How do you think the opening of road closers worked out last year?

[bearass]

I was just going threw some old threads from a few years back about whether the MOE should open up road closers or not.

Seeing how they did open some road closers last year how do you think it affected things for you? Good or Bad?

I personally did not hunt as much as I normally do last year but for the 4 days I was out in one of the places that is normally a road closure it was pretty crazy. people were everywhere . People camped in the middle of roads just crazy, but this was at the begging of the season in the EK. We bow hunted a few days before the rifle opener and we were fortunate enough to harvest a bull on the first day of rifle and got out of there. I am sure things died down a bit after the first week.

It was sure nice to be able to drive into a road closer that I normally hunt but on the other hand I used to go into road closers on foot to get away from the rest of the people not really upset about it but it looks like I am going to have to find some new places to go to get away from the mobs:-D

[Jelvis]

Sounds like your ambivalent on the openings. What roads are you talking about?
Jel .. Road closure opened? Which one please?

[bearass]

How about everyone they opened in the koots. As for the exact road closer I hunt in I am not going to disclose that info and I don't expect anyone else to disclose there hunting spots either.

[Fisher-Dude]

200 yards from the road, and you won't see another soul all day.

Congrats on bagging the bull, despite the crowds and access. ;)

[bearass]

Jel if you read threw the regs it doesn't say they opened them but if one were to compare last years regs to the years previous you would find that they took out some literature on what road closures are for curtain regions.

[hunter1947]

It sucked big time opening up some road closures opening up these few roads ruined it for a few like myself that liked walking back in where you had very few hunters to deal with.:icon_frow

I checked out these road closures last year and it was a gong show I did not even hunt where I used to in these road closures there where trucks parked every where I don't need to hunt areas like this I just went some where else ,in fact thee was some idiot circling his hand in the air when I pulled up to him he was parked right on the road closure rd he said you can't go by me because I am hunting in here little did he know that he was trying to block off many other roads that feed of the road he was blocking off..:evil:

I said to him he can't do this to other hunters that come into this area he more else told me to go F*** myself I had enough of his talk and just turned around and left.:evil:

The CO found out about this from someone I told they the COs went in and dealt with this two hunters I noticed that they left the next day there trailer was gone..:-D

[hunter1947]

I was just going threw some old threads from a few years back about whether the MOE should open up road closers or not.

Seeing how they did open some road closers last year how do you think it affected things for you? Good or Bad?

I personally did not hunt as much as I normally do last year but for the 4 days I was out in one of the places that is normally a road closure it was pretty crazy. people were everywhere . People camped in the middle of roads just crazy, but this was at the begging of the season in the EK. We bow hunted a few days before the rifle opener and we were fortunate enough to harvest a bull on the first day of rifle and got out of there. I am sure things died down a bit after the first week.

It was sure nice to be able to drive into a road closer that I normally hunt but on the other hand I used to go into road closers on foot to get away from the rest of the people not really upset about it but it looks like I am going to have to find some new places to go to get away from the mobs:-D

No they did not die down till the beginning of Oct I checked out the entrance on this road a few time now and then it was still like down town Cranbrook..

[bearass]

That sucks Wayne. You know one thing I forgot to mention was that we had someone cut the brake lines to our trailer and popped two tires on the trailer last year at our camp. Just making an assumption but we ran into some people in a old road closer that were also blocking off the road and had no idea how much further it went, but we pushed past them anyway. Me thinks they screwed with our trailer but again that is just an assumption. That shite pisses me off.

[Jelvis]

Which roads? Name the baby.

[bearass]

What is up with people blocking off roads. I seen it in EK last year more than one person setting camp up in the middle of the road. Like just enough room to get the quad threw. And also in the west kootenays guys setting up there camp in the middle of the road and letting know one buy. wtf

[GoatGuy]

Saw two resident hunters, one on a trail, one at a trail head in the EK in about 4 weeks of hunting out there.

Whether on foot, bicycle, horse or vehicle, going down a road is called road hunting. The 'trick' is to get off the road if the intent is to see no other hunters.

In the Okanagan we probably have the highest density of hunters and the most access in the Province. Saw three hunters we didn't know while hunting. Same deal, get off the road.

[bearass]

Saw two resident hunters, one on a trail, one at a trail head in the EK in about 4 weeks of hunting out there.

