Elk poaching?

[Gundy]

Poaching will never go away. Is it even poaching if you dont get caught??? The Gamies are so few and the woods they be a many.... Lets just say if you aint poaching u aint tryin. LOL!! Seriously, what are the odds I get caught if I go out and pop a deer or elk in mid, oh lets sayyyyy Februrary??? I can attest to the fact that they are ZERO. Unless your an idiot, free meat is eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeezy to come by. Some of you "holier than thowers" are classic.

[colockumelk]

Again JLS show me where I said that game wardens should not be up patrolling during hunting season. My point is that there is A LOT of big game poaching in Dec-Jan. Yet most of the game warden patrols is not where tje greatest amount of poaching is occuring. IMHO to get tje most Jang for their buck the game wardens should be up and around where the most crimes are comitted. Last time I checked I hadn't heard about a spree of duck hunters poaching ducks or a spree of lead shot shell violations all putting a dent in the waterfowl population. But I do know for a fact that there is a spree of poaching in the winter range putting a dent in the buck and bull populations. Game wardens should go where the crimes are. This means in the mountains during hunting season and again once the snow flies and the animals are in their winter range.

Gunshot is 100% correct. The only thing that stops me from killing a trophy bull or buck every year is my morals. The WDFW doesn't stop me. Chances of getting caught is next to zero. Not enough enforcement is why. (Budget crises so more enforcement isn't gonna happen). And I still hold firm that tje game watermelon need a stronger presence in the mts during poaching season. And tje only way and best way to curb poaching is road closures. But thats another topic entirely.

[bigtex]

What is being said in this forum is said in fly fishing forums, trout forums, crab, duck, etc. Every fishing/hunting group wants officers to work more of "their" season. Fly guys want them working fly fishing waters and not out on the docks writing barbed hook tickets, big game hunters want them to quit focusing on steelhead, and so on. I read all types of different forums and it's always the same thing of "i wish they would concentrate more on X and less on Y" then you go to another site and its the opposite.

What many people don't understand is WDFW is mandated to work a certain number of hours of enforcement, and that is one way to determine a patrol day, very rarely anymore does an officer just wake up and go "hmm I wonder what I'll do today". There is a big focus right now on commercial fisheries enforcement simply because a large scale commercial violation can impact an entire run more so then Jim Bob out fishing in his dingy. Habitat violations can kill an entire run of fish, but yet there really isn't a whole lot of glory in that is there? Are officers patrolling winter range? Yes they are, simply because you don't see them doesn't mean they weren't there yesterday or will be there tomorrow.

[JLS]

Again JLS show me where I said that game wardens should not be up patrolling during hunting season.

What are you talking about?

I know for a fact that the game wardens where I live spend a lot of time doing night patrols, and a fair bit of time out in the hills during the winter months.  I cannot speak to where you live.  Maybe you should ask them?

I'm not going to argue ducks vs. elk with you.  I don't have quantitative numbers on current poaching impacts to either resource, if you do I'd love to see them.

[fireguy459]

Wow .... I just wanted to see why they didn't show much interest in two elk kills... I do enjoy the debate though ha ha.  Maybe we could tax tribal casinos for increased enforcement officers? Sorry stirring the pot.... keep the arguments going.

[JimmyHoffa]

  Maybe we could tax tribal casinos for increased enforcement officers? Sorry stirring the pot.... keep the arguments going.

The funds would just get raided and diverted to a program like needles for junkies, hugs for convicts, medical mary jane, cars for illegals, etc.  You know, the stuff king county thinks is really important. 

[Fowlweather25]

I'm the buddy that fireguy was talking about! The elk were not flock shot and both were found fresh while there was no active season! The bull had a missing head so I know that was not a case of an unretrieved elk. And they were killed 3 weeks apart! The calf was literally still VERY warm and flexible when I found her. It is possible that the calf was hit by a car and made it a ways before going down however the bull was no accident! The part that is pissing us off isn't the lack of wardens, it's the lack of them giving a F$$$ when we call! It's like they have no interest and always have an excuse! Not being able to make it out right then and there is one thing, not coming out period is another!!!

