Unethical hunters ruin it for the rest

We have just finished an exciting time of year - hunting season. Get togethers and Holidays are fast approaching.

Most of the talk around Happy Hour will be about the big buck or bull elk that was taken or the near miss that got away. Will you know where to go next hunting season? Will you be welcome there next year?

While you are standing around at the party listening to all those great hunting stories, you might look at the great story teller and wonder if maybe he's the one that cuts locks off of gates on private property, hooks his four-wheel drive with a chain to the gate and pulls it down, leaving the gate open, assuming there are no livestock around.

He thinks he will go back to close the gate on his way out, but after going three miles down the jeep trail, its easier to cut the fence to get to the county road - he assumes at this point that there aren't any cows anyway.

Maybe he's that ambitious hunter who goes in a non motorized walking only area. He disables all the existing locks so the land-owner cannot unlock his own property. If he has to walk, everybody has to.

Perhaps he's one of those who sneaks through a gated property at dusk to shoot a game animal and returns after dark to disable video cameras, destroy power boxes, tear meters out of stands, and force open electric gates to drive in and retrieve their game animal.

Or, could he be the bird hunter on private property who stops for that midday break to enjoy the views of Glacier Park with all the wildflowers in the background, and then decides to shoot a few clay pigeons and leaves the landscape littered with orange and black broken clay pigeons, shell casings, beer cans, pop cans, cigarette butts and leftover remnants of lunch? What a great day of shooting!

Let's not forget about the closed gates that four-wheelers find a way around. They would go on private property that has been sprayed for noxious weeds.

It now is contaminated and this leaves the private landowner thousands of dollars of personal expense to re-spray.

What a nice gift for Christmas if you could go into this hunter's front yard, spin some wheelies on his lawn with a four-wheel drive, or run back and forth through his wife's flower bed and garden, build a tree stand in his apple tree that's in the backyard.

What about taking his back gate out as you exited his property, leaving all our bottles, pop cans, cigarette butts, and toilet paper on his sidewalk? Oh, yes let's glue the lock on his front door so he can't get in when he gets home.

Now, do you really think this hunter will be inviting you back on his property next year?

When you are at this party and slapping your hunter buddy on his back, and you know he's this kind of hunter, you might want to talk to the authorities. Your best buddy might be eliminating your opportunity to hunt on private property.

I know of 4000+ acres that will not be open for hunting next year because of these practices.

Alan Raddatz

Columbia Falls