Whether on foot, bicycle, horse or vehicle, going down a road is called road hunting. The 'trick' is to get off the road if the intent is to see no other hunters.

In the Okanagan we probably have the highest density of hunters and the most access in the Province. Saw three hunters we didn't know while hunting. Same deal, get off the road.

Ya goat guy I get what you are saying and I do all day hikes and get very fare away from the road but you need the road to get to where you are going to hunt.And when there are people in the middle of it camped it can make things tough.

[GoatGuy]

Ya goat guy I get what you are saying and I do all day hikes and get very fare away from the road but you need the road to get to where you are going to hunt.And when there are people in the middle of it camped it can make things tough.

Totally agree with you.

Camping in the middle of a road is complete BS and it seems to happen in the WK all the time. Pretty ignorant. Definitely a good idea to pull the camera and take a few pics and turn it over to the COS.

[frenchbar]

Totally agree with you.

Camping in the middle of a road is complete BS and it seems to happen in the WK all the time. Pretty ignorant. Definitely a good idea to pull the camera and take a few pics and turn it over to the COS.
and dont leave untill you have a big dump on the hood of their truck ....

[BlacktailStalker]

The road closure I shot a bull on a few years ago was opened last year.
I glassed the area from across the valley and laughed at the amount of camps (one on every road)
So I didnt even bother hunting it, instead went to an area thats always been open but more out of the way and shot a bull the first day :cool:
Newly opened road closures are for combat hunters ! Crowds suck. Elk learn quickly....

If some goof camped on a road in a way I couldn't get by that I planned to hunt with a reasonable amount of country beyond their camp, I'd turn around and dump about 40 trees across the road a km or two back to keep them in there for a while.
Maybe a good reason to carry a few hundred roofing nails in the truck too.

[Everett]

Hunted 9 days in a former road closure this year saw one truck and one old dude on a three wheeler. Hunted a second former closure and saw at least 10 hunters in 7 days it was crazy crowded. Helped a guy sort out his first elk back at the rec site, who had shot it in the former closure (guide protection zone) he was real happy first Elk for him and his wife.
My opinion remove all closures in the EK/WK as they are just horse hunter/guide protection zones. There are other ways to control hunter preasure that are more fair to poor residents (those that can't afford horses).

[Everett]

My responese to those that camp in the road is a quick hook on to a tow rope and a short drag into the ditch.

[hunter1947]

I had it with these people that block roads I won't let them get the better of me this year if they block roads off that head back into many roads that branch off this main road I will take the license number get hold of the CO and let them deal with these people..

[Husky7mm]

People have no right to block access. If you think you exclusive rights to the area your blocking your a real FFFFer. On the other hand if you drive past a parked truck at the begining of the LAST cut block on that road as someone is walking into it in the dark than your a FFFFer too. There is a difference.

[Kody94]

I was just going threw some old threads from a few years back about whether the MOE should open up road closers or not.

Seeing how they did open some road closers last year how do you think it affected things for you? Good or Bad?

I personally did not hunt as much as I normally do last year but for the 4 days I was out in one of the places that is normally a road closure it was pretty crazy. people were everywhere . People camped in the middle of roads just crazy, but this was at the begging of the season in the EK. We bow hunted a few days before the rifle opener and we were fortunate enough to harvest a bull on the first day of rifle and got out of there. I am sure things died down a bit after the first week.

It was sure nice to be able to drive into a road closer that I normally hunt but on the other hand I used to go into road closers on foot to get away from the rest of the people not really upset about it but it looks like I am going to have to find some new places to go to get away from the mobs:-D

I think I know which ones you mean. I was in there a few times in mid-Sept and it was still pretty busy...based on the density and spacing of the roads, getting 200m off the road just means your 200m away from the next road. When you got up high, it was kinda comical to watch vehicles roaming up and down all the roads. The traffic did seem to have the elk a lot quieter than previous years. It was a bit crazy, but I am sure it will settle down as the novelty wears off....I am sure lots of folks that assumed the grass was greener but weren't willing to walk in before had to check it out. I think it was a good "re-opening".

[Fisher-Dude]

I think I know which ones you mean. I was in there a few times in mid-Sept and it was still pretty busy...based on the density and spacing of the roads, getting 200m off the road just means your 200m away from the next road.

