Wtf...?!

Infantry-Soldier

Infantry-Soldier

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So my wife just finished her first day of her firearms course, and apparently the teacher said something about hunting from boats... And showed her in the book where apparently it says its illegal to have a loaded firearm in any boat that has a motor attached.

Um, I can't find anything anywhere stating this.... Help? I know you can't have a loaded firearm in a boat while under power, but nothing about sitting there with the motor off.... Sounds a little messed up to me.... ?

I ask because I'm planning on going duck hunting tomorrow, and she's telling me I'll be breaking the law, and #####ing at me. Awesome.
 
That doesn't make much sense... How are you supposed to hunt birds from a motorboat?

I don't remember off the top of my head from when I took the Firearms or Hunting course.... Are you sure it doesn't have something to do with the engine running or the boat being in motion or something?
 
bearkilr said:
In Manitoba a boat is considered a vehicle if it's moving under power of a motor. As it's illegal to have a loaded firearm in a vehicle.................

Probably the same in Ontario.
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That's how I read it, too. It's in the ON Hunter Ed manual; no loaded firearms in any motor vehicle. Legally, it's the same as shooting from a truck or quad... every duck hunter I know uses a rowboat.
 
masterjack792 said:
That's how I read it, too. It's in the ON Hunter Ed manual; no loaded firearms in any motor vehicle. Legally, it's the same as shooting from a truck or quad... every duck hunter I know uses a rowboat.
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Right, the only caveat is that as soon as all motion caused by the motor has stopped, it ceases to be a vehicle. Then you can load up the rifle.

So legally, just because it has a motor attached, doesn't mean it's a vehicle. In other words, the instructor is full of s**t.
 
Infantry-Soldier said:
So my wife just finished her first day of her firearms course, and apparently the teacher said something about hunting from boats... And showed her in the book where apparently it says its illegal to have a loaded firearm in any boat that has a motor attached.

Um, I can't find anything anywhere stating this.... Help? I know you can't have a loaded firearm in a boat while under power, but nothing about sitting there with the motor off.... Sounds a little messed up to me.... ?

I ask because I'm planning on going duck hunting tomorrow, and she's telling me I'll be breaking the law, and #####ing at me. Awesome.
Click to expand...

Your safe! As long as the motor is off!
 
In BC the motor has to be off and out of the water and you cant be moving along under power Ie just poping it out of the water..
 
Infantry-Soldier said:
So my wife just finished her first day of her firearms course, and apparently the teacher said something about hunting from boats... And showed her in the book where apparently it says its illegal to have a loaded firearm in any boat that has a motor attached. Um, I can't find anything anywhere stating this.... Help? I know you can't have a loaded firearm in a boat while under power, but nothing about sitting there with the motor off.... Sounds a little messed up to me.... ?
Click to expand...

Nonsense. We can hunt murres (turres) from a 'power boat' (a boat with a motor) in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Specifically stated exception to the federal prohibition against using a 'power boat' to hunt migratory birds (other than stated below). Not to mention seals. There is no such prohibition against having a loaded firearm in a boat with a motor, under power or otherwise.

I ask because I'm planning on going duck hunting tomorrow, and she's telling me I'll be breaking the law, and #####ing at me. Awesome.
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This is the part of the Migratory Birds Regulations that you're looking for:

2.(3) A reference in these Regulations to the use of a power boat does not include the use of a power boat when the motor is not in operation and forward progress has ceased.
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A CO told me once that in Ontario law a vehicle is one thing and a vessel considered another - two different things. Not sure the ramifications of that. Just be aware when trying to dicipher this stuff.
 
Whelen B said:
A CO told me once that in Ontario law a vehicle is one thing and a vessel considered another - two different things. Not sure the ramifications of that. Just be aware when trying to dicipher this stuff.
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Most, if not all, provinces and territories have their own prohibitions against having a loaded firearm in a motor vehicle. Usually as a part of their hunting regulations.
 
