Hunting on public land?

 

Guess I read somewhere that in Pa. on State Forest these could be considered illegal. But still whoever arrested you must have been a real jerk and not given you a verbal or written warning first.

 

I have a friend who is a very good arborist and he has said that any time you pierce a tree whether its with a screw or climbing spikes you put the tree at significant risk of disease. I kind of agree on public land the environment should be effected as little as possible by people. Sucks you got fined though! I feel like a warning would have sufficed!

 

Assuming you were on public land. Same here in NY, no screw in devices of any kind, no trimming branches. Thats a steep fine, sorry to hear.

 

Seems fair enough. You break the rules you pay the price. Personally I would pay the two bills shut my yapper and call it a day.

 

What stores sell and where you can use those products are clearly two different aspects of the game regulations......and not just PA. In Michigan, with CWD being a growing problem, the DNR banned baiting the past two seasons. Yet if you go to the local Farm & Fleet or Tractor Supply, they have stacks of bags labeled, "Deer Corn". I asked one of the workers at Tractor Supply why they were selling "Deer Corn" when it was illegal to bait....his reply, "We don't know what you are going to use it for". So I replied, "Then why is it labeled, 'Deer Corn', and not cattle feed or whatever??? :embara:

 

I agree it seems silly, and the holes left by the tapered screws seem to heal up pretty quick. BUT, all that said, it is written, and it is your responsibility to know the laws. A warning woulda been nice too though.

 

HME makes a strap on bow hanger. It's all I use. I hunt private but after you screw those EZ hangers into a few hardwoods they become dull and it is a pain to try to start them in a new hole. The HME works great. It is quicker and no issue bumbling around trying to find an old hole in the dark or starting a new hole.

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i made one to strap on

 

Yes it was on public land and it was in a State game lands. I really think this is a bogus fine though and these easy hangers don't do damage to a tree. They barely go in an inch and if you ask me, this is just another way to steal money from us hunters. I mean we pay out the ass already for a license, and all the necessary tags and that's just not enough for the state. I'm gonna pay the fine but I really think a warning should've been given.

 

While I agree with your assessment of tree damage. But rules are rules. Either you didn’t know or just ignored them. A warning would seem appropriate for such a minor infraction. A lot depends on the person who may receive the tickets attitude. Maybe the officer was having a bad day. Was a d**k. Or just a no tolerance rule.

 

Thank god that caught up to you. I hope you do jail time for piercing a tree with a screw-in hanger! J/K

This is typical PA. They nailed you right away with a hefty fine, but 3 weeks after a video surfaced of two monsters torturing a buck that was wounded, no charges have been filed. Fortunately, I hunt private land, so no concerns about a screw-in bow hanger.

 

The teeth on my climber pierce the bark hundreds of times in just one round trip, they have no rule against that do they?


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Actually, PA does. You can't damage a tree using a stand. A WCO could fine you for using a climber that penetrates the bark.

https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdoc...k.cfm?txtType=HTM&ttl=34&div=0&chpt=25&sctn=11&subsctn=0&mobile_choice=suppress

 

I still say that if a WCO followed they most law abiding, safest hunter thru the woods for a season, they would find something to nail them on...at least here in PA.

I agree that ignorance of the law is not an excuse, and will never fight a fine where I broke the law. That being said, almost yearly I hear of someone getting fined for doing something that I either didn't know was against the law, or it was something so petty, that it makes you wonder why it is against the law.

As for the OP, I hunt a mix of state and private land and "try" to remember not to screw in my hanger on state land, but I know I've broke that law on occasion. And the tree stand marks on the tree? Same as the screws...I try to pick rough bark trees when on state land, but I have broke that one as well.

 

Using a screw in bow holder is a gateway offense to full on poaching....

...seriously though, the law was broken and the penalty was levied. Pretty black and white really. We all make mistakes, apologize for your ignorance thank the officer for protecting your desire to hunt and go on your way.

 

Michigan has the same law, nothing screwed into a tree except if it is part of the hang on stand safety, like the old API stands.
Like bait or screw in aids it is not illegal to sell any of them even though it is illegal to use them.

 

Michigan has the same law, nothing screwed into a tree except if it is part of the hang on stand safety, like the old API stands.
Like bait or screw in aids it is not illegal to sell any of them even though it is illegal to use them.

Really? Now that makes no sense to me at all! I can buy the law that prohibits screwing into a tree to keep from hurting it, but why not all screws? I would think those old treestands would be illegal as well.

 

seams like a good reason to support thirdhand man.

Pretty common for public lands to have that rule of new screw in devices

 

Just curious...how did he catch you ?

 

Ninja drones....for a treeninja

 

The strap style hangers are easier to use anyway. Just switch to that. The rule is probably made to discourage people from using screw in steps....its one of those zero tolerance rules so anything with a screw is not allowed.

 

I completely disagree with this. a single screw in hook takes up much less space to carry in and takes less time to screw in as opposed to wrapping a strap. (not saying either is hard or that time consuming, but IMHO a screw in is easier)

 

Who doesn’t disagree with laws that are in place? But that doesn’t mean you can pick and choose which you follow.


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What do you all think about this and what are your thoughts?

Read your regs more carefully

 

Oklahoma is the same for public ground....no screw in anything allowed. I use Thirdhands straps, and to me are just as easy as screw in stuff I used to use on private. Lots of screw in stuff left on the public I hunt, and don't see too many trees die from it, but its the law. Like others have said, a GW can find something to nail you with....if they want to bad enough.

 

Actually I wasn't in the tree at all when the citation was written. He knew it was my setup though cause you have to tag your tree stand setups with your name and license number. So what happened was, this guy was walking thru the woods and came across my tree stand setup and saw the screw in bow hanger and sent me a citation in the mail. That is how I was caught.

 

Now that is something I never heard happen. How do they know that someone else wasn’t using your stand and put it there and forgot it.

 

Here in MS the rules are different between public areas. One NWR we have hunted is patrolled by state GW. Their rules are no limbs can be cut. Another NWR we hunt frequently is patrolled by fed GW. The rules there state no plant or tree can be destroyed. Big difference.
Both places are no metal screwed in trees, but lot of hunters disregard the rule.


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Treeninja That is what happens on Some Corp of Engineer lakes in Kansas and Missouri, you have to register and tag your stand. It is against the law to use anything, even reflector tacks, that pierce the tree.
An aquiantance of mine was fined $235 for a screw in a stump that held his camera box and reflector tacks in trees to mark his way.

It was his second offense in 2 years, the year before he trimmed limbs and fined then too...the COE Law guy told him he coulld charge him 100 bucks for each limb he cut, but he ony charged him for one.

Whether on private or public I use a HME strap-on bow holder all the time, along with the 3rd hand tree belt and use strap on steps to hold heavy stuff, all depends on the tree.

 

its ridiculous, but it is the law.

 

^^^this