HUNTING PARTIES

[tchoate3]

I would like to hear your opinions on how many people are allowed in a hunting party. Currently a party can have up to 18 hunters apply together for deer and elk. I personally would like to see that number reduced to no more than 8, for deer espcially. I know too many hunters are out there shooting more than one animal trying to fill the whole parties tags. The way the appication process is it now, is too inexpensive to apply, so people are buying points and tags for hunters that don't even hunt. I realize peole like to take their family hunting with thwem, but do they all really need a tag to hang out at camp while someone else is out trying to fill it for them? The way it is now there are too many people shooting more than one animal trying to fill tags and way to many people in the points system....IMO What are your thoughts??

 

[bonepicker]

I don't think that reducing party numbers will solve that problem. In our group, we just had to decide that we weren't going to shoot animals for other people. The easy path is to do the old "party style" hunting, it takes a conscious choice to abide by the law. Its hard and frustrating at times, last fall our group missed out on 2 more elk because people who didn't have tags, didn't carry rifles. They just led some of the less experienced hunters through and 2 EASY elk (100 yd broadside shots) were not taken. In a party of 8, people could just as easily fill tags as in a party of 12 or 18 or 30.
It's not about what's easiest or hardest, its a matter of making a choice before you get out in the woods, are you going to break the law or not. If you are going to break the law by filling tags, you'll do it in whatever party size and no matter how many hindrances there are. And if you are not going to fill someone's tag, you won't do it no matter how easy it is. And if you don't make a choice beforehand, you'll probably do what's easiest at the time, which would be filling someone's tag if the opportunity arises.

 

[tchoate3]

LAST EDITED ON Mar-08-12 AT 08:45PM (MST)[p]Thanks for your reply Bonepicker. It just seems to me alot of hunters feel like they need to fill all the tags in camp. They also have family members who don't even hunt apply for tags just to get more tags.It wouldn't surprise me that 25% or more of the points holders in Oregon dont't even hunt. I hear too many stories about guys filling their wife's or other people's tags, it drives me crazy that poeple do that. To make it even more frustrating is that they shoot animals that they wouldn't normally shoot if they had to use their own tag. I am the type that only shoots what I tag and will not let anyone use my tag. I personally think if the hunting party was reduced it would help. Ultimately ODFW needs to make the draw like it used to be, pay up front for tag/app. If you don't draw you get a refund. Hunting has gone down hill since they started the new system. Again, just my opinion. Also I think its more of an issue with deer than elk, I think the yearling deer get hammered. Yearling bull elk are way harder to get than yearling buck deer.

 

[440sixpack]

Most of the people I know put in separate because they don't want to draw the same year. one tag gets 5 hunters in the woods.

Party hunting has gone on since the indians started hunting here and it will go on until the law has enough bite to take the fun out of it. the only way you can get pinched for party hunting is if you're actually caught with an animal and have no tag. most people are smarter than that, so I don't see an answer to it.
















Stay thirsty my friends