How often do you encounter the law?

Based on the responses in this thread, its obvious that there simply isn't enough law enforcement out there. I'm a law-abiding citizen and I think most of the posters on here try to obey the rules, too but running into an LEO once in 26 years isn't nearly enough.
 
I have been checked maybe a dozen to 18 times in the past 30+ years. Most stops are fine, but I have met a few guys who must have woken up on the wrong side. The last check was on Red Lake in the winter. Went fine. Man, that guy drove up quiet and knocked - came in stealthy.

To the point above ... I had a warden wanting to search my entire truck. I told him have at it, but he needed to put everything back as he found it. You better be sure you are legit if you take that position. I was 20 years old and he did not like my position - but he did back off.

Another time I had a warden tell me we had too many hen pintails ... I then taught him what a hen gaddy was ... I said lets take photos of each bird with you holding out the wing... I will need this if you write me a ticket and we go to court. He was POed at first, but then realized we knew our stuff.

Most of the time though the talks are casual once the regular checks are done.

In the Dakotas random road intersection mandatory stops are more common ... I have read the SD ones are pretty good at catching violators.

In MN I believe many wardens are busy with special ops research and investigations on habitual poachers, violators, responding to TIPS, etc... Outside of opening weekends during hunting season I do not believe most wardens are driving around completing random stops.
 
Most game wardens in Georgia are responding to tips and chasing the frequent flier violators. Everybody knows who they are too.
 
TennesseeTraveler said:
I do not often carry my license on my person anymore. Tennessee has cell phone app that has a barcode for the TWRA officers to scan. Has anyone run into issues by only carrying their phone and the app provided by whatever state you are hunting?
Click to expand...
I totally forgot about my most recent encounter. I was wade fishing for smallmouth on a river in Missouri. It was a public access site just across the line from Oklahoma. The day before I had bought a 1-day non-res license for the day I was fishing via the Missouri app. While I'm fishing a truck drives up on the gravel bar and two wardens get out to check me. I had ZERO BARS down in that valley. Uh Oh. Fortunately their phones must have been on a different network and they had service. Their database showed the license purchase so they wished me luck and off they went.

When I went back this year I screen-shot the license to be sure.

Can't speak for other states, but Kansas does not require a physical carcass tag anymore. You register your kill on-line. Again, if you have service. I still prefer physical deer tags for the little deer hunting I do anymore.
 
I'm usually checked at least once a year between fishing/hunting in MN. Only once when I was out of state have I been checked, and that was by a sheriff in Nebraska who got called because a landowner thought we were on his land when we were turkey hunting on the public next door.

Never gotten a citation but I've gotten 2 warnings for not having my license on me. Once fishing, once hunting. The time hunting the guy made me walk like 300 yards back to the truck, and 300 yards back to him to show him my license haha
 
I hunt SD public land 30+/- times a year, so I'm a prime candidate. But I probably only get checked once every couple years. I don't think they've ever (maybe once?) checked whether I was shooting non-tox. Sometimes they chat for a few minutes & don't ask to see my license. Quite honestly, the few wardens in the counties I hunt probably know my truck.
 
Thanks for the explanation regarding big game licensing. I hunt upland birds only (pheasant, quail) so that may be why I have not ran into any issues showing only the IA and TN mobile apps when checked.

Just add to the data: in 40+ years I have been checked once in IA, twice in TN- never checked in SD, KS or IN (adolescent years for the Hoosier state).
 
I can only recall about 3-4 times in the past 30 years of having an interaction with a fish cop, fed or state. One was when shooting prairie dogs in Wyoming. We happened to be out during deer season as well. When glassing an area we observed the Warden across the valley glassing us. About ten minutes passed and we saw him driving our direction. He got out and we had a great conversation about the area, etc. He looked in our gear to see our long range rigs for the critters and all was well. He then gave us more circles on our map to go shoot other pdog towns we didn't know about.
 
Growing up in Minnesota, I don’t think we were ever checked. In Wyoming we usually get checked every year. We hunt pheasants on walk in areas and some need non toxic shot. The wardens have always been very good about it and talk a lot about how things are going. They check to see if we have plugs in our guns, up to date licenses and non toxic shells. We have been checked a couple of times ice fishing and once elk hunting. I had forgotten to sign my license and the warden let me use his pen.
 
I have had 10-15 run ins with MN DNR, but never got a ticket. Just about every fishing and grouse opener.

Got caught in ND goose hunting by one of the DNR planes. Our spread was a little too close to the property line - and after some discussion and comparing OnX maps we only had a trespassing warning. Gave the warden a few mallards and he even went out later that year to hunt with my group of friends.

On the caravan home I forgot to tell the group of SC hunters i was with to keep a wing on. Got stopped at a game check station in WY and they got a pretty hefty fine.
 
Rarely while hunting and we hunt in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa. But seems like it’s more common while fishing in those states.
 
In MN I've been checked about once a year while fishing. Only once while Upland hunting. A few times Duck hunting in ND.
For the most part they've been pretty casual interactions. Except for the Federal Agent in ND. He waited until we were done duck hunting, but kept us there for well over an hour going through everything we had with us, in the field, trailer, and vehicles. We were in our young 20's so he was definitely showing off all of his special powers.
 
I get checked every time I go to Colorado for elk and normally multiple times during the week. I had a Sheriff roll up on me turkey hunting In Iowa once. Not sure why but he told me every place he saw my vehicle that week. A few times in PA deer hunting. Several times on the San Juan River in NM checking license and hooks. Never been checked bird hunting.
 
Never been checked while hunting any species, and I try to spend at least 2 days a week out chasing something from Sept through Jan.
 
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