Shooting from a vehicle

[Ken07AOVette]

Originally Posted by happy honker

Doesn't Montana decoys or whoever make a lightweight truck door decoy? Same company that makes those elk, deer and moose photograph decoys.
They look just like a truck door but waaaay lighter. I just looked on the website and only passenger side is available. Drivers side is back ordered.

Haha Zing!

[Dewey Cox]

Maybe that's why my truck won't blow heat out on the floor anymore.

[Okotok]

I'm thinking I'll need to dump my shares in these.

[Lefty-Canuck]

Pool noodle sales plummeted as a result....

LC

[expedition]

Originally Posted by coreya3212

Illegal? Since when?

1992 approximately

[elkdump]

Originally Posted by lannie

I still shoot out the window gopher hunting. I see many others doing the same in the areas I gopher hunt. I think the law came into effect to stop people locking up the brakes and shooting off maintained roads at ungulates.

Exactly, too many tailgaters put thier face through thier own windshield , when some innocent deer hunter locked up his brakes in a hurry, to get the first shot at a whitetail ,

Instead of writing tickets for dangerous driving to the injured tailgaters using the highways in a dangerous manner ?

The CO,s unfairly took out thier anger on innocent hunters as usual

[coreya3212]

Originally Posted by expedition

1992 approximately

Huh. Next thing you know they will make wearing a seatbelt a law.

[Joe Black]

Or legalize pot

[RandyBoBandy]

Originally Posted by happy honker

Doesn't Montana decoys or whoever make a lightweight truck door decoy? Same company that makes those elk, deer and moose photograph decoys.
They look just like a truck door but waaaay lighter. I just looked on the website and only passenger side is available. Drivers side is back ordered.

[lead chucker]

What about old farm equipment in a field or and old truck rusting in a field,can a guy use that as a blind?

[FCLightning]

Originally Posted by lead chucker

What about old farm equipment in a field or and old truck rusting in a field,can a guy use that as a blind?

Fellow here made a mobile blind once from an old station wagon. Painted it camo, stripped everything behind the drivers seat, turned the bench sideways and cut out the roof. Filled the back with decoys and gear, drove to the field and set up for the first shoot - F&W showed up before the shoot started to let him know that if he started shooting they would be charging him. They told him that if he pulled the motor from the car and towed it to the field he would be perfectly fine.

[TBark]

I don’t think the motor was the issue, I was told it is the wheels.
The guy who was at the sportsmen’s show up til 10 years ago selling those quad crank up tower stands. He got out of that cus F&W told him if the tires were on the ground, then shooting from the towers would be illegal.
He was telling prospective customers to jack-stand the quad up once in position, risking stability.
A bit dangerous and too much hassle, product went south.

TBark

[elkhunter11]

Originally Posted by TBark

I don’t think the motor was the issue, I was told it is the wheels.
The guy who was at the sportsmen’s show up til 10 years ago selling those quad crank up tower stands. He got out of that cus F&W told him if the tires were on the ground, then shooting from the towers would be illegal.
He was telling prospective customers to jack-stand the quad up once in position, risking stability.
A bit dangerous and too much hassle, product went south.

TBark

If it has no engine, it is no longer a motor vehicle.

[lannie]

Originally Posted by elkhunter11

If it has no engine, it is no longer a motor vehicle.

You are right and the issue is the motor.
I have pulled an auto trailer behind a pick up and had a picnic table on the auto trailer. Was told if the trailer is connected to the pick up i can be charged. If i disconnect from pick up it is legal. Its issues like these that chap my arse and I end up breaking the law.
In the end if I am shooting a 22, i am rolling down a window. If it's a centerfire its on a trailer. These are my personal guide lines for gopher hunting.

[CptnBlues63]

I always thought it was to stop people from jack-lighting deer as well as stupidity like shooting from, or over roads.

I can remember a couple of occasions back in the 70's seeing a truck full of guys out jack-lighting. 3 or 4 standing up in the back of the truck using the cab as a rest. One guy with a spot light, the rest with rifles.

[270person]

I'm going to have to mull this whole gopher shooting without the benefit of AC thing.

[cranky]

We had a very old unlicensed car on the farm with the roof cutoff and no doors, used primarily to shoot gophers. Had stove in fenders from the cows rubbing against it. Cant remember the make. I think it had a V8 Flathead in it so probably a Ford.
To bad using anything like that for gophers is illegal now. As kids we had a blast with that thing all summer long. Those were the good old days.

[FCLightning]

Originally Posted by cranky

To bad using anything like that for gophers is illegal now. As kids we had a blast with that thing all summer long. Those were the good old days.

You must be awfully old. Or Alberta was a long way behind Sask. in making the law. Was illegal in Sask 55 years ago that I know - not sure how long before that. Was illegal in Alberta in 1980 when I came here.

[Looper]

Originally Posted by cranky

We had a very old unlicensed car on the farm with the roof cutoff and no doors, used primarily to shoot gophers. Had stove in fenders from the cows rubbing against it. Cant remember the make. I think it had a V8 Flathead in it so probably a Ford.
To bad using anything like that for gophers is illegal now. As kids we had a blast with that thing all summer long. Those were the good old days.

Sounds like a hoot.

My dad had a '70 Ford LTD with a grader blade welded vertically to the front bumper to cut barb wire when in hot pursuit of a coyote across fields. Trunk had stretcher and fencing supplies to go back and repair the wires. Trunk held 4 o5 coyotes then it was off to cash in and buy beer.

Those were good old days.

