Conservation Officer Perspective

hawk-i said:
I've never met a CO that wasn't a decent guy. :)
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I have, but just a couple, like the local guy that made me come into the office and show my license that I forgot, in haste,to put in my other truck. He sold it to me the day before. :confused: they finally moved Murray out of here, cause they were worried about his safety.



Grizz
 
I have private land that abuts a public river and it has given me the chance to meet a few arrogant CO's. My favorite happened at the tail end of the pickerel ban. An early 20 year old came running several hundred feet across a field and caught us with wrench's in hand removing a pump bell housing from an engine on a 40' steel trailer. Hand on his sidearm he ordered us to drop our wrenchs and show him where our nets are.. I don't even fish let alone poach. I honestly thought Cartman from South Park had come to life with his respect my authority attitude. He wouldn't believe the guys in coveralls with wrench's and a pump housing half apart were really overhauling a pump that has an impeler problem. Mr CO spent near an hour pacing around and ignored our warnings the riverbank was greasy landed at least once on his ass in the mud. He was a real treat and departed warning us if he ever found nets we'd be charged. He was treat and apparently continued to strut around for nearly a year harassing a lot of folks.

Other CO's have been sensible. Just like the rest of the world there are jerkoffs .
 
Not trying to defend bad tactics or actions by officers but when you get lied to and disrespected on a Daily basis you might get jaded too ! But it no reason to be a pumped up mallcop with Attitude. Good training and a good attitude mixed with lots of Common sense helps along ways in good relationships ( holds true in most of life interactions) impowerment of a bage can get distorted real quick ! Training is surpose to weed them out .
 
Dogleg said:
Here's a bit of my experience last year. Started when one
of my MB750s went missing. This caused me to pull that portion of the line. Bear in mind that this
Is on well posted private land. My own in fact. Later some of my marten traps were sprung, with a stick
Deliberately in the jaws. Fast forward a bit and yoteboy and I were setting up
Up a coyote bait. About then, a warden comes
4 wheeling with his truck across my alfalfa to
see what I'm doing on my own farm. Got his cell phone in a center chest pocket of his vest with camera pointed forward. That seemed rude since he had invited himself onto my property. Posted remember. Then he started asking if I knew anything about trapping a couple
miles south of there. 'Course those were mine, and the land as well. Told him about the trap thieving and the sprung traps as well. This is where it starts getting good. He said that they had MB 750 because some trespasser had found it and turned it in. I asked when he was planning on bringing it back, and when charges of tress passing and interfering with lawfully placed traps would
be laid. Turns out, never. Asked if it was the same guy who was snapping my marten boxes, but nope; those ones were the warden himself. Told me his snapped them to
See how long it would take to check and reset them. Why would I reset them, i pulled them and reset where hopefully nobody would mess with them. He also told he had found my new cabin and had checked that out too. The guy was in my ****ing cabin, after illegally tampering with traps and wasting many hours and hundreds of dollars of fuel for me. Oh sure, he was friendly the whole time but with friends like that who needs enemies?
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Yikes... that is quite the tale... what a complete jack-off.

I could tell the tale where a CO just about rammed my truck when my father and I were going into a diner for pie... but it would take too long to write the crazy details...
 
hoytcanon said:
Yikes... that is quite the tale... what a complete jack-off.

I could tell the tale where a CO just about rammed my truck when my father and I were going into a diner for pie... but it would take too long to write the crazy details...
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I breed a lot of coffee......

scott_r said:
I agree,,,I wish we had many more. Ive never had a problem with one in all my years hunting but again I dont break the rules.

Cheers!!
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Yep, cheers indeed........ the more scabs that get caught the better off we will all be as responsible hunters.....
 
In 15 years of hunting, I've had excellent experiences with any CO I've met. That being said, I've only been stopped 3 times. Once as a youngster in Ontario hunting with my father during deer season, once fishing in Saskatchewan, and once while guiding bird hunters in Saskatchewan. They've all been pleasant and just regular folk doing their jobs.
 
i have a tale to tell that happened to some young hunters in the Aylmer area of south western Ont. this fall . they were goose hunting on their fathers farm and were legal as far as permits and gun licenses. along comes a local game warden who was watching them from the road and proceeds to charge them with hunting over bait . this so called bait was the yellow insulators on the electric fence surrounding the pond . being good Amish lads and not wanting to go to court which the Amish abhor they paid the four hundred dollar fine . i found it unbelievable but have the story confirmed a number of times .
 
The old guys seem decent, the new guys not so much, I recognize when someone is trying to set me up with word play.
 
I've not had any bad encounters in Canada. So far all have been cordial and professional.

As LEO in the States I worked with quite a few, as they had our trunked radio freq. for help if they needed it.

