Had a really positive contact with a game officer in the mountains this weekend.
I was "guiding" my 16 yo son on his second deer hunt, last year we were out 3 days but were unable to fill the tag.
Saturday we were up the mountain and i saw something up on a ridge behind a stand of aspen. told my son to watch towards the end of the trees. deer popped out and was slightly quartered away from us with his head turned just enough that his ears hid the little 4 point (combined) antlers. I would have sworn it was a doe, so i gave the go-ahead to shoot.
Upon aproach i saw that there was indeed two, two piont antlers; my son had an antlerless tag. I knew we screwed up and as soon as it was dressed out I called the local Division of Wildlife office and left a message about what happened.
we arranged to meet up with an officer back at camp. When we met I explained exactly what happened and that I understand there would be consiquences.
he proccessed our situation and our licenses and really earned my gratitude and respect. he understood by looking at the antlers and ears and by our honesty that it was an unforunate mistake. He didnt ticket us and allowed us to keep the deer but only required that we turn over the antlers.
He said that not many folks report mistakes like that and appreciated our honesty and thats the main reason he was lenient. We have had several contacts with this officer in the past and it has always been a positive experiance, and this was no exception. He also made it a great "teachable moment" for my son. This officer is a bright and shining example of proffessionalism and good will towards hunters and fishermen/women. because of this, if i ever see him in the field and in need of assistance, I would walk right into [beeep] to help him out. I will be writing a thank you letter to him and his superiors.
