Visit from the MNR tonight.

[j.krug]

I was at my uncles farm tonight checking my hunting spot and doing a little work on my tree stand. I made my stands out of lumber cuz the area has lots of hunters and store boughts have disappeared in the past. The wood floor was getting pretty weak so I decided to take the time to replace it and brush in the stand a little since the trees are pretty leafless now. I'm about 1.5 km's back from the road but can see traffic passing by with ease. About a half hour before I'm done I see a white pickup truck stop around the corner from the farm and park on the side of the road. It just sits there. I finally finish and put all my stuff in the back of my truck and make my way along the edge of the field towards the road. When I get about 100 metres from the road the truck turns around the corner and starts heading towards me. He stops at the culvert and walks into the field. I drive up towards him, turn off my truck and walk the 30 or so feet over to where he is standing.

It's the MNR officer and after a brief and polite greeting he asks if I'm out hunting tonight. It's around 4:30 and I reply that I am not as it's currently controlled hunt and that I was out checking my stand. He asked if I have any firearms with me and I tell him that I don't. He asks politely if he can verify that by checking my vehicle. I have only tools and lumber with me and am not hunting so I am happy to oblige and open my truck cab and rear box for him to take a peek. He does a quick once over front and back and thanks me.

From that point on we stand and chat for a bit about deer sightings and deer car collisions in the area. He again thanks me formy co-operation and I wish him a safe night and then we both go on our way. He was very polite and courteous throughout our encounter and I was not concerned because I was not doing anything I shoudn't have been doing. My uncle on the other hand was watching the entire ordeal from the garage and when I got up the house he was livid that I had been stopped and pestered. He's a bit......okay alot.....rebelious when it comes to things like that. Views it as an invasion of his privacy and such. Says he would have told him to get the eff off the property and not let him search the truck either.

All in all it was no big deal. I viewed it as a man doing his job and he did it courteously and was in no way disrespectful. I have a pretty strong feeling the neighbour may have called the MNR as he has made it pretty clear to my uncle that he owns all the deer in the area and that nobody should be allowed to hunt the local area but him. I have no way to prove it but it's a pretty strong hunch. In hind sight I should have asked the officer if he was checking out a complaint or if we had met by chance? Seems kinda coincidental to me but whatever??

[Dereck]

You did the right thing in cooperating you don't want to make an enemy of your local CO.
Have only bumped into one CO in the field and he was very polite and asked to check plugs in our guns.Once done he told us to enjoy the rest of the day and good luck.
They are not all A??holes but one deer makes a lot of tracks.

[CDN Taxman]

Never seen a CO down in this area but I hear they are really only out and about during the controlled hunts.

Yep, good for cooperating with them. I've heard my share of bad stories!

Mike

[georgiaboy]

When a warden is courteous and respectful,I view it just like you sir...he's just a man doing his job.If you have done nothing wrong..you have nothing to fear.what piss'es me off is when they get out the truck with the pre concieved notion that I'm hiding Bin Laden under my truck!!
Where I hunt there are state and federal warden's,both federal warden's were respectful...state warden was an jerk!!

[bob1961]

Where I hunt there are state and federal warden's,both federal warden's were respectful...state warden was an jerk!!

that's cause there mad they couldn't get a real police officers job .......bob

....

[sumner4991]

Sounds to me like somebody had nothing else to do.

What if you had a gun? Then what? You were doing nothing illegal, yet, I'm sure there would have been a different ending.

Unless he saw you shooting at something, then he should have pursued other means of killing time.

[outdoors_al]

I think that sounds like a pretty reasonable encounter myself. Killing time? He's just doing his job, if he wasn't out 'killin time' as some have put it, there would be allot more poaching and dangerous things going on in the field than there already is. I got a roadkill doe in late September, my neighbour being the ignorant person he is called the MNR on me. A CO came out to talk to me about it, showed him my certificate of reporting and then we chatted about the upcoming deer season. Nothing scary, nothing intrusive, just a guy doing his job. They aren't out there to get ya, they are out there protecting our natural resources so that we can enjoy them and pass down to the next generation what we all love. I say good for you for acting like a mature, ethical hunter!

