Most of the hunters I meet and talk with are nice and seem friendly. For what ever reason, some guys are plain grumpy. When I meet that type, I wish them a nice day and move on.
I've had few experiences with hunters that block access with their camp. Depending on how many KM of road they're blocking, I either go somewhere else or zoom right through their camp with a wave. I don't stop to talk or ask them to move, I just drive through. They may not like it, but at this point of my life, I don't care.
Road and access blockers on crown land are a slimy bunch. They should be reported whenever you see them.
FYI,
Some "old hunters" (like my dad at 81), Don't HEAR so well!!
They seem like they don't care, or may not hear you saying hi from afar or stuff like that.
Also, dealing with chronic pain etc, so remember to cut them "some" slack when out in the field and they seem a "little off".
But yes, some are just ornery old cusps.
Think we have one or 2 of them on HBC
My all time favorite slob hunter meltdown was about 3 or 4 years ago. I was obsessed with this 5x5 blacktail and had him on camera a week prior and I was going to look for him on rifle opening day. We arrived the night prior and camped out in the Jeep just before the little deactivated road (not blocking it or anything)
Got up about an hour before first light and started walking down the trail planning to sneak into the old growth and hike into where the buck had been making some appearances.
About 5-10 mins into our walk, some very special person pulls up to our "camp" (where the jeep is parked) and goes ape with a shotgun and blasts off around 10 rapid shots with only a slight pause. Guessing 12ga mag fed semi auto. My car alarm fob started to do the little warning chirp, so we walked back just to make sure he wasn't shooting or messing with the jeep.
Just amazing to see a presumably grown man having that level of melt down over someone else hunting an area I suppose he planned to hunt opening day. Tons of area around for hunting and to have plan A, B, C and every other letter of the alphabet. We had some good laughs at his expense joking about the tantrum. Just adorable LOL. We briefly contemplated catching up with him for a chat and to offer a box of tissues and get some funny footage for the youtube (let's face it, meltdown videos are entertaining) .... "hey we heard your distress call back there and wanted to check if you are okay... sounded like you were in need of a hug or a box of tissues. can we help you? but we kept it classy (and safe as the guy is obviously already unhinged and trigger happy so you never really know) and went about our morning as planned.
Anyway for the amount of time we're out in the bush, probably 70-90 days/nights a year, we only have a half dozen stories like this after all these years. Most often when we run into people when we're going from point A to point B or road hunting for birds it's usually a wave and smiles and when they slow down and started rolling down their window, I look forward to the upcoming chat break. I've helped lots of people with jacks, tools, tires, jump starts, directions etc... had lots of people stop and ask if we're ok too which is nice. I am sure one day I'll need a hand. CO's and Park Rangers have always been really good to me too and for the most part they aren't paid to be your friend. I once had a couple Park Rangers stop to make sure I wasn't hypothermic. I probably was but I was back from a 5 hour hike in the 1-2C wet coast down pour and warming up already. One took my hands and warmed them up (don't tell caddisgirl ! j/k) Sooo many awesome people out there it's easy to focus on the few degenerates roaming around. It might seem higher sometimes but I would guess the slob to awesome ratio is 1:20
It's a small world too. Often people turn out to be HBC posters, lurkers, youtube subscribers and what not. It's funny running into a stranger in the woods and they tell you that you they watch your crayfishing videos or helped them get their first bear and I'm thinking "wellll I think you are giving a little more credit that deserved... all I do is tell people to hunt the grass".
Soo, awesome people just keep being awesome. We're winning!
Last edited by caddisguy; 09-20-2020 at 03:22 PM.
Here is the all time Classic...the guy who wont let you pass him on a forest service road.
This happens to me every weekend during hunting season, it happened this morning, twice, I try to leave extra early on the weekend but sometimes its never early enough lol.
Some guy figure's that I am heading to the best hunting spot on the Planet (his spot) and wont let me go by, even though I am trying to get to my timber sale so I can go to work, yes, some guys work on the weekend.
Doesn't matter if its dark out, wont let you pass, happens every friggin weekend. I try to be polite but its hard not to get frustrated with some guys...I have had a guy put it in about 2nd gear low range and not let me pass for 6-7km, in the dark...total prick thing to do.
Growing old is unavoidable. Growing up is highly overrated....
I was out hunting this Monday with my daughters. We called in a bull and a half of dozen cows. I tried for about 5 minutes to get my 12 yr old a good shooting lane, but the grass was tall and she is too little to hold the gun steady without a rest. We had one good lane that the bull stepped into a couple times, but never presented a good shot so she never pulled the trigger. For a twelve year old to have an elk in her scope is always a good day. Anyway, these elk took off and we never did get them. Unknown to us, there was another group of hunters that were in the same area. They had come up on the elk as well. They have hunted there for years, but this was my first time in the area. After the elk left, we realized we weren't alone so we went to talk to these guys. They asked me not to tell anyone the spot was there, we had a few laughs, reviewed the evenings events and went on our way. All respectful. Normally, if I see an old guy hunting in an area, I will give him his space. I will be the old one one day that can't put on the miles like I used to, but I will be out there still. I was watching meat eater last night on netflix and in the words of Steve rinella " There are two types of hunters. The ones in your group, and the ass holes." I had to laugh at the satement as ther is so much truth about how we feel when we come across someone else in the woods. As far as telling people about hunting spots, I don't always tell people where I hunt, but when I do, I LIE!
Everyone take a deep breath, forget about the bad experiences, and make sure you are not that guy! A smile goes a long way. I'd say I hope to see you out there, but I really don't!. I do hope you have good luck though, just not in my spot......