Promoting good will

[Ike]

All that talk Mike did about the quaken aspens turning gold in the foothills pushed me out the door this morning with four hounds. Try as I did, I hoped that I could take an eight or ten mile hike with those hounds and look for a lion track before the weekend elk hunters were back in the woods.

I was pleased to see almost NO traffic in the canyon this morning but did notice one truck parked toward the end of the road near the trailhead, which lead me to believe that hunter was a walker and probably sitting on a nearby ridge before daylight, so I collared up those four hounds and shouldered my backpack and began to put down tracks toward the wilderness.

The morning breeze was gently blowing in my face as the five of us stepped out at a good stride. The memories of the twenty-five years of elk hunting came and went through my mind as the dogs worked the trail ahead of me. From time to time those four hounds would out step me and I'd call them back with a short sound that would always turn the heads of each dog. My legs began to loosen up and it was a great morning to be alive, walking behind those hounds, smelling the smells of the mountain and remembering lots of great trips up that canyon.....

Only a couple miles into our hike I could see two guys out ahead of me wearing orange and packing rifles. It didn't take me long to overtake those two young men and so I stopped and we visited for a few minutes. They had been on the other end of that mountain range hunting without success and wanted to try this area. I asked them how far up the canyon they were going, to which they answered, "to the end." I laughed and told them the trail reached the summit of the Uinta Mountains in about twenty-six more miles, then split along the High Line Trail and ran for dozens of miles in either direction. They didn't say much.

Then I asked them if I would miss them up if I stepped out ahead of them and they answered no, and was very polite. I responded by telling them that my season was longer than theirs and that I would return another day. They both thanked me and they continued up the canyon and I turned away. In reality those two young men had little to no chance of killing an elk because the thermals had already shifted and was taking their scent up the canyon ahead of them--but they didn't seem to know that and would have most likely believe that my intrusion into their hunt cost them a kill. One thing I learned about hunting elk over a lifetime was when the wind gets at your back you're done if you're in the timber, and you must turn into the wind, find an opening and sit down or go to camp.

Whether many of us realize it or not, other hunters effect our opportunities afield by the complaints they made toward others. When problems arise, the fish and game and wildlife boards address those issues by shifting, moving, limiting or removing the problem. Those two young men will long remember that I respected their time and hunting opportunity, and will most likely be less likely to be among the people who run future hounddoggers out of the woods. Tolerance of others is hard to promote sometimes cause each of us figure we have "rights", it's just the way many western people are raised. But respect and tolerance is easy to talk about and damn hard to give............

Hope each of you have had a great fall and are looking forward to more of the same............

ike

[Conejos]

I agree 100%!
Lion season opened up here in October but you just really can't do much till elk huntings over. As houndsman we need all the friends we can get because we seem to be up against enviromentalist who always have more time and money than we do. I think its very important to keep the other hunters on our side and stepping aside and being polite once in awhile can go along ways.

[Mike Leonard]

Excellent post Ike I commend you!

I as well had to contend with elk hunters this weekend while cold trailing and they were very polite and said they loved to hear that old Blue dog bugle down there in the canyon. And so true the thermals take the message and it was plain they were screwed. Problem was no thermals for me on that cold lion track just father time LOL! and I was screwed as well.

Oh well as they say, we will tru another day...

[Eric Muff]

Work got in the way today,thanks for keeping us shut ins out there.

[spruce mountain]

good post Ike,I try to do the same thing when I encounter other hunters in the woods.If I happen to mess somebody up I apolagize and get out of there,I just hope that the next time that there is a vote trying to stop what I love to do that they might remember it and think twice before voting against me.

[Ike]

That's the best we can hope for spruce, that a little good will and courtesy will come back to us someday in the future...........

ike