I like that. When I plunk a bull on the road and he does a 50 yard downhill dash over the bank before dying, I can easily get him to the next road down below.

Thank you to the good folks at Tembec for incorporating road hunting planning into their development plans. http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/images/icons/icon14.png

[GoatGuy]

I think I know which ones you mean. I was in there a few times in mid-Sept and it was still pretty busy...based on the density and spacing of the roads, getting 200m off the road just means your 200m away from the next road. When you got up high, it was kinda comical to watch vehicles roaming up and down all the roads. The traffic did seem to have the elk a lot quieter than previous years. It was a bit crazy, but I am sure it will settle down as the novelty wears off....I am sure lots of folks that assumed the grass was greener but weren't willing to walk in before had to check it out. I think it was a good "re-opening".

Sounds like that's probably what happens when the new, clean shaven girl shows up in town in Crazybrook.

[Jelvis]

Plunk a bull "(On) the road." ? Maybe tweek that a bit eh?
From on ..... to the ...(side of the road)
Jp ..

[hunter1947]

I think I know which ones you mean. I was in there a few times in mid-Sept and it was still pretty busy...based on the density and spacing of the roads, getting 200m off the road just means your 200m away from the next road. When you got up high, it was kinda comical to watch vehicles roaming up and down all the roads. The traffic did seem to have the elk a lot quieter than previous years. It was a bit crazy, but I am sure it will settle down as the novelty wears off....I am sure lots of folks that assumed the grass was greener but weren't willing to walk in before had to check it out. I think it was a good "re-opening".


You probably got this road right Kody and if it is the road your talking about the hunters that where camped at the entrance parked there trailer right on the road and then parked there trucks along side of there trailer so you could not go by them...

[bearass]

Ya that sounds like the same one we were in.

[Kody94]

Sounds like that's probably what happens when the new, clean shaven girl shows up in town in Crazybrook.

And the novelty wears off when she's married or pregnant, whichever comes second. ;)

[Kody94]

Thank you to the good folks at Tembec for incorporating road hunting planning into their development plans. http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/images/icons/icon14.png

Foresters hunt too. :D

[Elkaholic]

I know in one of the discussed closures that there was a nice fellow who decided to setup his wall tent right in the middle of a road. We were so pissed that we couldnt get by, but we noticed that we could get our quads right through his little setup. So next morning as he is sipping away on his coffee we drive right on by. He came out and looked at us and I was waiting for him to say 1 word. Not one was said so he got the picture. As most are saying the novelty will wear off this year or the next and it will be back to how it was when it was closed.

[grizzlydueck]

I think its very sad that were losing our road closers =somewhere like 80%-90% of our roads are open to road hunters =soo little are closed ...And so many people cant wait to hunt them ------------- why is that ?..... because the hunting is better -the age class is better - less hunters -less competition-less garbage -no quads-trucks... a road closer is a place that improves your odds -a better hunting experience-so open up all the road closers and they become just another hunted road =Just like the rest of the country ? I do agree that some closers are for the guides or horse people -way too far= to backpack into- and belive me Iv'e tried and done a few ! Has a person driven every open road in my area = no fu&#ng way ? You could spend yor life time exploring out here and never drive the same road twice ! But seriously, just because you spent all that money on your quad or truck dosen't mean that you have to use it! =hike \walk in a ways -don't you remember how much fun it was when we were kids -the adventure of hiking or backpacking into a spot ...How RAW and PURE the hunt was ! Not having any gas money but getting out and hiking with some buddies and having a blast ! Now we get so comfortable sitting----and in seeing how far in we can get in with the quads =that becomes the challenge ! in stead of the hunt . I'm sort of sorry if I offended anyone ! But thats just my opinion and like I like to say ...opinions are like assholes ...and everyones got one !

[hunter1947]

It was a gong show when I drove up to the road closers where I walked back into for many years one person would not let us pass by his camp he had camp set up right on the edge of the road blocking 50% of the road that goes back into this valley I had enough of his talk and just turned around and got out of this area :evil: ,I was very upset that the management lifted the road closers in the area I hunted very few are out there so why lift them ??? :confused:.

When it was a road closers it was a place to get back away from the crowds and that road hunter could not go into with trucks or quads I hated what management did opening up the roads that where closed for many years :(...

I might head in there for bow season this year and see if it has many bow hunters in there something I have to see and find out ????? :roll: if it is crawling with bow hunters then its not the area for me I like areas that I see no one in when I hunt...

