Shell Shock

roy reali · October 12, 2010, 12:54 PM

This morning my dog and I went looking for some birds. We went to this state property along the river. It is open for hunting. There is a lot of brush there with a nice little trail that meanders through it. Beautiful area except for one thing, empty hulls on the round, litter if you wil.

Every hundred yards or so I found about six or seven shotshell hulls on the ground smack in the middle of the trail. They way they were arranged, it seems as though a break open type shotgun must have been used. I know that pumps and semi's tend to scatter the hulls around. These seemed like they were removed from a gun and just dropped there. The gun must have had extractors to boot. This would indicate the ultimate in laziness and downright disregard for others. I hunt with a self-loader. I will crawl through brush to find my empties. I took those shells in and by God I will take them out, empty or full.

Nonhunters use this area. I am sure they are thrilled to see the trail littered with empty shotgun shells. This is public property. If someone wants to scatter garbage on their own land, I don't give a rat's behind. But I will get really ticked off if a no-hunting sign is posted there. I'll know why.

I picked up those empties. It took away from the time I could have used for my own hunting pleasure. It just made hunters look bad.

Why are there hunters that do this? Hunters that are busted littering should be either banned from hunting for an extended period of time or be put on a chain gang to clean up a forest somewhere.

.300 Weatherby Mag · October 12, 2010, 01:05 PM

One morning in a dove field, I got so fed up with the hulls littered everywhere.. I set my gun down and pickup up shells out of this farmer's field.. I filled three shopping bags full of 12 gauge hulls.. The only other hunter in the area was my dad, and the birds were flaring toward him while I picked up the hulls... Picking up the hulls told me two things, one being the hunters therethe previous day were idiots and two they couldn't hit the broadside of a barn... It's not the first I've stop hunting to pick up litter other hunters have left in the field

roy reali · October 12, 2010, 01:07 PM

Quote:

It's not the first I've stop hunting to pick up litter other hunters have left in the field

I hope that if any slob hunters read these posts their conscience will slap them upside their head. I doubt it.

Pahoo · October 12, 2010, 01:19 PM

During the ethics portion of Hunter Safety. We bring up a point that it's strange how a candy bar can trun into garbage by throwing away the wrapper. How it's no effort at all, to put the wrapper in your pocket and dispose of it later. As far as any cigarette butts, do the same or bury them and the harm they might pose to wildlife.
That the only thing that a Hunter should leave in the woods, is tracks.

Be Safe !!!

Dr. Strangelove · October 12, 2010, 01:47 PM

Same thing happens where I hunt here in GA on public land. Trash, beverage cans, using trees as target stands, etc.

It's because people feel no responsibility for public land, and no respect for anyone else who may use that land.

Most of the "problems" we have today stem from lack of respect for our fellow citizens.

Dave R · October 12, 2010, 02:14 PM

Agreed. I ALWAYS pick up my hulls (using a SXS with extractors sure helps!) AND I pick up other hulls I encounter, sometimes until my vest won't hold any more. That's depressing.

DiscoRacing · October 12, 2010, 02:26 PM

I dont shoot anything that uses hulls... but.. you can bet your tailfeathers that I pick up my brass.

James H · October 12, 2010, 03:51 PM

They only time I don't pick up shells (I use an autoloader most of time) is when I knock down a bird and know it's not dead when it hits the ground. I usually don't have the luxury of hunting with a dog, so I've got to be on top of the bird myself before it disappears wounded. I'll try to go back and find my empties after I bag the bird, but they're not always possible to find. I always pick up hulls from other people, cause I imagine some hunters are going through the same thing as me. However, I agree with everyone else. If there's a pile of shells or you keep finding shells all over the place, those people were just being slobs and I despise that. Same goes for cigarette butts, beer cans, candy wrappers, and don't even get me started on how much trash I usually find in firepits and around campsites...Gets me so hotheaded sometimes...especially the broken glass I always end up finding!!

roy reali · October 12, 2010, 04:31 PM

Quote:

especially the broken glass I always end up finding!!

