I'm not going to lie, waterfowl hunting inland, in Northeast Wisconsin is difficult. It takes a great deal of dedication, patience & most of all, INSTINCT. As a group, we've been chasing geese for many years, and I, myself, have been a part of that process every year. In the off season, I watch waterfowl hunting movies, and not the "HOLLYWOOD" films set to heavy metal music and kill shot after kill shot, I prefer the ones that focus on decoy patterning skills, calling, how to use terrain in your favor, and include hunts where they come home without any birds. Because that's the reality of a lot of hunts here in NEW. One of the things I emphasize within in our group is that, we should never walk away from the field mad or sad, because no matter if feathers fly or not, we always, ALWAYS, take with us, a new lesson. Every trip is a learning experience and we should feel so blessed to be able to do what we do. It's a time to become one with the outdoors and bond with friends and family. And that's just what we do.
Sometimes, a group, or situation arises that destroys that harmony we have struggled so hard to create and maintain. Today we were witness to a most despicable act, from a group who claims to be "sportsmen" like us. I can tell you with 100% confidence these people are nothing like us. We put in countless hours before season begins scouting out areas we've hunted in the past and would like to hunt in the future. We take note of the crops on all of those areas. We respectfully ask permission from all landowners in advance. Without their kindness and generosity, we wouldn't have the opportunity to take part in this spectacular sport! We take great care in respecting their property and their rules while also keeping all of our ethics and morals as sportsmen intact.
Today, on opening day, what is fondly dubbed as our "Christmas", a group from outside this area has
made a habit of following us around in the past, did
it again. They didn't hunt where we hunted, but only because we beat them there. They opted for a field
just down the road. Close enough that we could hear them honking on their goose calls. The night roost is very close to where we hunt. It's not always that way. As coincidence would have it this early season flock chose a nearby quarry to roost. We've been watching them for a long time....
So as they left the roost this morning and took off in a completely different direction than where we were, we were not discouraged, we hadn't known them to be in this area in the morning, (not available for morning scouts), so we were confident they would come back for their ritual night feed to our set. We were happy. So we decided to leave the area and get some breakfast and discuss strategy for the afternoon. When we came back, the geese were returning from their morning feed and the other group had moved into the quarry where the geese were roosting, and they shot them right off the quarry pond. Now, as an avid waterfowler, who can only field hunt, I know that you can hunt the same flock of geese for weeks, even if they feed in different fields, as long as you don't disturb them on the roost. Once you attack them in their "safe haven", they are gone. You will never see those birds again.
These immature, disrespectful individuals, did this out of spite. These people lack all the ethics and respect all sportsman should possess at all times. They were confronted about their actions, and they weren't the least bit remorseful. Which tells me they've probably done it before and will probably continue to do so in the future. They may as well throw these geese in a pen, or shoot them at a sanctuary, because their act of shooting them off the water while they are at rest is an equivalent and equally disgusting action.
I could never harvest an animal under those circumstances with a clear conscious. Poor soortsmanship is at the top of my list for reasons a person shouldn't be allowed to hunt. There's no need and NO PLACE for creating animosity in the field. I hope the rest of the season goes smoother than today, and I hope everyone out waterfowl hunting takes home lesson from all of this.
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