# Why Can't People Do The Right Thing? (long rant)



## ugaringneck (Dec 24, 2016)

Ok, so full disclosure this is a rant about something we have probably all had happen to us.  But, its always so infuriating each time it happens.

This morning I'm on public land... Seminole... no big secret there probably.  We get to a point that we like at about 530 and set up, decoys out.  At 615 I hear a boat motor up just on the back side of the grass from me.  I shine my light over the grass at them, about 15 yards of grass actually obscuring visibility between us, but it's obvious they're far too close.  They turn their motor off and I hear decoys plopping... I say "Hey buddy, don't you think we're a bit too close?"  no response  ... "Hey buddy, I can hear the splash of your decoys in the water like it's right next to me, I know you can hear me speaking to you, don't you think this is a bit close?"  
He  mutters back "we won't be messing you up here"

I retort "you absolutely will be messing us up here, you're about 50 yards from me, and you probably know as well as I do that ducks this morning will be passing right over this point, that's why you're wanting to set up where you are... But I beat you here by 45 minutes, and now you're going to come in here 45 minutes before shooting light and cut me off?  that's not being fair to us."

again he says "man we're not going to mess you up here"

so I shine my light across the way and say "There's a mile of unoccupied grassline right there, and a half mile of unoccupied grassline all the way down this island.  How about you move down a bit and get a few hundred yards away from me."  

and he says something like "whatever man"  

and so I say again "Come on buddy, just do the right thing here.  There's absolutely no reason for you to set up 50 yards from me when there's so much space out here.  Do the right thing."  I shine my light to my furthest decoy about 25 yards away and ask, "I know you can't see me because of how my boat is angled in this grass, but you can see this decoy right here can't you? If you're where it sounds like you are, and you can see this decoy, then you're entirely too close.  Can you see this decoy?"

no response.  "Be reasonable here buddy, can you or can't you see this decoy I'm shining my light on? Not only is this not the courteous thing to do, but it's also very unsafe to be this close"  As much as I had wanted to just explode into bouts of profanity I kept my cool, hoping that if he could tell that I was being polite, reasonable, and genuinely expressing concern for both mine and his safety that he would realize he needed to move.

no response.

He turns his motor on so that he doesn't have to hear me anymore, maybe I was making too much sense and didn't want for logic and reason to make him feel bad about what he was doing?  I continue to hear the plop of decoys.

We're 30 minutes from shooting light now... I thought about just moving but knew I wouldn't get to my plan B in time.  I though about motoring 25 yards to the edge of the point so that he could see precisely how close he was to me, but figured that a confrontation with the type of person who willfully ignores a hunter politely asking that he simply follow the law is not going to do anything but escalate a situation.  I also assumed that I must be dealing with an individual of considerably less than average intelligence.  A risky combination to say the least.  

I stayed where I was and hoped that maybe I was just really disoriented.  Maybe the hunter was much further away than I thought.  Maybe our voices were traveling across water way easier than they should on this still morning without any wind.  I started to feel a little bad like I had lectured someone who maybe didn't deserve it, maybe he was well within the law and much further away from me than I assumed.  Then at shooting light I heard exactly how close he was when he, as I suspected, cut us off from ducks dropping down.  Were out of range for him, would have been in range 40 yards later for me.

Thankfully this jerk did not cut off every duck that came in on us.  The first we shot down was drifting towards where I knew the other guy was set up.  When I came out of the grass to pick it up, it was about 15 yards out from his decoys.  His furthest decoy from him was only about 20 yards from the furthest decoy from me.  WELL within eyesight of each other from his vantage point.

I'm still completely at a loss.  How are people so stupid, inconsiderate, and oblivious to basic hunter safety?

I made a diagram with google earth and even measured his distance from me with the google earth measurement tools.  69 yards away from me.  

Red arrow is me and the direction I was set up in my boat blind.  White is him and the direction he set up ultimately in waders. Yellow is the google earth measurement and you can see the measurement on the right.   Green is the flight pattern of ducks into the vicinity.  The flight pattern was the same as it was yesterday, same as the day before.  I had scouted, put in my time, set up right, got there early.  And then, I got screwed. 

Sorry for the length. I just genuinely can't understand why some people are so inconsiderate.


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## rnelson5 (Dec 24, 2016)

You are a better man than me.


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## northgeorgiasportsman (Dec 24, 2016)

Dang, as if that wasn't bad enough, now we all know exactly where you like to hunt!  Thanks for the tip!


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## ugaringneck (Dec 24, 2016)

northgeorgiasportsman said:


> Dang, as if that wasn't bad enough, now we all know exactly where you like to hunt!  Thanks for the tip!



If you know the Flint, Chatahoochee, Spring Creek, and Fish Pond Drain well enough that you can discern what grass point I was hunting based on nothing but a zoomed in aerial shot, then you don't need tips finding ducks on the lake, you've already found them too!  People who actually know the lake aren't generally my competition... the tourists are


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## ugaringneck (Dec 24, 2016)

hahaha well, i'll admit, that was easier found on google earth by the image than i expected... that said, (and i feel like most people realize this) the location of where any ducks want to actually be on that lake changes literally every time the wind blows... this week i found a few there, next week it will be somewhere else.  i haven't outed a terribly secretive spot...  just still irritated someone would set up so close to me this morning


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## northgeorgiasportsman (Dec 24, 2016)

ugaringneck said:


> just still irritated someone would set up so close to me this morning



And you have every right to be. 

Don't worry, I ain't after your ducks.  I've found a few a little closer to home.


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## Nicodemus (Dec 24, 2016)

That ain`t far from my cabin, but you don`t have to worry about me crowding you.


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## Souhternhunter17 (Dec 24, 2016)

Have had that happen to me several times on public land all over. Makes me shake my head every time. However Dependent  upon how many are in their group hunting AND how respectful they are you  could ask them if they want to hunt with you and your group that way they aren't shooting your swings or cutting you off. I am in no way saying you should give in to everyone coming in and trying to hunt on top of you but sometimes that's the best solution to that problem. I have also made some good contacts and met some great people that way as well.


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## TurkeyH90 (Dec 24, 2016)

Why?Because people are becoming more and more inconsiderate.  They can have it. Done with that kind of stuff. You did the right thing. Some people are gonna say they woulda acted like a Bad A. Truth is maybe they get get their hind parts whooped or even shot. Maybe you are tough and whoop them. You probly goin to jail or prison. It's a no win. I been there and at 40 Im done with it. Keep that in mind.


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## king killer delete (Dec 24, 2016)

It is not right but a duck is not worth the confrontation


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## jeremyledford (Dec 24, 2016)

I feel your pain OP. I feel like this is me every time I go down there. 

Man, I really wish this thread would go away now. This is a community hole that most know about but this thread isn't helping.


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## Dustin Pate (Dec 24, 2016)

Pictures of locations have been removed. No need to make it any easier on cyber scouters. Believe me they are here in mass.


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## mizzippi jb (Dec 24, 2016)

Dustin Pate said:


> Pictures of locations have been removed. No need to make it any easier on cyber scouters. Believe me they are here in mass.



And the 6:45'ers who heard you burn em the weekend before and beat you to the hole @ or before 4 am


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## Uptonongood (Dec 25, 2016)

Been struggling with folks like that since 1965.  Can't write the descriptive words to fully describe them.


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## rnelson5 (Dec 25, 2016)

Dustin Pate said:


> Pictures of locations have been removed. No need to make it any easier on cyber scouters. Believe me they are here in mass.



Good thing I already screen shot it on my phone!!


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