Unlike North Islanders who wonder if their woman of choice should be addressed as Miss Perendale or Baahbarah?Quote:
Originally Posted by Barry the hunter
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Unlike North Islanders who wonder if their woman of choice should be addressed as Miss Perendale or Baahbarah?Quote:
Originally Posted by Barry the hunter
The upshot is yes, you can carry your unloaded rifle in any way you like on a public track. And no you dont have to be shy about it. You dont have to carry it in a gun bag or a slip.
You are a New Zealand hunter, a breed of a certain type, and your activity is lawful and respected.
If a tramper/family/day walker said “Did you catch anything ?” to me; I'd be stoked they were showing an interest :) I have to walk a few hundred metres down a gravel road to where I go hunting and often have day trippers pull over their car to say hi and have a chat. Most aren't hunters, but had grandads, fathers etc who were.
So I do think that we as hunters get a bit paranoid at times that we are frowned upon by the entire general public. We are probably frowned upon by the few who get their opinions into the news media. But I reckon the general public as a whole are sweet as. A bit like how farmers feel persecuted by the general public; yet in a survey they did a couple of years back the general public were overwhelingly positive towards farmers. Their opinions don't make clickbait headlines though....
A few years back I did a demo on how to salt skins and cut up a couple of goats when the Stratford library had a "hunting themed.diplay/month" I did the demo in town, outside the library on a busy Sat morning. I was astounded by the positive reception; mostly from non-hunters.
Great post 100% agree :thumbsup:Quote:
Originally Posted by bumblefoot
My wife always asks the same question. She knows it annoys me, now does it on purpose. The joys of married life!Quote:
Originally Posted by Bagheera
I once past a tramper on a doc track who said nothing but "Bit hot for those pants isn't it?( I was wearing fleece longs). I took it as he was having a crack because he could see I was a hunter and that was the only thing he could pick on. So I replied " only if you're a pussy". Nothing else was said as we parted ways.
That was the worst encounter I've come across. But most are generally interested if I got anything which is good.
walking down creek in peel forest..bro in law and myself could hear kids having a ball playing in creek ahead of us..they came into sight,one young fella ,must have been 9-10 yelled out "he's got a gun" ....pointing at me. quick as a wink I yelled back "look he's wearing shorts" .... pointing at him,
the other kids cracked up laughing...
we crossed past them and young fella was still speachless..... his mates grinning.
Yep, sameQuote:
Originally Posted by MB
Walking out from duck shooting one day and guy asks if we caught any ducks. My son said "No - I couldn't throw the dog high enough". Absolutely cracked me up. Maybe we need a smaller dog.Quote:
Originally Posted by MB
Walking out from Cone Hut in the Taherenikau Valley some smartarse and his wife coming down the hill says "Did you get anything?"
I say yes we're carrying it out
He says"can I have some back steaks?"
I ignore him and look his pretty redhead wife dead in the eye and say "sure, as long as I can fuck your wife"
I didn't wait for an answer, just kept walking up the hill
She looked a bit fed up with him anyway
Me and missus were walking up coast for about 1 km before climbing hill onto farm to shoot some rabbits and magpies and do some mushrooming as well meet this smarty on coast who asked what we were doing . I replied mushrooming manly , his reply was what ya gonna do shoot them .Well missus replied fuck yeah they are fast round here , that shut him up .
'Crap out of the barrel'?...from many years of stalking....a couple of strips of insulation tape over the end is perfect...and then three or so longer strips wrapped around the barrel as replacements when needed.....
I made a cover out of ripstop nylon and elastic. Quick to get on/off and keeps a bit of shit/moisture out... but classically usually haven't got it on when passing people. Always make a point of stepping off the track letting people past, flick the bolt up if its in, and point muzzle away. Most people friendly/inquisitive. On older yank couple I once met on the track pointed at a headless red hind on my back <insert American Accent here> "oh my gawwwd, is that a wallaby?". Ended up having a great yarn with them, and they took a few photos. Pretty much everyone has asked whether I've seen/"caught" anything (a few have thought about it when seeing a rifle, and corrected themselves). I always make a point of mentioning how many there are about, and how much damage they are doing in the bush. Usually have a few photos of deer browsing/pig rooting to show. Most end up saying thank you/keep it up. Generally not hard to engage in some polite chit chat, ask how their day is going, how far, where to, etc.
100% have a right to be on tracks/in huts, but as hunters seem to be held to a higher standard, so I try to behave as such. As mentioned above, set a good example, clear branches from tracks, pick up rubbish (do that anyway), fill the firewood shed, if coming in to a hut late, get bedding etc ready outside hut and be quiet as poss coming in, etc., etc. Basic common courtesy. If people have nothing to complain about, then they may shift their attitude? Or god-forbid maybe just complain less?
Just go for it! Be respectful, turn on the charm, but be as said above, be confident in your right to be there.
