Emergency vehicle.

[robtattoo]

Not talking about ambulances or an airlift.

It's a kind of hypothetical question, but is actually pertinent to my hunting situation this year.


Say I'm elk hunting. I'm alone in an area with plenty of road access, but vehicles are prohibited off trail. Trails are gated & there is abundant signage. I set out on my TW200 & park at a gate, hike in a mile or so & luckily, kill a nice bull. It's in open, accessible but fairly rocky, hilly country. I hike over to it, quarter & hang out & pack out the first load.

On the hike back to my bike, I roll my already arthritic ankle & have to basically crawl the last couple of hundred yards. Get on the bike & I can ride it just fine, but can no longer put any walking pressure on my foot. It's fairly cold & I know the meat will be fine for a day or so, so I knock off for the day & elect to try to recover it tomorrow.

Tomorrow, my ankle is swollen to twice it's normal size & it won't bear my weight, but I can still ride the bike, if I'm slow & careful.

Here's my dilemma:

Should I take the bike out to the carcass to recover it, knowing full well that I'm breaking the law?

Should I abandon the carcass knowing that I'm then breaking wanton waste laws, even though my only other portion is to break a different law?

Go find a game warden (parked in every pull over on the main road) & ask for permission, knowing it probably won't be granted or admit to having broken the vehicle law?

I know it's a 1/1,000,000 scenario, but it is a scenario I might find myself in.

 

[One-shot]

Adrenaline from tagging an elk blocks pain, but to go with the hypothetical…Call game warden or game biologist for the area and ask for help packing out and offer up some steaks to them. A mile is nothing. That said, I hunt/hike up to 5 miles in on a gimpy ankle that I broke years ago. It hurts off/on and sells to size of softball. Sometimes I don’t know if I’ll be able to make it, but I soldier on. Sometimes I’ll take an Aleve with me to reduce swelling and pain. But if I tag, miraculously, I don’t feel much. So another solution, and good idea anyway, is to keep a first aid kit with basics in your pack or on your bike.

 

[mtnrunner260]

Anonymously call in a suspected poaching and when the warder arrives ask for help.

 

[Rocky723]

Call the local game warden and explain the situation I’m sure they can come help or can find locals to come help pack the meat out for you or arrange something

 

[SWOHTR]

Bike. At the very least you can use it as a “cart” and not ride it. Looking at the spirit and intent of the law, even if you’re caught and fined it’d be easy to explain.

 

[hiker270]

You won't be alone in an area with plenty of road access and from my experience there will be guys on atv's ride around the gate. Have personally seen it in Colorado and New Mexico.

 

[ScreamingPotato]

Get on Rokslide and post about the BOAL you left behind, it'll be gone in hours. Saves you the wanton waste charge.

 

[ScreamingPotato]

To answer your question OP, I think it would be prudent to call and explain the situation and also ask if they know of packers for hire. If your ankle is really hurt you're better off paying someone to pack it out for you. If none of that works out I'd take the bike. The problem with that being allowed is people will fake injuries, people are lazy AF.

 

[Billy Goat]

Get on Rokslide and post about the BOAL you left behind, it'll be gone in hours. Saves you the wanton waste charge.

This is what I was gonna say, but I'm 10 minutes late.

 

[Billy Goat]

Go buy some beer, make some friends, get them to help you, give them some meat.


No reason to involve the law.

 

[Swamp Fox]

Anonymously call in a suspected poaching and when the warder arrives ask for help.

This is from a classic joke. Pat McManus?

The other one I remember is: "You're dragging it the wrong way!"


Look 'em up.

 

[packer58]

In your scenario, if you've got a couple days due to cool temps i'd try first to round up some pals. If that fails then call the local warden and tell him about your predicament. Honesty is usually the best policy in my book, i think most people would be surprised at a wardens willingness to help / make an exception under the right circumstances.

 

[Hoosker Doo]

Last season I kept a $100 bill in my wallet, in case of your described scenario or if I had a bull down farther from the truck than I intended. If in a jam, I would happily hand it over to some fellow hunters with horses or time to help me get the meat out. Thanks for the reminder. I'll go make sure I have that restocked before next weekend.

 

[lak2004]

I'd suggest to call some outfitters in the area and have a packer lined up just in case. I ran into a guy that killed a mule deer in a gnarly spot, twisted his ankle in the process. I didn't have time to help him so have him a buddies number and he paid my buddy to get that deer out. He's an "influencer" type hunter with a podcast and told the story but skewed the details to make him seem like a badass hunter. Total tool bag in my opinion. Only in it for antlers.

 

[Billy Goat]

I'd suggest to call some outfitters in the area and have a packer lined up just in case. I ran into a guy that killed a mule deer in a gnarly spot, twisted his ankle in the process. I didn't have time to help him so have him a buddies number and he paid my buddy to get that deer out. He's an "influencer" type hunter with a podcast and told the story but skewed the details to make him seem like a badass hunter. Total tool bag in my opinion. Only in it for antlers.

So he faked a hammy so it didn't seem so bad to pay someone ?

 

[lak2004]

So he faked a hammy so it didn't seem so bad to pay someone ?

Haha no he was limping good and legit hurt, but he had my buddy take pictures of him with the antlers about halfway out after he had carried everything that far. Once they hit trail he wanted to carry the antlers again so he looked cool.

 

[5MilesBack]

I know a guy on here that shot a bull quite a ways in a few years back, and twisted his knee coming out with the first load. He ended up calling an outfitter and he came in and packed out the rest. Definitely have that option in your back pocket.

 

[intunegp]

Haha no he was limping good and legit hurt, but he had my buddy take pictures of him with the antlers about halfway out after he had carried everything that far. Once they hit trail he wanted to carry the antlers again so he looked cool.

Awe come on, you can't leave us hanging after that story without letting us know who it was...

 

[wytx]

Ask fellow hunters for help, Neither myself or the spouse would turn down helping out an injured hunter get meat off the mountain.
GW would be the 1st call then an outfitter.

 

[lak2004]

Awe come on, you can't leave us hanging after that story without letting us know who it was...

I can't recall the dudes name and it doesn't matter. Just another insta hunter.....