Looper

[cranky]

Originally Posted by FCLightning

You must be awfully old. Or Alberta was a long way behind Sask. in making the law. Was illegal in Sask 55 years ago that I know - not sure how long before that. Was illegal in Alberta in 1980 when I came here.

Well lets see 55years ago i was 18. So not "awfully" old but yup im starting to get old.

[KegRiver]

Like so many things, the actions of a few idiots impact the rest of us more then they impact the idiots and criminals.

I have no inside knowledge as to the purpose of this law but I have personal experience and first hand knowledge that convinces me that safety is probably a large part of the reason.

An unarmed acquaintance took a .308 slug through the upper shoulder in a road hunting/shooting from a vehicle incident.

I had two bullets pass close enough to me for me to clearly hear them in flight, in a very similar road hunting/shooting from a county road incident.

I myself have shot from inside my vehicle and while using my vehicle as a rest.
I stopped doing that when it was made illegal.

But from my experience, is clear to me that it can be done safely and ethically.

Besides, for me complying with the law made no difference to my hunting success.
For one, I only used that method when hunting predators and rodents on private land and second, I knew how to exit my vehicle and move to a legal and safe position without spooking the animal.

Plus I know very well that there will always be another opportunity if I put in the time and effort.

I also knew that if I didn't have time to exit my vehicle and move to a safe location I didn't have time to make a clean shot from within the vehicle.

[boah]

The reason I asked the question was strictly for gopher shooting. I didn’t want to mention that at the start because I wanted to hear all the reasons. Some are obviously for safety and some are for the protection of wildlife. Getting back to gophers, especially on private land with rim fires. What harm can come from driving around in a vehicle in a section of pasture getting rid of pests? This practice should be exempt. Cattle guys, especially the ones that use horses everyday do not like holes all over their pasture. I have seen acres of canola gone from gophers. It’s not like people are going to be chasing gophers at 50 mph and shooting out the box of a truck or car, like has been mentioned.

[FCLightning]

Originally Posted by KegRiver

I myself have shot from inside my vehicle and while using my vehicle as a rest.
I stopped doing that when it was made illegal.

What year was that?

[58thecat]

I think I am a bad guy.....criminal....along with all of southern Alberta, Saskatchewan and.....I also rolled through a stop sign once

I need help

[dmac]

Originally Posted by 58thecat

I think I am a bad guy.....criminal....along with all of southern Alberta, Saskatchewan and.....I also rolled through a stop sign once

I need help

3 hail marys and two our fathers. you're good to go!

[elkhunter11]

Originally Posted by boah

The reason I asked the question was strictly for gopher shooting. I didn’t want to mention that at the start because I wanted to hear all the reasons. Some are obviously for safety and some are for the protection of wildlife. Getting back to gophers, especially on private land with rim fires. What harm can come from driving around in a vehicle in a section of pasture getting rid of pests? This practice should be exempt. Cattle guys, especially the ones that use horses everyday do not like holes all over their pasture. I have seen acres of canola gone from gophers. It’s not like people are going to be chasing gophers at 50 mph and shooting out the box of a truck or car, like has been mentioned.

I think that some of these regulations are overkill, but I do know of one child that was killed when a family was shooting ground squirrels out of a vehicle. One youngster was shooting, using the roof as a rest, and another child stuck his head up on the other side of the vehicle, and was shot in the head.

[KegRiver]

Originally Posted by elkhunter11

I think that some of these regulations are overkill, but I do know of one child that was killed when a family was shooting ground squirrels out of a vehicle. One youngster was shooting, using the roof as a rest, and another child stuck his head up on the other side of the vehicle, and was shot in the head.

There is risk in everything we do. Some risks are obvious, some less so.
No one can anticipate every possibility.

Sad that a child died but who would guess that he/she would pop their head up in the line of fire.

Shooting toward a dwelling, or towards livestock or people is another matter.

Some people just don't consider the risk, this law is because of them I suspect.

And because some folks don't believe in fair chase principals.

[bobtodrick]

Originally Posted by boah

The reason I asked the question was strictly for gopher shooting. I didn’t want to mention that at the start because I wanted to hear all the reasons. Some are obviously for safety and some are for the protection of wildlife. Getting back to gophers, especially on private land with rim fires. What harm can come from driving around in a vehicle in a section of pasture getting rid of pests? This practice should be exempt. Cattle guys, especially the ones that use horses everyday do not like holes all over their pasture. I have seen acres of canola gone from gophers. It’s not like people are going to be chasing gophers at 50 mph and shooting out the box of a truck or car, like has been mentioned.

I think I have the the answer.
Years ago I had to attend the mandatory classes on parenting during a separation. Was sitting there thinking ‘this so bogus, everybody knows this stuff’
Commented on this to the woman next to me. Got to the part where they’re telling us that running down you’re ex in front of young children is not a good thing.
A young guy sticks up his hand and says ‘but if you’re ex is a bitch the kids have a right to know’.
I looked the woman next to me and said ‘that’s why we’re here’.
A lot of laws are out there because there’s that 5% of the population that are too stupid to figure it out on their own.

[boah]

It doesn’t matter how idiot proof you make things, the world will just make better idiots.

[cdnltded]

and I was told by a fish and wildlife officer a few years back, that if your in a field all you need to do is have both feet on the ground.
still can use the vehicle as a rest.
personally I think its all up to the officer.
I heard there was a guy that got charged by an RCMP for discharging a firearm from a motorized vehicle, and the guy was a mile of the road on private land.