Roadkill?

beach004

beach004

Member
I've hunted pheasants the past several years in Nebraska, where hunting road rights-of-way is illegal; I am coming from North Carolina, where the same is true. This year I'm coming to South Dakota, and reading the regs, it appears that if you follow some prescribed rules, it's an OK practice. What I want to ask though, is how is it regarded by you experienced hunters? Is it like shooting doves off a tree limb--legal but poor sport? Or ground-sluicing a covey of quail (bad! bad!)? I am unsure what we are going to find when we get there; maybe there'll be public land and WIA enough and to spare; but if not, I am anxious to know what the standing is of this practice--don't want the real hunters throwing drink cans or mooning me as they drive by...
Thanks,
Beach004
 
Not trying to bash you, but wouldn't it be a better idea to just do your homework and find some land first, public or private, rather than hunt the roads? Just seems like part of the normal planning process to me...
 
Beach, Many of the roads people hunt are merely two rut roads through a grassy right of way. It's legal to hunt the rights of way, but you cannot go across the fenceline with a gun. I've done a lot of "road hunting" where we've walked those rights of way. I'm not into shooting from the vehicle, but am of the opinion that walking those road is legal and therefore acceptable practice. There may be some who disagree with me, though. Check out the SD state website where you can order a free map of walkin and public hunting access areas. I've done hunts using this guide and some scouting, hunting roads and walkins and had good hunts. This year I'm with a group hunting leased lands, so I've done the whole variety, asking permission, hunting roads, hunting walkins, now leasing. There is plenty of opportunity for those willing to work for it.
 
As long as you are not breaking any laws I dont see a problem with hunting ditches. If you idea of hunting ditches is driving around and blasting birds out you truck window then I do have a problem with it. I see a lot of locals in South Dakota pass shooting birds at dusk going from the corn to the crp and they are in the ditches when they do this.
 
I have done what I was able to do, from a thousand miles away; I ordered the game department's maps, and have looked for available land in the Wagner/Avon area; I've got a couple of great contacts I've met through this and other forums who think they will be able to help me with some guidance, maybe some private land, given that we are coming in mid-November when the first rush is over. But I am a worry-wart, always have been; I've got three other folks relying on me to make good decisions for the party, and I would hate to let them down. So that's why I asked about this practice.

By analogy, in eastern NC, deer are often hunted with dogs; that's not highly regarded in some parts of the state, but over there, the swamps are so large and thick, no one would see a deer without this approach, so it's accepted. I'm asking about the status of right of way hunting, in SD, for the same reason.
 
Ranger Rick said:
Beach, Many of the roads people hunt are merely two rut roads through a grassy right of way. It's legal to hunt the rights of way, but you cannot go across the fenceline with a gun. I've done a lot of "road hunting" where we've walked those rights of way. I'm not into shooting from the vehicle, but am of the opinion that walking those road is legal and therefore acceptable practice. .
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The law is detailed about what you can and cannot do (I'm at "work" and don't have it with me): You have to be a certain distance from the car, can't have the motor running or the doors open, things like that, plainly intended to keep someone from jumping out and shooting, or worse still, shooting through the window. What I was picturing was putting two people out, driving on half a mile or so, the other two getting out and walking back toward the first party, hoping to find birds in the 33 feet on either side, as we converged.
 
duke5577 said:
I see a lot of locals in South Dakota pass shooting birds at dusk going from the corn to the crp and they are in the ditches when they do this.
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Many years ago, I one evening did that with woodcock; it was about like shooting bats, though--they darted every which a way, and I don't know that I killed a one of them. But it sounds like a fun thing, at the end of the day, as long as it's still legal shooting hours.
 
I hunted in the Wagner area using the maps and we found good hunting. I really liked that area, with a lot of ponds, cattails surrounding them and good sized CRP plots. The time I was there most of the corn was still standing, so it was hard to find birds, but we did find them. The first spot we hunted had tall cattails surrounding open water. My setter pointed a big rooster right of the bat and I missed it with both barrels! One spot that couldn't have been an acre surrounded by pasture that produced 2 roosters. You never know. In November I would expect the hunting pressure to be down and the crops down, so hunting should be good. Have breakfast early in the morning, then drive around to scout possible places to hunt and choose one to start on at the opening of shooting hours.
 
Beach - I really enjoy ditch hunting. Here is how I do it: Drive the dirt roads until I see a tree strip (usually at the 1/2 mile). Look for the field past the tree strip to be harvested. The ditch along the field needs to be un-mowed or have some kind of cover (if there are some cattails its even better). Get out before the tree strip and send one person down to the next mile road (1/2 mile ahead). That person gets out and posts in the ditch, around the corner a little. Leave the dogs in the vehicle. Walk the ditch slowly and stay alert for birds feeding thin the field, you don't want to spook them.

This method has worked well for me especially in the later afternoon.
 
Quote beach004
"Is it like shooting doves off a tree limb--legal but poor sport?

Nope, it's illegal to shoot a sitting dove in South Dakota.

