Archery Hunter Killed by ML Hunter

[cnelk]

Bad news

 

[mlgc20]

Sad news. I always get out of the woods right before ML season starts.

 

[HuntInWild88]

I get accidents happen...but how?? I don't understand how people are shooting each other while hunting...it's not that hard to just ID your freaking Target!!!
I know the guy has to just feel like absolute crap of course.
Just totally terrible news and situation..

 

[Vandy321]

No excuse for that. Zero.

 

[woods89]

Terrible deal.

I suppose their are some really weird situations out there, but almost always if the basic firearms safety rules were followed these situations would not happen.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

Idiots from the south scare the crap outta me in CO. Those guys shoot at moving bushes. Guarantee these pinheads will be that area. Should be charged with murder.

 

[justinspicher]

I see rule changes coming….

 

[cnelk]

I see rule changes coming….

And it won’t be for the MLs

 

[sndmn11]

I had a female muzzleloader hunter accompanied by a male archery hunter calling within 60 yards of me and then move to about 40 yards for 45 minutes. They hadn't a clue I was there.
Her orange is what made it easy to see them and I felt totally safe by being able to see her. I can't envision too many "accident" scenarios and hope this isn't the catalyst for two separate archery seasons like the CBA proposed a handful of years ago.

 

[JeffRaines]

Terrible deal.

I suppose their are some really weird situations out there, but almost always if the basic firearms safety rules were followed these situations would not happen.

Bingo.

I get that it was a mistake, but I’m having trouble feeling bad for the guy who inevitably shot at a bush that was moving and making elk noises.

About the only thing that would change my mind is discovering that the archery hunter was using one of those decoys that attach to your bow. While that doesn’t make what the blackpowder guy did right, it takes a special kind of stupid to hunt public land with something like that… especially during a firearm season when guys want to shoot at moving bushes.

 

[Finch]

Sad. It's like the people that get mistakenly shot around here for turkeys. Inexcusable in my book.

 

[orionsbrother]

I don’t understand how this can happen.

 

[roosiebull]

curious to learn more about this tragedy, can't imagine the hunter's family and what they are going through, and how angry they must be.

i cannot fathom a reasonable explanation for things like this.... maybe there is, but i can't think of one. bums me out. the very best week of archery blacktail season is the week of 2nd season rifle general elk, hard to enjoy deer hunting in that chaos.... in CO it's even worse having both parties chasing the same species, and making elk sounds.... still don't understand how it could happen, but it doesn't surprise me.

 

[*zap*]

lots of folks that carry weapons should not be doing so...prayers for the dead man.

 

[woods89]

Bingo.

I get that it was a mistake, but I’m having trouble feeling bad for the guy who inevitably shot at a bush that was moving and making elk noises.

About the only thing that would change my mind is discovering that the archery hunter was using one of those decoys that attach to your bow. While that doesn’t make what the blackpowder guy did right, it takes a special kind of stupid to hunt public land with something like that… especially during a firearm season when guys want to shoot at moving bushes.

Ya, I didn't think about those decoys. I agree, the responsibility is still on the shooter, though, and also that using one of those decoys during any firearms season is not a good idea.

Edited to add- A buddy of mine suggested that this could also happen if packing out antlers. Good reason to keep some orange in the pack, I suppose.

 

[KSDan]

Wait for the investigation. A decoy? Calling ? I can see how it could happen. Terrible for all. . .

 

[540-Virginian]

I wear an orange cap when I archery hunt on Public Land always when there is any type of gun season. So that is the full season for me as people can squirrel hunt here with firearms during deer. So sad...

 

[Nickofthewoods]

I feel like I'm copying and pasting a previous post of mine, but it is ridiculous that muzzleloader and rifle bear hunters are the ones required to wear orange, while the people in the field most likely to get shot at on accident (archers in camo making Elk sounds) are not.

Other outdoor users are also in play here but hikers, backpackers, mushroom hunters and so on are typically not wearing head to toe camo making artificial elk noises. While I'm not saying that archers should be required to wear orange, I am saying that the regs are very backwards in a way regarding the blaze orange requirements, and the overlapping seasons should probably not overlap for several very obvious reasons.

 

[sndmn11]

While I'm not saying that archers should be required to wear orange, I am saying that the regs are very backwards in a way regarding the blaze orange requirements, and the overlapping seasons should probably not overlap for several very obvious reasons.

They make sense to me because the color designates those not sending arrows.

 

[Nickofthewoods]

They make sense to me because the color designates those not sending arrows.

True, but nobody is really worried about archers accidentally shooting other archers or muzzleloader hunters. So I guess my question is how do gun hunters wearing orange make archery hunters safer? Pending details, the above incident may be an example of why this isn't great logic.

Aside from archery season possibly being shortened, wouldn't all parties involved be happier if the seasons did not overlap?