Broken glass is the worse. At least hulls can easily be picked up by someone else. Little pieces of glass are almost impossible to gather up. I wonder what would happen if I ever spot someone shooting glass containers on public land. The scenarios that I run through my mind don't end well.

re

aveR

Quote:

(using a SXS with extractors sure helps!)

I believe that is what the person or persons shooting in this area must have been using. Like I said, the shells were on the ground within inches of each other. I use a semi-auto, I only wished my gun threw hulls into such neat, easy to find piles. My 11-87 seems to throw hulls into the next county.

mitchell koster · October 12, 2010, 05:26 PM

I agree to the full most with what everyone above has said. As hunters we want to do as little damage to the eco system as possible. I even pick up brass from the .22 and dads .270.

Thanks for bring up the topic.

MK

shortwave · October 13, 2010, 07:21 AM

I've got literally cases of hull's. Saved over the years just in case I ever started reloading shotgun shell's.

I like an onion sack to carry for debris. They're quite.

Leaving our hunting grounds better than we found it, is all our responsibilities.

spclPatrolGroup · October 13, 2010, 09:33 AM

If that happens on private land, it doesnt take long for it to get posted. We had someone come through our land leaving big 6" ruts in our fields, there were cans littered everywhere, the next day the signs went up, if someone is nice enough to ask they still get permission if we aren't using it, but no one who doesnt check in first is allowed.

nathaniel · October 13, 2010, 10:32 AM

You know when I watch hunting shows on tv I have never seen any of those "hunters" pick up their hulls. Maybe that give those big city doctors and bussinessmen that have never hunted a day in their life the wrong impression and they think its ok to leave hulls on the ground.

Daryl · October 13, 2010, 11:16 AM

I used to see a lot of empty shotgun hulls when I hunted, but it's decreased drematically. Arizona started citing folks to leave them (litterning), and the game warden doesn't have to see you drop them to cite. If you've taken birds, you better have some empties with you.

I stick them in my bird bag, and dump them in the bed of the truck when I get back. Since I don't reload shotgun shells, I toss them out when I get home.

That said...

Here in the Az desert, the biggest problem with littering comes from illegal border crossers. The desert here is littered with empty water bottles, broken backpacks, and other nasties I'd rather not mention.

One of these days I'm going to show up at an illegal "rights" rally with a truckload of broken backpacks picked up from the desert.

Daryl

roy reali · October 13, 2010, 02:08 PM

Quote:

the game warden doesn't have to see you drop them to cite. If you've taken birds, you better have some empties with you.

I like that!

sc928porsche · October 14, 2010, 05:43 AM

I havnt purchaced shotgun shell hulls in years. I carry a box of ammo in my vest and when I come home I usually have the vest 1/2 full or better and 2-3 boxes of spent hulls. Its a shame that a few hunters can leave stuff laying around. Of course, we have become a "disposable" society, but at least dispose of it properly.

Major Dave (retired) · October 28, 2010, 12:12 AM

beer cans!

One public tract I hunt invariably has 2 or 3 places where someone dumps a six pack

. I can't believe someone with a 6 pack under their belt would be in the woods with a loaded firearm. I was always taught: "Alcohol and gun powder don't mix".

Legionnaire · October 28, 2010, 01:45 PM

It's not just hunters. I recall a hike with a group of young people from church early in the spring, shortly after the snow had melted from the cross country ski trails. We picked up water bottles, discarded items of clothing, broken ski poles, and a variety of other kinds of trash--candy wrappers, plastic bags, etc. There are slobs all over. My kids now just expect to bring other people's trash out of the woods when we hike, and we bring plastic bags along so we can.