[GaryM]

Our local warden (conservation police officer..."CPO") was pretty good. He stopped me once when I was walking across the road from my house on my way to my stand on the neighbors place. I had all my papers in order and he said if he saw me again he wouldn't stop me as he now knows I'm legal. That was several years ago. Now, my state is broke and the governor laid off 3/4 of the wardens. I haven't seen one anywhere in a couple of years. Gary

[wabi]

Here in Ohio the "Wildlife Officers" are very well educated and professional individuals. Not to say there aren't a few a** holes among them, but for the most part they are good people who do their job courteously and efficiently.

I've never been checked while hunting, but I've been checked several times while fishing. Our local officer knows me now as one of those law-abiding individuals who enjoys the outdoors and complies with the laws. He does check my license on our first meeting each season, but from then on it's just a friendly conversation.
Last time he checked me I was fishing from a folding chair and he didn't know who I was until he had walked up to me. He got close then said, "Oh, I didn't recognize you until I walked up, having any luck?" He then went on to point out an individual across the lake and commented, "I sometimes can't believe how dumb some people can be! That guy was setting there holding a rod with the baited line out in the water and told me - I'm not fishing, I'm just holding this pole for a friend. Hope it's a good friend, because it will cost him $78. when he goes to court. "
They will give a violator a ticket, but most of them are also reasonable and will deal with an unintentional minor infraction with a friendly verbal warning.

[Gwens Dilemma]

4 of us just finished up the controlled hunt yesterday, 3 bucks and 1 doe. We're in 93B and didn't see a Yogi all week. A few years ago we were checked coming out of the field. The son of my long time hunting/fishing buddy was about 17 at the time and just got a used 12 gauge. Unknown to any of us it wasn't plugged and he was only loading 3 shells. Wouldn't you know it he forgot his wallet with all his ID and permits. Long story short he got charged $175 for an unplugged gun. No other charges. This kid has always been polite and courteous to everyone. The CO could have nailed him with no licence, poaching the deer he shot that morning, on my tag, his was used earlier, and about 3 or 4 more offences. I'm almost 61 and am a firm beliver that you get as good as you give. No attitude = No attitude. We all need to make a living and some, like that CO make a difference.
Just my 2 cents worth
Dave

[MADMAX2]

A few years back they came to the farm during the controlled hunt and the landowners son was hunting with us,we had four deer hangin one with the landowners sons tag.
They were checking all our paperwork and the son had entered the wrong WMU because he had moved
They took his deer and gave him a $100 ticket,but because he was hunting with us they could of taken all the deer!!
They were more than fair with us! All in all I personally have had nothing but professional dealing's with the MNR.
Funny thing when moose hunting the CO's allways show up when we are crackin the second beer and the work is all done

[sumner4991]

I guess I have a bad taste in my mouth. The last time I got checked, I was sitting in my car in the middle of my 20 acres. It was far too cold for me to hunt and I was waiting for the sun to warm things up a little. I was sitting there eating my breakfast, which was suppose to be my lunch when they drove up behind me.

After giving me the third degree and stomping all around the area looking to see if I was baiting, they decided I was OK and left. Sure, if they had wanted to I suppose they could have written me up for something like hunting from a vehicle. I did have a loaded gun, which they did not check. Should I be grateful? I don't think so . . .come to find out, they had set up a handicap hunt on the neighboring property and saw me sitting in my vehicle. Once they got the hunters in position, they decided to come over and check me out. They just had some time to kill before having to dismiss the hunters on the public property.

I didn't have a locked gate up at the time, so it was easy access for them. I doubt they would have walked over there. I haven't seen them since.

Anyway, they ruined my morning hunt at that property. Fortunately, I had other places to hunt.

There is deer overload in that area. The local police department is shooting deer on their patrols at night(spot lighting) in effort to thin the herd. Anybody out there hunting should get a pat on the back.

Every situation is different.

[j.krug]

It seems that most would have handled the situation the same way I did. As I mentioned before he was just doing his job and he was very professional and polite. Come to think of it he didn't even ask for any id or even ask my name. I consider myself to be honest and always play by the rules so I didn't have anything to hide anyway. No need to piss him off either especially that he now knows exactly where I hunt and the white truck that I drive. Don't need to play that game!! Like I said before I really think the neighbour called on me. He's not at all happy that I'm hunting back there and it's just too much of a coincidence that the officer sat there and waited for me. But whatever!! I play by the rules so I never need to worry anyway.