the river of one of the power plant lakes I fish during the winter and I know where some guys are set up if I come across ducks or geese that are sat down on the water somewhere in the river I'll try to get them up and flying their direction. I've got more than a few assists to my credit with the local duck hunters

That's awesome!

[bowfish12]

The way I'm reading your posts, and please clarify if I'm wrong, is that you knew said blind was in the back of this creek, said lake was open to hunting, and that duck season was open.

You say you didn't see any ducks or geese when the shots were fired. Do you think that maybe he killed said waterfowl? Early in the morning it's really difficult to see any birds below the treetops from 50 yards much less from several hundred yards unless they are above the said treetops.

Don't take this as me condoning what happened, because if he did intentionally shoot at you that is uncalled for. My opinion is that he most likely was shooting a one or two ducks that you could not see, due to the factors listed above, and you did not see said waterfowl because they didn't make it out of there.

I know this is public land, I hunt/fish KY lake and barkley year round. You have a right to be there just as much as I do. Take into consideration during hunting seasons that there will be people hunting all over the place and the best thing you can do is give them quite a bit of room.

Here's a story that happened to me a couple years ago on KY lake in September during the early woodduck/teal season we have. Our first spot we showed up to someone beat us to it. So we move up the lake to another bay/creek and get set up in a not so ideal spot. About 7 am a bass boat comes in and starts fishing on the point we are set up on, less than 30 yards from us, and after they have idled for 50 yards and seen us waving them off from the bank.

I asked the guy in the front if he saw us waving him off, answer is yes, asked him if he knew the first day of duck season was today, answer yes, and asked him why in the hell he would come and fish a point knowing hunters are there and would he go somewhere else. His answer, he was fishing a tournament and wasn't going anywhere. He was made aware that if a duck came in it would be shot, and we couldn't guarantee which direction the shots would be headed. Ten minutes later we shot a duck and they were about 50 yards down the bank. They left right after that.

Respect goes a long way. If you show me respect you will get it right back. If you're an ass to me get ready to get it right back.

I'm going to give you an idea of what it's like in a morning for me during duck season when I hunt KY or Barkley.

Get off work on Friday and make sure everything is ready to go the next morning. Usually get in bed around 10 PM. Wake up at 3:00 AM. Leave @ 3:30 to drive a hr to the lake with a pitstop at a gas station. Arrive on the banks of KY lake around 5 AM. Proceed to put out decoys, cover/brush/set up blind, adjust decoys depending on wind, one by one (usually running 4-7 dozen). This takes between 1 hr- 1 hr 15 minutes depending on what we decide to do for the day. Begin hunting at shooting time.

There's a lot of work involved and I thought it would benefit some of you who do not hunt with some perspective on what it takes every morning for me when hunting public land.

[MarkH024]

We didn't know he had a blind up and I never said anything about him being in creek. We were in the middle of the lake with shore line in 100yds or further in every direction. I mean, dead nuts in the middle. You could launch a hot air balloon from our location. This was the first time ever of us seeing hunters on the lake. We've owned a home there for 22 years. It was light enough in the morning that you could see clear across the lake. I assure you, there was not a single bird flying through the air especially above our head. Pellets landed 20 feet from our boat... Had I seen his blind, or known he was going to be shooting toward the middle of the lake, I'd never gone there. I have enough respect for hunters to not cross the path if they were clearly there first.

Point I was making, is that he should have at least made his presence known. Even if he whistled. The sound carries there unbelievably far. One side of the lake is homes, the other forest. He was shooting off his shoreline that he made a blind in really dense reeds. I'd like to think that the majority of you guys would want other people to know your location so that no one else is firing in your direction.

[Gatorbassman]

Put this phone number in your phone. It's the Wisconsin Violation Hotline. Call the 24/7 if he does it again. Let the DNR sort it out.

1-800-847-9367

[bowfish12]

I understand what you're saying, just wanted to get a little more clarity on how everything is set up on that lake. He shouldn't have shot in your direction to try and run you off.