I repeat - vehicles (cars, trucks, quads etc) are not vessels (boats, canoes, etc) in these laws - blurring that distinction creates some of your problems understanding this stuff I think. A boat with a motor or not is a vessel - not a vehicle in law. That's important - unless I'm wrong - in which case never mind.:D
 
http://www.mnr.gov.on.ca/en/Business/Enforcement/2ColumnSubPage/198399.html#waterfowl

You must be "anchored" and not currently "under power". The way I read it is, shut the motor down, drop anchor, and you're A-OK.

See the "Hunting & Fishing in the Same Boat" question.

Question Re: Waterfowl Hunting and Fishing At the Same Time
Is it legal to fish while at the same time you are hunting? This would specifically refer to duck hunting out of a blind or while anchored (obviously not while under power). Is it legal to have a fishing line in the water while waiting on the next flock of ducks to appear? Years ago I was told by two separate CO's ... two different answers (1 yes, 1 no). Further, what if two people are in the boat, 1 hunting (only 1 gun in boat) and the other is fishing (only one fishing rod in the boat) ... would this be legal?



Answer:
Yes, you may fish and hunt at the same time in the circumstances as described. And yes, it would certainly be legal for two individuals in a boat to be one angler and one hunter - or even to, in the circumstances as described above, both hunt and fish. What you need to avoid doing is having a loaded firearm in a powerboat in circumstances other than those described above (stationary blind).
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Infantry-Soldier said:
So my wife just finished her first day of her firearms course, and apparently the teacher said something about hunting from boats... And showed her in the book where apparently it says its illegal to have a loaded firearm in any boat that has a motor attached.

Um, I can't find anything anywhere stating this.... Help? I know you can't have a loaded firearm in a boat while under power, but nothing about sitting there with the motor off.... Sounds a little messed up to me.... ?

I ask because I'm planning on going duck hunting tomorrow, and she's telling me I'll be breaking the law, and #####ing at me. Awesome.
Click to expand...

Then you did not look very hard.

Taken from the Ontario Fish and Wildlife Act

Vehicles, boats and aircraft, use for hunting, etc.
Vehicles
24. (1) A person shall not use a vehicle for the purpose of killing, injuring, capturing, harassing, pursuing or chasing wildlife.
Boats
(2) A person shall not use a boat for the purpose of killing, injuring, capturing, harassing, pursuing or chasing wildlife.
Aircraft
(3) A person shall not use an aircraft while hunting.
Exceptions
(4) Subsections (2) and (3) do not apply in the circumstances prescribed by the regulations. 1997, c. 41, s. 24.

And from the Regulations summary page 28.

Use of Vehicles, Boats or Aircraft
(see Definitions, page 86)
Aircraft may not be used while hunting. Snowmobiles, vehicles
or boats may not be used for chasing, pursuing, harassing,
capturing, injuring or killing any wildlife.
It is illegal to have a loaded firearm in or on, or discharge
a firearm from, an aircraft, vehicle (including snowmobile
and all-terrain vehicle) or motorboat or anything towed by
the boat. An exception to this rule is that a person may obtain
an authorization through the local ministry office if the person’s
mobility is impaired and the person meets one of the following
criteria:
1. A paraplegic or hemiplegic
2. A single (above the knee) lower limb amputation or a
double (below the waist) amputation
3. Suffers severe disability, and cannot hunt without the use
of a wheelchair or similar means of locomotion. In this
case, the hunter must provide a medical certificate stating
disability.
The authorization is valid for a period of up to five years for a
person with a permanent disability.
A loaded firearm may be carried in, and discharged from, a
canoe or boat that is being paddled, with no motor attached.
MOTORBOATS: Under the Fish and Wildlife Conservation
Act, 1997, a motorboat means a boat with a motor that is
attached to the boat (see Definitions on page 86). There
is an exception to this rule if you are hunting waterfowl in
accordance with the Migratory Birds Convention Act, 1994.

So this means the motor must be removed from the water. And as a CO buddy of mine told me, that can still be interperated by some CO's as still attached and needs to be removed from the boat.
 
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