When does it become harassment?
Here is the deal:
I had been eyeing this drainage for a couple of years. I usually do my bait station location scouting in the fall, betting on streams with good salmon runs, grass flats, skunk cabbage and fiddlehead ferns. This particular drainage is a place where I have spotted bears on the hill side in both spring and fall.
I placed a station here on April 15th last year, put my signs out and had another hunter place a half-drum station about 20 yards away and in clear sight of my station. I had also noticed another station in the fall that had a stand (still in place) and I placed a sign at the trail head of their location to notify them (if they were still using the location) that I was in the area. This group placed their bait and hunted and I did not hear a peep from them or have a word of conflict with them.
Fast-Forward to this year. Since the close proximity to shore and my signs seemed to attract too much attention, I moved my station further up the drainage and did not post any signs on the shore-line.
The 2nd trip in to add bait to my station, I come out from baiting and here is this boat circling my boat with a irate hunter yelling at me about hunting off of his station and about not honoring his signs that have been placed sometime between when I 1st setup my station and when I returned to add bait. The guy did not even try to have a decent discussion to see if we may have an opportunity to work something out and I tried to explain to the guy that his signs were not there when I placed the station and that I was up the drainage from him, but he did not want to discuss it. He never would tell me when he placed his signs or put in his station.
He was yelling about hunting ethics and how long he has been hunting the area before he even new the circumstances. This happened several times during the season. It seems like this was the same crew that hunted the established location in 2010. I found it funny that they did not have any problem walking by my signs in 2010 and setting up their station, but in 2011 when they thought they had beat me to the location they seem to have a big problem with it.
I know what it is like to loose a honey hole and I can appreciate their frustration, but I never assumed that I was the only person that could scout location and that the only reason someone else picked the spot is because I am there. That’s just stupid!
Alaska is primarily public hunting, why do some people think they own the place? Heck! If you want private hunting get a homestead or lease some private land!
So! Here is my question. When does this become harassment? I tried to reason with these guys to no avail.
Did you ever notice that the people that are the 1st to mention ethics are the last to have them?
Here is the deal:
I had been eyeing this drainage for a couple of years. I usually do my bait station location scouting in the fall, betting on streams with good salmon runs, grass flats, skunk cabbage and fiddlehead ferns. This particular drainage is a place where I have spotted bears on the hill side in both spring and fall.
I placed a station here on April 15th last year, put my signs out and had another hunter place a half-drum station about 20 yards away and in clear sight of my station. I had also noticed another station in the fall that had a stand (still in place) and I placed a sign at the trail head of their location to notify them (if they were still using the location) that I was in the area. This group placed their bait and hunted and I did not hear a peep from them or have a word of conflict with them.
Fast-Forward to this year. Since the close proximity to shore and my signs seemed to attract too much attention, I moved my station further up the drainage and did not post any signs on the shore-line.
The 2nd trip in to add bait to my station, I come out from baiting and here is this boat circling my boat with a irate hunter yelling at me about hunting off of his station and about not honoring his signs that have been placed sometime between when I 1st setup my station and when I returned to add bait. The guy did not even try to have a decent discussion to see if we may have an opportunity to work something out and I tried to explain to the guy that his signs were not there when I placed the station and that I was up the drainage from him, but he did not want to discuss it. He never would tell me when he placed his signs or put in his station.
He was yelling about hunting ethics and how long he has been hunting the area before he even new the circumstances. This happened several times during the season. It seems like this was the same crew that hunted the established location in 2010. I found it funny that they did not have any problem walking by my signs in 2010 and setting up their station, but in 2011 when they thought they had beat me to the location they seem to have a big problem with it.
I know what it is like to loose a honey hole and I can appreciate their frustration, but I never assumed that I was the only person that could scout location and that the only reason someone else picked the spot is because I am there. That’s just stupid!
Alaska is primarily public hunting, why do some people think they own the place? Heck! If you want private hunting get a homestead or lease some private land!
So! Here is my question. When does this become harassment? I tried to reason with these guys to no avail.
Did you ever notice that the people that are the 1st to mention ethics are the last to have them?
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