I suspect a lot of the 'caught' comes from those who have not had much / anything to do with hunting but have had experience or seen fishing where the food is 'caught'....I think in a lot of cases it is simply that is what they have heard when they here 'hunter gather ' people hen the hunt fish so use the same terminology when they see a gun (hopefully they see it as equivalent to a fishing rod for deer.....) ....What have you got / caught....? At least it is not How could you?
I was walking out with a pig on my shoulders and I met some Chinese tourists coming the other way, turned into a long breather for me while they all took photos of it and gave it a pat.
worst I've had were some hikers who ended up sharing a hut with me and would not stop going on about how I smelled like a wet dog. I get it, I had the scent of a stag all over my clothes but it was 4 degrees and there was no way in hell I was going for a dip in the river to try and wash it off.
The times I've bumped into hikers they were friendly enough but seemed a little startled. My rifle was slung over the shoulder each time. I suppose those not into hunting don't tend to see firearms in public in NZ. All we can do is try our best to come across as non-threatening and friendly.
Ive had neighbours etc approach me as i prepare to go duckshooting .Im open to their questions apart from anything relating to my firearm security etc and i must say generally ive had a very warm reception with a lot ,including kids thanking me for taking time to talk.
Same applies where we shoot .Its polite ,i think,and commonsense to tell people there may be gunshots heard and exactly what we are hunting.Again the response by and large is positive-yes you get inevitable howler questions"how come ducks cant shoot back?" a jackie chan lookalike with model girlfriend in 6"stilletoes wanting to do some birdwatching in middle of season opening day!!!!
I look upon it as both education and PR for the sport,sure as hell beats the other and hey it takes up SFA of my time.
Well if you interact with a member of the public and your interation is positive and you come across as a contributing member of society, you maybe able to counter the stigma firearms and their owners have.Quote:
Originally Posted by kotuku
My kids shoot the air rifle in the back yard but we're aware that our naive neighbor may call the cops one day thinking were shooting a gun. I keep it on the down low even though im well within my rights as I'd prefer not to have that interation.
Sent from my SM-G780G using Tapatalk
Sounds like you've got an interesting spot there @kotukuQuote:
Originally Posted by kotuku
met Mum,Dad and 6-7 year old on track on way out today...zero comment or concern about the two fellas with rifles slung...they were backed up to fence off track holding child in arms in fear of the big bad wolf walking beside me tail wagging and happy to see folks..she stayed at my side like a good girl too..... the old dog might be an issue but "popsicle" would lick you to death,the plurry smooch puts her chin on my shoulder when Im using binos.....hard enough to keep them fogging without her imput too......
yeah its all good mate, people are used to seeing hunters in NZ. just don't be silly and have it pointing at people etc. and have it unloaded
its socially acceptable and legal
High-vis camo should be ok?Quote:
Originally Posted by Micky Duck
I think the "caught anything?" question is because too the non hunter, it probably feels harsh to ask if you have killed anything. A Russian girl I dated years back used to ask if I had killed someone? turned out, as I understand it, that they have a different distinction between something and someone.
A track I used to use alot would quite often have deer visible from it, In my younger days Id happily shoot from it, until one trip where I was forced to rethink that. It had been a hard trip and no deer seen over 3 days, On the walk out we spotted a hind and yearling 350 meters away across the valley. So My friends lay down and each got ready to shoot. I went down the track too the corner to check no one was close and then signalled for them to shoot and they each got a deer, but as we prepared to climb over we realised one was still alive and due to the terrain in would take us an hour to get too them. So another shot was fired to finish it off. After the shot a guy hailed us from just around the track corner id just checked. We replied, and he came on round. He was very decent and apologised for yelling, but said he was a bit nervous as he had had his arm shot off. And yep he was missing an arm. Shit I felt bad, we all did. After that I no longer shot deer from close too walking tracks.
But you cant win sometimes. A mate and I shot 3 deer on a snow covered hillside. The carcases lay over about a hectare and just as we finished butchering we were surprised to see a party of 20+ trampers walk over a ridge half a k away. They were not friendly and we could not work out why, until we got some distance from our kill site and looked back, Blood on snow over a hectare looks quite shocking in reality.
These incidents made me realise that yep non hunters can be ignorant at times, But unintentionally, so can we, in what we take for granted and as normal to us.
The worst, most insulting comment I have had on occasion, is raised hands and or "dont shoot" But always its just people who dont know and a cheery hello and dont worry etc are the only way to deal with any interaction.
Once appon a time we would carry a rifle over the shoulder up the main street of town or on a bus, pretty much anywhere. Now carrying one on a Doc track is coming into question. A sign of generational change I guess. I wont ever try and hide the fact that I'm hunting and have a rifle.
After that poor woman got shot in the campground whilst brushing her teeth by that pack of complete turds, I was walking down a track and a tramper put his hands up and said
"Don't shoot! I'm not a teacher!"