Hunt the right of way. It's legal and nothing wrong with it. Most the time, only the bordering land owner will have a complaint about it. Like others have said, many are just two wheel tract type roads. They can produce well in many cases.
 
beach, as a South Dakotan I have no problem with you walking some of the road right of ways. It's legal as long as you follow the rules, and you can make an unarmed retrieve on private land. Like has been previously stated, there are a lot of roads that are "minimum maintenance" roads that have good cover. But be warned, there are some landowners out there (mainly those that have pay to hunt operations) that may give you some grief if you are hunting the ditches adjacent to their property. Case in point: During this year's "Resident Only Season", in which you can ony hunt public land or walk-in areas, we were walking a public area and coming out to the road. Several birds flushed and one dropped across the road in the ditch on the other side. The guy takes his dog across the road and into the ditch to look for the bird. Just then the owner of the adjacent land came by and stopped. He asked to see the hunters license (which he has a legal right to do and you must show him) and then proceeded to lecture him for a good 10 minutes. The guy was a total a$$ and didn't even know the regulations. The rest of us finally went up there and told our buddy to walk away. This actually became borderline where we could have called the GFP and filed a harassment complaint. Unfortunately you are going to run into some "dick heads" like this. As long as you know you were legally right in what you did don't argue with them, just walk away. They won't turn you in as they are just blowing smoke.

There is a lot of public land in SD so check that out but if you find a nice right of way go for it.
 
I had friends in North Dakota have a land owner stuff a shotgun in their chest and threaten to shoot them. It was VERY intense for about 10 Min. They said they never been so scared in all their life. He rant and raved, kept swing the gun around wildly. Then he would stick the gun to my one friends chest again and say I shoot shoot you right now. Thank God the one guy was a great talker and talked their way out of what could have been very tragic deal. He believed this guy was nuts enough to kill them. It was all over their mistake reading a plot map. He was not interested in any discussion.

Know where the heck you are. That's all I can say. These guys hadn't even pulled a gun out of a case and were only looking at some snow geese parked in a abandon farms driveway.

Go to the county seat you plan to hunt in and get a plot book. It could be the most valuable piece of equipment you have on the trip. They many times have the address and phone numbers of the land owners in the back. You can save a ton of time by calling and asking permission from a cell.

Good luck, and good hunting
 
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Thanks all of you, so much! I'm soaking up all of this for future reference. Takes me back to my youth, 60 years ago; Dad didn't have a bird dog, so we hunted quail, believe it or not, without one, in northern Virginia. We'd go to a brush pile, my little brother and I would climb on it and jump up and down; Dad would shoot whatever came out, quail or rabbit. He'd mark the bird if he got one; we would watch where the singles went. Finding the dead birds was a nightmare, of course! But with that upbringing, I find that I'm not very demanding when it comes to the quantity of game I bag. It's the time afield, the sights, the friends, the memories. The birds are just so we can say we hunted, rather than hiked. :)
 
That guy in nodak should have been arrested for that! I wold have called the cops the moment I left.
 
onpoint said:
Go to the county seat you plan to hunt in and get a plot book. It could be the most valuable piece of equipment you have on the trip. They many times have the address and phone numbers of the land owners in the back. You can save a ton of time by calling and asking permission from a cell.
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I see these plat maps offered on line, for about $40 a county. Is that what you are referring to?
 
I have had two bad experiences while hunting ditches.

First time I was walking along and a guy comes burning down the road then slows way down next to me. So I start climing out of the ditch to have a pleasant greeting and the guy takes off and pulls over hundred feet or so from my dad who was at the road crossing ahead of me. My dad just packed up and drove down to pick me up and we left.

Second time my buddy and I were making a legal retrieve (no guns) on private property when a guy pulls up and starts yelling to get off his land. We left immediately without exchanging any words. Better to avoid the conflict.
 
beach004 said:
I see these plat maps offered on line, for about $40 a county. Is that what you are referring to?
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Yep, plot, plat how ever they spell it
 
Thor said:
I have had two bad experiences while hunting ditches.
Second time my buddy and I were making a legal retrieve (no guns) on private property when a guy pulls up and starts yelling to get off his land. We left immediately without exchanging any words. Better to avoid the conflict.
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Whew! I'm a lover, not a fighter! :) But especially not with people with guns! Few years ago in Nebraska, we were looking for a bird that had fallen over the road in someone else's field, the day before (hey--it was cold! No spoilage!), because we now had a dog. Guy drove up on the road and ordered us out of the field, saying something about he'd make us do so, otherwise. We came! Turned out he had a grievance with the farmer whose land we DID have permission on, but once we talked awhile, he calmed right down, and I recall actually let us hunt some fields he owned. Nice counts, it really does.
 
Like onpoint and Dakotazeb say.....just know what you are doing if your going to road hunt. If you are around a pheasant ranch or preserve, they know you are there as soon as you turn down the road. If they haven't sent a truck after you, rest assured you are probably being glassed. Just follow the rules. Stay away from the cattle, farm homes and schools. If a confrontation does arise, just walk away. I think most of us residents that have road hunted have had these encounters to a degree. Oh, and if you are going to be in the Pierre area, watch out for one bull in a pen every 660 feet........very convenient :rolleyes:
 
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