October 12, 2010, 12:54 PM	#1
roy reali Senior Member Join Date: August 23, 2005 Posts: 3,248	Shell Shock This morning my dog and I went looking for some birds. We went to this state property along the river. It is open for hunting. There is a lot of brush there with a nice little trail that meanders through it. Beautiful area except for one thing, empty hulls on the round, litter if you wil. Every hundred yards or so I found about six or seven shotshell hulls on the ground smack in the middle of the trail. They way they were arranged, it seems as though a break open type shotgun must have been used. I know that pumps and semi's tend to scatter the hulls around. These seemed like they were removed from a gun and just dropped there. The gun must have had extractors to boot. This would indicate the ultimate in laziness and downright disregard for others. I hunt with a self-loader. I will crawl through brush to find my empties. I took those shells in and by God I will take them out, empty or full. Nonhunters use this area. I am sure they are thrilled to see the trail littered with empty shotgun shells. This is public property. If someone wants to scatter garbage on their own land, I don't give a rat's behind. But I will get really ticked off if a no-hunting sign is posted there. I'll know why. I picked up those empties. It took away from the time I could have used for my own hunting pleasure. It just made hunters look bad. Why are there hunters that do this? Hunters that are busted littering should be either banned from hunting for an extended period of time or be put on a chain gang to clean up a forest somewhere.

October 12, 2010, 01:05 PM	#2
.300 Weatherby Mag Senior Member Join Date: September 6, 2008 Posts: 1,777	One morning in a dove field, I got so fed up with the hulls littered everywhere.. I set my gun down and pickup up shells out of this farmer's field.. I filled three shopping bags full of 12 gauge hulls.. The only other hunter in the area was my dad, and the birds were flaring toward him while I picked up the hulls... Picking up the hulls told me two things, one being the hunters therethe previous day were idiots and two they couldn't hit the broadside of a barn... It's not the first I've stop hunting to pick up litter other hunters have left in the field Last edited by .300 Weatherby Mag; October 12, 2010 at 01:37 PM.

October 12, 2010, 01:19 PM	#4
Pahoo Senior Member Join Date: February 16, 2006 Location: IOWA Posts: 8,783	Candy Wrappers and Cigarette butts During the ethics portion of Hunter Safety. We bring up a point that it's strange how a candy bar can trun into garbage by throwing away the wrapper. How it's no effort at all, to put the wrapper in your pocket and dispose of it later. As far as any cigarette butts, do the same or bury them and the harm they might pose to wildlife. That the only thing that a Hunter should leave in the woods, is tracks. Be Safe !!!

October 12, 2010, 02:14 PM	#6
Dave R Senior Member Join Date: January 7, 2000 Location: Idaho Posts: 6,073	Agreed. I ALWAYS pick up my hulls (using a SXS with extractors sure helps!) AND I pick up other hulls I encounter, sometimes until my vest won't hold any more. That's depressing. __________________ I am Pro-Rights (on gun issues).

October 12, 2010, 02:26 PM	#7
DiscoRacing Senior Member Join Date: December 19, 2008 Location: milton, wv Posts: 3,640	I dont shoot anything that uses hulls... but.. you can bet your tailfeathers that I pick up my brass. __________________ Desert Eagle Alliance Group Launcher Extraordinaire ______ ----Get Busy Live'n.....Or....Get Busy Die'n......Red -------They call me Dr. Bob,,,, I have a PhD in S&W

October 12, 2010, 01:47 PM	#5
Dr. Strangelove Senior Member Join Date: August 1, 2008 Location: Athens, GA Posts: 1,436	Same thing happens where I hunt here in GA on public land. Trash, beverage cans, using trees as target stands, etc. It's because people feel no responsibility for public land, and no respect for anyone else who may use that land. Most of the "problems" we have today stem from lack of respect for our fellow citizens.

October 12, 2010, 03:51 PM	#8
James H Junior member Join Date: September 21, 2010 Location: The high plains of Wyoming Posts: 164	They only time I don't pick up shells (I use an autoloader most of time) is when I knock down a bird and know it's not dead when it hits the ground. I usually don't have the luxury of hunting with a dog, so I've got to be on top of the bird myself before it disappears wounded. I'll try to go back and find my empties after I bag the bird, but they're not always possible to find. I always pick up hulls from other people, cause I imagine some hunters are going through the same thing as me. However, I agree with everyone else. If there's a pile of shells or you keep finding shells all over the place, those people were just being slobs and I despise that. Same goes for cigarette butts, beer cans, candy wrappers, and don't even get me started on how much trash I usually find in firepits and around campsites...Gets me so hotheaded sometimes...especially the broken glass I always end up finding!!

