Bowhunters Fined

[Sparra]

I just received my HuntNSW mag from the Game Council and see there have been a few fines and lose of gear for a few poaches that were pinged up near Wollongong...Good to see they are getting out and about and hopefully keeping those that are doing the wrong thing on there toes...

Cheers...Sparra

[Coach]

May I ask how were they caught ?

[Sparra]

To quote the article it say's "The men were caught during a Game Council blitz on illegal hunting in the Illawarra" Apparently they will be doing this in different areas throughout the state...

[Coach]

This Blitz should be held all the time

[Nephew]

Coach, this is not a stir, but a genuine request for info based on your knowledge and learned opinion, ok?
Do you think that if there were more arrests and follow up like this, a big blitz and poaching were all but wiped out ( a pipe dream I know, but this is hypothetical anyway), it would then be more worth having something like the NSW Game Council? It seems to me some of the strongest opposition to this idea is that most state forests are well and truly hunted out by poachers anyway, so why would an honest hunter bother to get a licence to hunt in them? Does this sound about right to you?
I just wonder if it would help some relax their opposition, that's all. There is still the question of over regulation of course, but that's not what I'm asking about here, just whether the enthusiastic prosecution & conviction of poachers would encourage support for a Game Council type organisation. Or, if not encourage support, at least lessen the stridency of opposition?
Sorry to "poach" your thread, Sparra!

[Coach]

Coach, this is not a stir, but a genuine request for info based on your knowledge and learned opinion, ok?
Do you think that if there were more arrests and follow up like this, a big blitz and poaching were all but wiped out ( a pipe dream I know, but this is hypothetical anyway), it would then be more worth having something like the NSW Game Council?

I think you have already supplied the answer

It seems to me some of the strongest opposition to this idea is that most state forests are well and truly hunted out by poachers anyway, so why would an honest hunter bother to get a licence to hunt in them?

[jamie]

most of the forests are not hunted out by poachers, if you are a hunter you will find game in alot of forests. two first time hunters i know went to hampton state forest last wednesday and saw six red deer, three hinds and three stags not bad for a forest only 2 1/2 hrs from the biggest city in aust.

[Sparra]

Any body who now hunts in state forests with out a licence would more than likely of hunted them before the introduction of the game council so I doubt whether the quantity of game has decreased as a direct result of poaching...In fact it has probably decreased more so with the so called poachers being able to hunt in them without the fear of prosecution by taking a simple exam and paying a fee...At least by doing this they can concentrate on the hunt without having to look over there shoulder and the chance of losing all there gear...It's a fact of life that there will always be poaching but maybe a few prosecutions may get people to think twice...

Cheers...Sparra

[Coach]

It will take more than just a token effort every now and then to deter the poachers Sparra I would still like to know more details about this blitz , IE was it actually undertaken by the GC or was it just a case of civilians reporting the poachers etc .

[Nephew]

I agree with a lot that's in your last post, Sparra. I'd like to see something similar up here and I wonder if the police really got stuck in to poachers and made the info public we might just have a chance of getting it to happen. I have been told before that the main opposition, but not the only opposition, is that the State Forests up here are perceived to be hunted out after decades of poaching. There is also the issue that folk feel over regulated already, and are not keen to see anything to do with bowhunting regulated any more strongly. My fear is that unless we get involved now and guide these regs, we may find we are regulated out of existence! The A.L. types up here have the Premiers ear, so I reckon a Game Council may be the only way to counter these folk. It's the lobby group status that would be valuable up here, and some kind of "R" licence would make it way easier to present as responsible people who have conservation in mind, as well as hunting. That seems to me to be the only way you'll get those in power to listen, present as professional & efficient , responsible "Conservation Hunters".
Coach holds a different view to me, and I respect his views and value his opinion, so I figured I'd ask for the point of view of someone who doesn't agree, but can present his view in an intelligent, eloquent manner.
Hey Jamie, that's exactly the type of thing I'm hoping for up here. Access to hunting areas that aren't hours and hours from the city. Sounds bloody good to me, especially with the kind of sightings you've described!

[TomMcDonald]

It was on private land.

[Coach]

It was on private land.

So , if it was on Private Land , what does it have to do with the GC ? Anyone know the facts ?

[jindydiver]

The "blitz" wasn't just on private property, it included council land, the collieries, Water Board land and NPWS land. The GC were there, as they are a lot, but it was a Police operation and there were plenty of people charged with all sorts of offences.
This isn't the only "blitz" the GC have done either. I have seen them swarm into a forest (with many police) and really go to town looking for poachers (two separate forests, both previously heavily poached), and I know plenty of hunters who have been in forests during these operations. If you go to a popular forest during a popular time of year you stand a good chance of running into a GC Game Manager or the Police.
there are also forests where the GC have put up game cameras to gather info on poachers (NSWNPWS and ACTPC have been doing this for some time).

[Sparra]

It was on private land.

So , if it was on Private Land , what does it have to do with the GC ? Anyone know the facts ?

You still need a G-licence to hunt deer on private land unless you meet the exemptions as out lined on the GC web site...

[Coach]

It was on private land.

So , if it was on Private Land , what does it have to do with the GC ? Anyone know the facts ?

You still need a G-licence to hunt deer on private land unless you meet the exemptions as out lined on the GC web site...

I realise this Sparra , my point is that the GC cant carry out a blitz on Private property . I am thinking more along the lines of , property owner contacted Police about the poaching , therefore , it's really nothing to do with the GC , unless they prosecuted under the Deer Laws . The Police would have done the prosecuting re the Trespassing .
I was also under the impression that the GC had the same powers that Police , so why do they need the Police to go into the State Forests ?
I know myself I would hate to have members of the GC and Police wandering the State Forest I was hunting in ,1) because they would scare the game I was trying to hunt , 2) I would be ticked off if I shot one of them

Anyway , its hard to comment on any of it , as we dont have all the facts .

[pedro]

it was a blitz on the hunting of rusa along the wadonga escarpment. the police and gc sat aroun\d the popular haunts and pulled cars up and searhed them aswell as getting around the scrub in camo.
the fellas got caught while getting picked up on the side of the road after leaving private property.
it was all conducted last year in the rut.

[Coach]

it was all conducted last year in the rut.

OK, so its old news

[pedro]

i meant to say illawarra escarpment, dont know where wadonga came from

[jindydiver]

i meant to say illawarra escarpment, dont know where wadonga came from

A senior moment?

[longbowinfected]

Not surprised being the Illawarra escarpment.

Deer go through the grounds of the Illawarra AA Archery club. On a number of target/field shoots there I have camped overnight. Some of those staying there have seen glimpses of the deer from yonks off especially early in the morning when the radiator water gets cold, the rest of us have seen rubmarks and scats on the field course and even had scats near the tents/swags. A lot of good archers in that club and I bet there are a number of law abiding archers who are also law abiding hunters that have a quiet whisper if they something wrong is going on in the area, because they as a club are very carefull about protecting their image and goodwill with all the locals. Good on them I say if they are some of the people who tip off the Municipal Council, Game Council or Police.

Kevin