We called thm the squirrel fuzz. Lol
 
In my 50ish years of hunting and fishing I've had 3 encounters with Game Wardens, as they are called here in Oklahoma, that I remember, there may have been more. First was when my father and I were driving back from a morning in the duck blind when we passed the Game Warden's truck just off the road at the fence gate we had to pass through, he was sitting on the tail gate having a cup of coffee, he kindly opened the gate for us to pass through and as dad drove by the Warden complimented dad on his retriever, who was laying out of sight at my feet in the truck cab, after we passed through dad made the comment that the Warden, whom dad knew by name, must have been watching us as some point to know of the dog.

Second time was when in High School a friend and I were walking the county roads with out 22 hoping to get a crow or squirrel. The Game Warden came driving along the road and when he stopped to check our licenses he reminded us to "step off the road" before shooting.

Third time was a couple of years ago when fishing at a City/County lake the Warden stopped and walked down to the dock I was fishing off, as I saw him I set my tackle down and started to get my billfold out to show my license. He waved me not to worry. Once he got to me, where he asked me how I was doing he told me that he's found that people who have their license always go for them when the "Ranger" shows up, it is those who don't go for them that he checks.
 
hoytcanon said:
There was one up in these parts for many years... but there is always a bad apple somewhere in every barrel.

Most CO's are also outdoorsmen, so they "get it."
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You'd be surprised how many aren't....not that that makes them bad people, but it makes it harder for them to get it.
 
Gunneegoogoo said:
I too wish there were more GREAT CO's.

Do CO's carry pistols in other provinces?? They do here - Glock's in .40 and 870's in the truck.

GGG
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They do in Manitoba, been a few years now and about bloody time.

I`ve been checked by COs plenty of times and every time they`ve been pretty cool and well mannered.They do put up with a lot of BS and tards......so many tards !!

I have a lot of respect for them.

BB
 
BlackBrant said:
They do in Manitoba, been a few years now and about bloody time.

I`ve been checked by COs plenty of times and every time they`ve been pretty cool and well mannered.They do put up with a lot of BS and tards......so many tards !!

I have a lot of respect for them.

BB
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It is about time. I think SK was one of the earliest with their 870's in the late 80's, then the glocks were about 5 ish years later.

The drive for them to get armed was the murder of two Wardens, by a poacher, in Minnesota (I think it was MN).

GGG
 
Still haven't met a CO in the woods. I met a completely clueless OPP officer one time while coming out of a gravel pit from target shooting. He looked over the guns, chevked that we had licences and such, said "I'm sure there's a violation here somewhere, but I'm on a call." Then got in his truck and drove away. Gotta love that.
 
kodiakjack said:
And, in this man's personal opinion, are more likely to be inebriated. At least, I know I'VE run in to may more drunk fishermen, than I have hunters. And I don't run into many fishermen.



I've never had a bad run in with a CO. Two interesting interactions though:


1. Got stopped before heading into the bush, and half way through the conversation my uncle blurts out "Hey wait a minute! You're So-and-so!" (Some name I've never heard before) The co's eyes shifted all over the place before he finally said "Uh... yeah. That's me." My uncle sprints to his truck and rifles through the center console and comes running back with a country western gospel CD in his hand with the CO's name and cowboy hat wearing mug on the front. He got the CO's autograph, then we went on our way. Weird interlude to the hunt.

2. https://www.canadiangunnutz.com/for...y-Officer-Sneaky-Pants?highlight=Sneaky+pants

Quote Originally Posted by kodiakjack View Post
Moose camp, last Thursday.

Pickup rolls slowly by and the driver (in hunting garb) leans out and asks if this trail leads up to the beaver pond?

We approach the truck and get into a 20 minute conversation about everything from the lack of bull tags this year, to the logging going on, to the the incessant rain, etc. He told us where his gang was camped, that they were from Parry Sound, that they were one of the few to get a bull tag this year, and so on. We wished him good luck, and he went on his merry way.

The next evening, I'm trundling back to camp from an uneventful afternoon hunt, and the mnr pulls me over. And who climbs out of the truck? Our new hunter friend from the night before. Except today, he's wearing a vest and sidearm... And a stern expression.

"So... You guys fill that bull tag of yours yet?" I asked as he approached.

Suddenly realizing who I was, his stern expression broke and he sheepishly replied "uh... No actually... They've uh, got me working this week..."

"So I see."

So we did the usual check the tags, guns, alchohal, and attractants. But as I handed him my hunting license, I realized I still had a stupid "Zombie hunting" validation tag attached to it that I'd done as a joke. He looked at it and frowned, scratched at it, "is this a joke"?

"Um... Yep"

He BURSTS out in laughter and passes it around to the two other COs with him. They gave it back, wished me luck and sent me on my way.

As I drove back, I couldn't help but think of the hundreds of hunters I've met in the woods before, and how many of them may have been undercover COs. I always hunt by the book, but I still think I'll be more cautious next time I meet a new friend in the woods.


Cheers,

KJ
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It could've been that he was actually hunting. I've personally gone hunting with local CO's and RCMP.
 
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