For the few hunters that like to head back into these road closers that are not afraid of putting on some leather and packing the game out they the management are taking this opportunity away fro the hunters that do this when will it end ????.

[6616]

There will always be access management, it's a necessary evil, but there has to be a sound biological, environmental, safety, or engineering reason to close a road. I don't support road closures just to create a quality hunting opportunity. There were many road closures in the Kootenay's where the original reason for closing the road no longer exists so it's the right thing to reopen these roads in my opinion. Some roads were closed in an attempt to keep moose off LEH back in the '80's. Others were closed to aid in the recovery of elk during the '90's. These closures are now redundant, we're over-run with elk in the EK and moose are now on LEH, these closures should be eliminated. Some closures were put in place to protect goat and sheep herds but residents chronically under-use their sheep and goat allocations so why are these needed, to protect outfitter viability...? Keeping closures in place just because they have developed into someones honey hole is not a reasonable justification in my mind, it defeats the whole purpose and potential for adaptive access management.

The hunting public only has appetite for so many road closures. New areas crop up every year that could benefit from access management but they can't just keep adding more and more closures. Access management has to be adaptable and flexible, opening up old redundant closures makes room to create new closures that might be needed for a variety of reasons.

Many of the road closures in the Kootenay'a were created, not to accommodate or piss hunters off, but for a variety of reasons that do not to relate to hunting at all. If it's a MOE VHAC it does relate to hunting but if it's a MOE AMA it probably relates to other environmental issues. If it's a MOF closure it's probably to prevent vulnerable road surfaces from being destroyed or for public safety reasons. Do not assume that any and all road cosures were put in place because of hunting.

By the way the East Kootenay's has one of the highest percentages of road closures in the province and many of these still existing closures are outdated and redundant when one checks the original reasons for creating them.

[Fisher-Dude]

There will always be access management, it's a necessary evil, but there has to be a sound biological, environmental, safety, or engineering reason to close a road. I don't support road closures just to create a quality hunting opportunity. There were many road closures in the Kootenay's where the original reason for closing the road no longer exists so it's the right thing to reopen these roads in my opinion. Some roads were closed in an attempt to keep moose off LEH back in the '80's. Others were closed to aid in the recovery of elk during the '90's. These closures are now redundant, we're over-run with elk in the EK and moose are now on LEH, these closures should be eliminated. Some closures were put in place to protect goat and sheep herds but residents chronically under-use their sheep and goat allocations so why are these needed, to protect outfitter viability...? Keeping closures in place just because they have developed into someones honey hole is not a reasonable justification in my mind, it defeats the whole purpose and potential for adaptive access management.

The hunting public only has appetite for so many road closures. New areas crop up every year that could benefit from access management but they can't just keep adding more and more closures. Access management has to be adaptable and flexible, opening up old redundant closures makes room to create new closures that might be needed for a variety of reasons.

Many of the road closures in the Kootenay'a were created, not to accommodate or piss hunters off, but for a variety of reasons that do not to relate to hunting at all. If it's a MOE VHAC it does relate to hunting but if it's a MOE AMA it probably relates to other environmental issues. If it's a MOF closure it's probably to prevent vulnerable road surfaces from being destroyed or for public safety reasons. Do not assume that any and all road cosures were put in place because of hunting.

By the way the East Kootenay's has one of the highest percentages of road closures in the province and many of these still existing closures are outdated and redundant when one checks the original reasons for creating them.


^^^ What he said.

If there's a conservation reason, fine, I'm all for it. If it's to lock hunters out who don't have the ability to walk 20 kms with a quarter of elk on their backs, it's BS and should not be supported in any circumstance.

Our hunting population is aging, and we need to do what we can to provide opportunity for everyone, and not just cater to what is usually a guide-outfitter's wishes.

If people want a "quality experience", try walking 90 degrees to a road instead of up or down it. Really, isn't walking along a road just another form of road hunting?

[GoatGuy]

Walking, riding a bike, quad or driving a truck down a road = road hunter


Hiking down a trail = backpack hunter


If you don't want to see other hunters and want to see lots of game hit the trails - it really is that simple and there's thousands of them in the EK. Goats, mulies, white-tails, elk, sheep, bears and even moose if you want them and 0 resident hunters.