October 12, 2010, 05:26 PM	#10
mitchell koster Senior Member Join Date: April 15, 2010 Location: Tasmania, Australia Posts: 211	I agree to the full most with what everyone above has said. As hunters we want to do as little damage to the eco system as possible. I even pick up brass from the .22 and dads .270. Thanks for bring up the topic. MK __________________ The man who smiles when things go wrong has thought of someone to blame it on.

October 13, 2010, 07:21 AM	#11
shortwave Senior Member Join Date: December 17, 2007 Location: SOUTHEAST, OHIO Posts: 5,970	I've got literally cases of hull's. Saved over the years just in case I ever started reloading shotgun shell's. I like an onion sack to carry for debris. They're quite. Leaving our hunting grounds better than we found it, is all our responsibilities.

October 13, 2010, 09:33 AM	#12
spclPatrolGroup Senior Member Join Date: August 19, 2010 Location: North Dakota Posts: 349	If that happens on private land, it doesnt take long for it to get posted. We had someone come through our land leaving big 6" ruts in our fields, there were cans littered everywhere, the next day the signs went up, if someone is nice enough to ask they still get permission if we aren't using it, but no one who doesnt check in first is allowed.

October 13, 2010, 10:32 AM	#13
nathaniel Senior Member Join Date: March 11, 2010 Location: North Dakota Posts: 600	You know when I watch hunting shows on tv I have never seen any of those "hunters" pick up their hulls. Maybe that give those big city doctors and bussinessmen that have never hunted a day in their life the wrong impression and they think its ok to leave hulls on the ground.

October 13, 2010, 11:16 AM	#14
Daryl Senior Member Join Date: July 11, 2008 Posts: 2,350	I used to see a lot of empty shotgun hulls when I hunted, but it's decreased drematically. Arizona started citing folks to leave them (litterning), and the game warden doesn't have to see you drop them to cite. If you've taken birds, you better have some empties with you. I stick them in my bird bag, and dump them in the bed of the truck when I get back. Since I don't reload shotgun shells, I toss them out when I get home. That said... Here in the Az desert, the biggest problem with littering comes from illegal border crossers. The desert here is littered with empty water bottles, broken backpacks, and other nasties I'd rather not mention. One of these days I'm going to show up at an illegal "rights" rally with a truckload of broken backpacks picked up from the desert. Daryl

October 14, 2010, 05:43 AM	#16
sc928porsche Senior Member Join Date: May 29, 2008 Location: now living in alabama Posts: 2,433	I havnt purchaced shotgun shell hulls in years. I carry a box of ammo in my vest and when I come home I usually have the vest 1/2 full or better and 2-3 boxes of spent hulls. Its a shame that a few hunters can leave stuff laying around. Of course, we have become a "disposable" society, but at least dispose of it properly. __________________ No such thing as a stupid question. What is stupid is not asking it.

October 28, 2010, 12:12 AM	#17
Major Dave (retired) Senior Member Join Date: March 12, 2008 Location: Between Dallas and Shreveport, LA Posts: 569	My pet peeve, trashwise, is beer cans! One public tract I hunt invariably has 2 or 3 places where someone dumps a six pack . I can't believe someone with a 6 pack under their belt would be in the woods with a loaded firearm. I was always taught: "Alcohol and gun powder don't mix". __________________ Artillery lends dignity to what would otherwise be but a vulgar brawl.

October 28, 2010, 01:45 PM	#18
Legionnaire Senior Member Join Date: July 25, 2000 Location: Central TX Posts: 1,503	It's not just hunters. I recall a hike with a group of young people from church early in the spring, shortly after the snow had melted from the cross country ski trails. We picked up water bottles, discarded items of clothing, broken ski poles, and a variety of other kinds of trash--candy wrappers, plastic bags, etc. There are slobs all over. My kids now just expect to bring other people's trash out of the woods when we hike, and we bring plastic bags along so we can. __________________ Cogito, ergo armatus sum.