Because of some complete fucking moronic dickwanks who should be sterilised, I had to suck it up and move on
I hate being held hostage to the lowest common denominator of stupid that can convince someone to allow them access to firearms - fucking windowlickers
ouch!!!!
Yep. When I got my first .22 in 1971, bussed to town (CHCH) walked to cop shop for permit, ten to Tisdale's. Purchased rifle, walked back to cops , and registered it. Then off to nearest bus stop, and back home. All with a naked firearm.Quote:
Originally Posted by sneeze
Done much the same in the 70’s - no AOS, no drama of any sort.Quote:
Originally Posted by Growlybear
But society has changed and in my opinion not necessarily for the better.
Way back then I visited friends of my uncle's of a farm round the west side of Lake Taupo. After an uneventful hunt for deer and pigs it was time to head home to Wellington. My hosts too me as far as the end of their rural road, dropping me on the west side State Highway. I was carrying my Mountain Mule pack and 30-06 in a canvas carry bag. It wasn't long before I got a ride to Turangi. Then I started walking south on SHW1. I walk quite a long way and remember stopping on the bridges and canal to watch the Trout below. I walked right past Rangipo - Tongariro Prison. Some of the inmates were out in the gardens working and stopped to watch h me walk by with rifle and pack. None of the management came out to speak with me. Eventually, miles down the road, I got picked up by some good old boys who were heading for Porirua. I climbed into the flat deck tray, put my swanie and balaclava on climbed into my sleep ing bag, pulled the tawny cover up and went to sleep. At Porirua they dropped me at the railway station and I caught the train into Wellington, then brought a ticket for the Johnsonville line. A Police Officer had a brief chat with me about hunting, but aside from that, no-one batted an eyelid. Classic trip.
DON'T TRY THIS TODAY!
Early 90s and i was 18 and studying in Hamilton. Used to hop on bus during duckshooting season with a shotgun, get dropped off at the city centre station, and walk over to Maeroa with it over my shoulder in a gunbag. No one, nit even police cars driving past batted an eye or thought to ask me what i was up too.
For me the worst is constantly getting crap stuck down between the barrel and the stock when going through the bush (or bushy tracks) with rifle on pack. I have to spend ages at the hut trying to fish it all out, I get a bit worried that all the twigs etc wedged in there will put the sights off a bit. That's why I would def consider one of those light gun sock-type covers.Quote:
Originally Posted by BruceY
Mate of mine had a rifle that couldn’t shoot a good group and asked me to try some reloading for it, I decided to give it a bit of a birthday at the same time and when I took the stock off it was basically packed with fern fragments and seeds and grass. Not sure if it was this, cleaning the barrel or torquing up the action screws, maybe a combination of all, but it shot much better afterwards.Quote:
Originally Posted by Juicy
Just spent the last two days carrying my rifle and using a particularly busy DOC, nobody was concerned at the sight and most asked politely if I had been lucky which I wasn't.
Week day and 10 cars in the carpark Monday, 12 today. Quite a few were tourists up for climbing our local walking peak. I went further afield and the legs are quite sore now.
I checked on my new DoC permit:
5. No firearm shall be discharged:
• In the vicinity of huts, tracks, campsites, road-ends or other public places.
• Within 500m of a Great Walk Hut or track. More about New Zealand's Great Walks.
• In a manner that endangers, frightens or annoys members of the public, or that endangers any
property.
My opinion is that the third one about "endangers, frightens or annoys" is the key one because if there is no complaint there is no problem.
The 500m only applies to Great Walks which are limited.
The "in the vicinity of ..." is intentionally vague as vicinity just depends on the circumstances ...
The circumstances are discussed in all the worthy posts above. It's not a legal question.
The definiton of a Public Place is found in Section 2 of the Summary Offences Act 1981 and states "public place means a place that, at any material time, is open to or is being used by the public, whether free or on payment of a charge, and whether any owner or occupier of the place is lawfully entitled to exclude or eject any person from that place" so basically everywhere in the DoC Estate is a Public Place.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bagheera
In a manner that endangers, frightens or annoys members of the public, or that endangers any property is a direct cut and paste from the Arms Act.
If these are the rules in which you are to be judged if you have broken the conditions of your permit - Piublic Place in section 5 needs to be removed/ammended unless specific exemptions are listed elsewhere in the permit - and to my knowledge they don't.
Umm... isn't that all PCL?Quote:
Originally Posted by Bagheera
technically its anywhere NOT BEHIND A LOCKED GATE in so far as a workplace is concerned....if your workplace yard is open,its considered public space so licences needed to operate forklift etc..behind closed gate..not so much.Quote:
Originally Posted by Maxx
In short if youre on doc estate toting a rifle dont give fuckwits any ammo to whine
!coomonsense although a rare commodity in this day and age and in tertiary institutes (with hirsuite wooman lecturers of you know what persuasion)dictates what ya do.
defy it and bud youre on your own!