Hunting Etiquette?

[devon deer]

Hi All,
Could you advise on hunting etiquette through your own eyes/experiences please?
I know fishing etiquette, and adhere it it strictly, although sadly not all fly fishermen do.
So i assume it must be the same in hunting?
When/if we come over the last thing i would want to do is mess up a fellow hunter hunt.
So what would be you advice when another hunter/hunters are observed?
I have the feeling, as hunters from abroad, we are viewed with some suspicion, but on a personal level i want to hunt to the highest standards and obviously within the law, the same as i do in the UK, and not upset any resident hunters in Montana.
Cheers
Richard

 

[mtlion]

Hi All,
Could you advise on hunting etiquette through your own eyes/experiences please?
I know fishing etiquette, and adhere it it strictly, although sadly not all fly fishermen do.
So i assume it must be the same in hunting?
When/if we come over the last thing i would want to do is mess up a fellow hunter hunt.
So what would be you advice when another hunter/hunters are observed?
I have the feeling, as hunters from abroad, we are viewed with some suspicion, but on a personal level i want to hunt to the highest standards and obviously within the law, the same as i do in the UK, and not upset any resident hunters in Montana.
Cheers
Richard

I just try to be friendly, courteous, and try to avoid others. When I do run into others and we're close enough to exchange words I always make sure to smile and be friendly even if I'm not so happy to see them. I try to figure out where they are going and then I'll try to go the opposite way and tell them so. Some will do the same, some will not. It amazes me how many guys out there can be downright rude when I'm doing my best to be friendly and cooperate. For the most part where I hunt elk and deer (all public) I don't have too bad of a problem with other people, just hike off the road until you quit seeing them. Sometimes things happen that aren't avoidable. One time I was drawing a bead on a bull and a guy came bumbling out of the trees and scared it off. I had no idea he was there and he didn't know I was there. I wasn't too happy at the time but I got over it.

 

[jlmatthew]

I say give guys their space. I've had lots of Eastern boys sitting on top of me here. Its not really their fault its just how they do it back East. Nothing gets me fired up more than when I'm at a spot and someone sits 50 yards away from me. I have a few incidents which stick in my mind. I had a dude follow me for a couple of days and I had to threaten him with calling the DWM to get off me. Probably figured I knew the area better and he'd learn it quicker that way. Another instance we set my buddies dad up on a spot and went about 150 yards away and these nice boys set right between us.

I'm not trying to sound like I'm picking on Easterners, my wife is from Pennsylvania and the first time I took her hunting with me she couldnt figure out why I couldnt/wouldnt share the same basin with another hunter cause they all crowded in on one another back in PA. I told her out West that is considered downright rude

 

[Carrion Carrier]

Etiquette really varies with time and place. Everyone has to work to minimize interfering with others. Use non-traditional access points and get away from the road for seclusion. Go to a popular trailhead on opening day and expect to see way more people than animals. What everyone else is doing is usually not the way to go.

 

[tarheel]

I say give guys their space. I've had lots of Eastern boys sitting on top of me here. Its not really their fault its just how they do it back East. Nothing gets me fired up more than when I'm at a spot and someone sits 50 yards away from me. I have a few incidents which stick in my mind. I had a dude follow me for a couple of days and I had to threaten him with calling the DWM to get off me. Probably figured I knew the area better and he'd learn it quicker that way. Another instance we set my buddies dad up on a spot and went about 150 yards away and these nice boys set right between us.

I'm not trying to sound like I'm picking on Easterners, my wife is from Pennsylvania and the first time I took her hunting with me she couldnt figure out why I couldnt/wouldnt share the same basin with another hunter cause they all crowded in on one another back in PA. I told her out West that is considered downright rude

Not sure how you knew they were easterners; when I lived in CO I had the most trouble and annoyance from Texans. Not to say that some easterners aren't just as guilty.

 

[jlmatthew]

Not sure how you knew they were easterners; when I lived in CO I had the most trouble and annoyance from Texans. Not to say that some easterners aren't just as guilty.

The guy following me was from Minnesota, the guys sitting inbetween my buddies dad and us were from Tennessee. My wife, like I said is from PA and she says thats how they hunt back there. I've taken guys from work (military) that are from back east and they say the same thing

 

[arffdog875]

++++++10 jlmatthew!

 

[idnative1948]

Whoa! Once or twice I have walked into something in the last ten years. Try to get their attention and point to the direction I am going (which is usually away) after all he got there first. Just how we learned from dad. I would hope I receive the same, but does not always happen.

 

[yotestalker]

I think the best thing is to avoid other hunters, find out where they are going and let them know where you are going. Then you'll both have a better hunt.
However, I have had a few encounters. We shot an elk once at the same time another hunter shot from another direction. It was obvious by the entry wound which hunter had hit it, but the other hunter, a young man and his wife, were so happy they had got their first elk, that we just congratulated them and helped them pack it out.
I've also had other hunters shoot an already mortally wounded animal, and try to claim it. Sometimes you've got to stand up for your rights. It's surprising what some hunters will do, especially if it's a trophy caliber animal.
I do most of my hunting now in roadless areas, but I do still have trouble avoiding other hunters.

 

[MTbowhunter84]

It can be a touchy area with a lot of people and I myself have had my problems. Just this last year I was elk hunting, and was waiting to head into a spot I was having good luck with. While waiting I had two hunters approach me and they asked what I was doing. I figured it was pretty obvious but informed them anyway that I was hunting. I asked if they were going to cut in front of me, and they said of course they were and informed me that it's just the joy of hunting public land. I was well aware of that point. I was very upset over the incident, and it took me some time to cool off. If I see a vehicle somewhere or observe someone ahead of me I will head to another spot and let them have that spot. After thinking the situation over it was my own fault for not trying to get ahead of them first, so my loss. I also have to remind myself that it is public land and we all have a right to every spot. I hunt areas that are very tough to get away from roads, thus more hunters. After they cut in front of me I headed further down the road and ended up getting into a very nice 370 class bull and his cows. No luck on any harvest, but made me all the more aware of public land and the challenge it can be not only hunting, but having to hunt around other hunters. I have also had many occasions of thinking I'm calling game in and surprise surprise it was just me and another hunter calling each other. The best thing I have found is just realizing and enjoying the fact that there is a lot of public land available, and it's that much more rewarding when you are successful.

 

[devon deer]

OK thanks chaps, so just use a little common sense, be courteous, polite, good observation and try and get away from the roads.
Cheers
Richard