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TRS_Montana

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My hunting buddy and I headed out for an elk hunt on Sunday morning with high hopes. We were hunting a large herd that had been pretty consistent for the previous two mornings. We climbed up to the top of the ridge and by shooting light, had about 15-20 elk spotted at about 1000-1500 yards away. Between us and the herd was a small hill. Perfect. We planned to sneak over to the top of that hill, peak over, and shoot two 300" bulls. As we dropped down into the valley to begin our climb up the hill, we hear a shot. Close. We look over to see 5 cows and a bull walking up the hill about 200 yards away. Knowing the herd was probably going to move off into the trees because of the shot, I took a closer look at the bull to determine if he was legal.

A quick bit of context here....I was recently having a discussion with a friend about the difference between branch-antlered bulls and brow-tined bulls and what is legal in different HDs in MT. A brow-tined bull must have a branch at least 4" long located on the lower half of the main beam. A branch-antlered bull must have a branch, at least 4" long, anywhere on the main beam.

Back to the story...

As I watched this bull, I pick out a split on his right antler, with a branch that is about 8-9" long. Great. Legal, I thought, and I shoot. After the bull goes down, I look at my buddy who is staring at me like I just shot a person. "That bull's not legal" he states, and I immediately realize that I should have been looking for a 4" brow tine to determine if the bull was legal....not a 4" branch. It's pointless to describe how sick I felt knowing I just shot an illegal animal and might have just ended my hunting for the next couple of years.

So, after making sure the elk is dead, my buddy heads up to the top of the hill to make sure there weren't any legal bulls contemplating the morning's events out in the open. I'd be lying if I said it didn't cross my mind to bone the elk out and get back to the truck as quickly as possible with the hope that nobody called it in. As I thought about what to do, I knew what the right thing was, and that regardless of the consequences the only way I would be able to clear my conscience would be to call it in.
Luckily, we had cell service where we were at, so I called 1-800-TIP-MONT and was connected with a warden. I informed the warden about what happened and he told me to take care of the elk as I would have if it was legal and he would head back in to town to meet me at the office.

When I pulled into the FWP office in Helena, I was fully expecting to lose my hunting privileges for at least a year and pay $500-$1,000 in fines. After a lengthy discussion with the game warden on elk, hunting seasons, life in Helena, etc...he finally starts into the topic I have been waiting to discuss. "So..." he says, "the way we handle self-reports is this: we confiscate the animal and issue a citation for essentially the amount of money it would cost to have the animal butchered (citation of $135) so that it can be handed over to the local food pantry to help needy families. Additionally, your elk tag is validated and cannot be used on another animal. We don't take away privileges, or heap on any other fines because we know that people make mistakes and we encourage people to be as compliant as possible when those mistakes are made."

I was encouraged to learn that FWP takes a common-sense approach to punishing mistakes. Hopefully this thread will shed a positive light on MT FWP for their handling of this, as well as push people to do the right thing if they find themselves in a situation similar to mine on Sunday. Crappy way to end the 2017 elk season, but a good lesson and, ultimately, a good life experience.
 
Everybody makes mistakes. Owning up to them early often means a lesson learned rather than severe punishment and it helps set a good tone for the rest of us. Nice job making the best ethical decision out of a tough situation.
 
Good on you for doing the right thing, a lot of people wouldn't. Also good on them for understanding. That is a more than fair outcome, and the meat didn't go to waste.
 
Doing the right thing is often not easy but will ease your soul every time. Hopefully the hunting gods will reward you in the future for your honesty and you should be proud that even in your mistake some folks are getting fed.
 
Well done! Your story is something that I work diligently on teaching my boys. Once we make a mistake, first thing to do is admit it/own up to it. You did right.
 
Well done. I've had to self report a couple of violations. It's not fun, but it's the right thing to do.
 
I am sorry that this post is of great benefit, at your expense. Posting it here is admirable and very helpful to the cause of doing what is right. Anyone who hasn't made a mistake, hasn't hunted too much. The way you handled it is exemplary.
 
Doing the right thing is not always easy, but it is admirable that you didn't give in to the temptation and try to hide it. Good on you! Besides, now you can tell your significant other that you have helped families in need, so you should get a free pass for next year's season too!
 
I’m glad I read this post! It made me realize a mistake I almost made last year in bow season. I called in a branch antlered bull in a brow tined unit thinking he was legal. He got within 70 yards then the wind shifted but had I gotten the opportunity to shoot, I would have done so without hesitation. Had I connected, it would have been a violation. Sorry your elk season ended that way but kudos to you for doing the right thing and being able to sleep at night!
 
Good for you. I know that would have gnawed at you forever if you hadn't reported it.

I came close to having a similar slip up earlier this season. My home unit is either sex elk for archery and rifle. I hunted with a fellow hunt talker in his home unit during archery and it is either sex. He invited me back over opening weekend of rifle but he wasn't able to go with me opening morning. I tracked a group of elk in the snow, but never caught up with them. I had every intention of shooting a cow because I thought it was the same for rifle like my home unit. When we met up at lunch I told him I thought I was going to be able to get a cow that morning. He informed me that it was bull only. I came very close to messing up big time. I should have double checked the regs but that thought never crossed my mind. I learned a valuable lesson that day. I would have been sick if I had shot a cow.
 
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I was taught as a young person that it is not necessarily what you do, it is what you do in the moment when you realize what you did that was wrong.

Good for for making the right decision.
 
If only more people realized that the consequenses of your mistakes are amplified exponentially when you cover it up. Good example you have made! We have ALL made mistakes, not all can take the heat.
 

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