"Action speaks louder
than words but not nearly as often."
~ Mark Twain
On Saturday, I got a call
from a friend who was worried he might have opened himself and his
son up to a lot of trouble. Upon hearing more, Ihave to admit my
first reaction was, "Oh boy, this is gonna cost them," but
let me back up a tad.
My friend and his 6th
grader son were out hunting turkeys during the special youth turkey
hunt early Saturday morning. They had a great morning with a crow
calling and shocking the gobblers into getting vocal. Anyway, long
story short, after my friend called, the birds came a running - and
flying; his son described it, "it was like it was raining
turkeys." Several groups of hens and jakes and some big toms
came "whooshing" into the field in front of them, all
landing too far for a shot. The hunters had put out some hen and jake
decoys, but nobody, with a long beard at least, seemed to notice them
- at first. The birds were strutting and the boss hen was bossing.
Dad was worried that they didn't have enough cover in front of them
along the edge of the field, when two toms split out and headed for
the dekes. He said
that the toms were looking
right at them, "We were almost completely exposed along the edge
of the woods." Fortunately, the birds were really intent on the
decoys. As the gobblers closed on the decoys, the birds separated
offering a clear shot. The boy had to bet his gun up and around a
tree to fire in the field. Finally, he had his shotgun set with what
looked like a perfect shot, and his dad gave the go ahead to fire. He
made a clean kill with the .20 gauge. They were really excited,
butthen glory turned to gloom. There was another turkey flopping some
fifty yards farther down in the hayfield. They were both dumbfounded.
Neither had seen that bird down in field past the decoys. They
carried both of the 20-plus pound longbeards back to the house,
stopping frequently to get their breath and express their thoughts.
They decided they had to report the illegal kill. My friend went in
and looked up the warden's number and called him. He left a message
and then called me. Anyway, he told me the story and I agreed with
him. While I have to admit that I don't know what I would have done
in a similar situation, calling the warden was the right thing to do.
Later that day, Warden
Dale Hochhausen came out and went over the story with Jake and his
dad. Gregg told me later, Warden Hochhausen was very cordial and
explained that he wasn't going to write a ticket because they had
done the right thing. Hochhausen said he wished more people would. He
explained to them that they couldn't keep the second bird, but that
it would be taken to a food pantry. He talked to Jake about his shot,
but he was also amazed. He said that he wouldn't have thought a .20
gauge shotgun would have killed a bird at that distance even if it
had taken the full brunt of the shot. (Examination showed that one BB
in the distant tom's eye had done the deed!)
I have heard stories about
DNR wardens who were reputed to be so by-the-book that they would
ticket their own grandmothers for a violation, and this story could
have ended as just another "damned DNR" story. Instead,
Warden Hochhausen's approach was exactly the one needed in this
situation. He was able to teach a lesson to a young hunter.
Hochhausen's recognizing happenstance, not malicious intent,
presented a warden in a very positive light. I applaud his even
handed approach to the situation. I have no doubt he would be
welcomed back at the Sikora's, and maybe even for a turkey dinner. I
also applaud Jake and Gregg's actions. Gregg said that he had learned
to fear wardens when he was growing up and he didn't want that for
Jake. It takes guts to do the right thing.
With the story of any
hunt, the retelling is always the best part. Now Jake can tell the
story to his friends and family and not have to cover anything up.
He can also share that he knows a Wisconsin DNR Warden and that the
warden is not such a bad guy. I was able to visit Dale on Monday and
he said that while there is no "mistake" rule in the law
book, "I preach that in my Hunter's Safety class." He said
that, "If a clear mistake has been made, I don't issue a ticket
- if the person has been honest enough to call it in. If you hunt
long enough, you're likely to make a mistake, kill two turkeys with
one shot or maybe take a small forked buck in an antlerless season.
I encourage folks to call me up. I've yet to write a ticket for
someone who made a mistake and was honest enough to admit it.' He
adds, "I can't say that will always be the case. If someone
shot a large buck with say an 18" spread during an
antlerless season, that's
probably not an accident." He also said that he thought that
the Sikora's calling in the extra bird kill was tough but that is set
a good example for Jake and everyone. "It is a positive
life lesson for his son.
Integrity is often not an easy thing to do." He told me that he
had also had another mistake called in that morningand the
confiscated birds did not go to waste. "I have to sell them,
but Jake's bird went to an older couple in their 70's."
Until next time, get out -
in 1997 the Tribune/Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Hunter
Ethics Award was established by two area journalists, Jerry Davis and
Bob Lamb, and warden Steve Dewald. Davis says the award recognizes,
". . . special hunters, who continue to have a high regard for
the animals they take, are willing to help their fellow hunters, and
who respect the land they hunt on. Most hunters do those things. A
very few do not."
Dewald adds, "The
award demonstrates how the considerate acts of one ormore hunters can
positively influence the enjoyment of other hunters. At a time when
society seems to be polarized over many issues, the award's theme
reminds all hunting groups to come together to engage in actions that
reflect positively on the tradition of hunting." I think Jake
and Gregg (and Dale Hochhausen) may deserve consideration when the
nominations come due this December. What do you think?
Enjoy.
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