[Seabeckian]

Bigtex, curious as to if you know how effective the text number is for reporting poachers? Or anyone that has had any experience with that avenue of reporting a violation?

I had a Fish and Wildlife Officer hike over a mile in to where we were duck hunting one time just to check our tags and equipment. Personally that's the sort of enforcement I love to see. The fact that he went the extra mile to check us when he had no inclination to believe we were doing anything illegal, I thought was really cool. Makes a guy think he is always being watched, and ergo more vigilant to obey the rules and regulations.

[bigtex]

Bigtex, curious as to if you know how effective the text number is for reporting poachers? Or anyone that has had any experience with that avenue of reporting a violation?

Great question.
The texting info is sent to WILDCOMM which is WDFW's Enforcement Dispatch/Communication Center. This is the location you are calling when you call the poaching hotline. So the same people that answer the Poaching Hotline are getting the text tips.

Here is the problem. WILDCOMM is only operable Mon-Fri 8A-5P excluding holidays. Many people do not know this, even though it says it in black and white in hunting and fishing regs. Outside of those hours you must either call 911 or the local WSP Office (numbers are in the regs). So if you sent a text at 5:05 PM on a Friday nobody will read it until 8AM monday, the same goes for if you call the Poaching Hotline at 5:05 on Friday.

Read the poaching section in the regs! It tells you who to call when! The Poaching Hotline is NOT 24/7/365!

[Seabeckian]

Great info. Thanks! 

[Lcl 66 Tinner]

Bigtex, curious as to if you know how effective the text number is for reporting poachers? Or anyone that has had any experience with that avenue of reporting a violation?

Great question.
The texting info is sent to WILDCOMM which is WDFW's Enforcement Dispatch/Communication Center. This is the location you are calling when you call the poaching hotline. So the same people that answer the Poaching Hotline are getting the text tips.

Here is the problem. WILDCOMM is only operable Mon-Fri 8A-5P excluding holidays. Many people do not know this, even though it says it in black and white in hunting and fishing regs. Outside of those hours you must either call 911 or the local WSP Office (numbers are in the regs). So if you sent a text at 5:05 PM on a Friday nobody will read it until 8AM monday, the same goes for if you call the Poaching Hotline at 5:05 on Friday.

Read the poaching section in the regs! It tells you who to call when! The Poaching Hotline is NOT 24/7/365!
[/quote I called the WSP this year for poaching activity. First I called the centralia office and the olympia to get the message that the number is no longer in service.

[Wildsau]

What, also, helps the WDFW Officers is that, little known, invention; the camera.  If you are out, you should have a small pocket camera in your pocket.  Most of them will zoom in and make great evidence pictures of the "scumbags" that are "Thrill Hunting" or "Trophy Hunting" out of season.  Also, evidence, like the headless bull or the calf, can only help the officers.  These cameras start for, as little as, $20.00 and are worth their weight in gold.

We, as hunters, should be taking a more active approach at this problem, than just complaining on this forum.  WDFW has a lot of ways to be contacted and if you e-mail evidence to them, after hours on a Friday, they will read it and act on it on Monday morning.  I know of no WDFW Officer who doesn't feel like we do about what is going on.  If we can gather good evidence photos for them and convince those, in Olympia, who want to cut bugets so much, not to cut the WDFW budget and hire more officers, I am sure things would improve a great deal.

I am not an advocate for being a "Stool-Pigeon" (most especially if it was to feed a poor family, and everything was used), but I do believe the poaching has gotten way too far out of hand and needs to be brought under control.  We, as hunters, can do our part to help.  If we see this sort of thing taking place, we should not be 'dumb' enough to interfer, but take a lot of pictures and notes, and report it to the WDFW.  Just the thought that someone might be seeing what is going on, may stop a large portion of those doing it.  The others, need to be caught a pay the penalty.

[TheHunt]

This is why I like the robo elk and deer operations.  Some people call it entrapment.   I like the idea of the difficult task of searching for the scum bags and rather make them come to crime.   Specifically during the off season. 

[pianoman9701]

We, as hunters, should be taking a more active approach at this problem, than just complaining on this forum. 

And who says we aren't?

[Wildsau]

The statement was directed at those who are not, which I would hope is very few.