Something strange happened while hunting today!

I saw something I never expected to see in the woods behind my house today. I've been hunting back there for the last 35 - 40 years and have never had this happen to me before. I came upon a vietnamese hunter!

The land I was hunting on has always belonged to the family ever since statehood. It ajoins a big forrest area that also belongs to a relative of mine. All my life I have hunted on it and occasionally run onto another hunter but most of the time it has always been a relative, or someone that lives close by that was from a familiar family that has always been around as long as my family.(If you catch my drift)

Well today my two youngest daughters and I was gonna walk up the holler and see if we could catch a squirrel or two. We had just barely got started in the woods when I thought I could here a some voices. I told the girls "shsssh, I hear someone talking". Then I heard the voice again and it was the vietnamese man. He said "It is I you heard, I am over here!" Then I saw him just a little ways over all dressed in camo. He came walking toward me and told me he was out squirrel hunting.

I couldn't really make out what kind of rifle he was holding. Whether it was a 22 rifle or a 30 cal. rifle. I asked him who gave him permission to hunt here and he mentioned a name that I was not familiar with. It was then I told him that the land belong to my family and he could hunt on it if he wants so long as he abids by all the game laws. I told him to not kill any deer unless it is deer rifle season. He agreed and told my he was only hunting squirrels and then he showed my his self made squirrel call.

I had noticed he was holding something kind of yellow in his hand. What it was looked like a peice of reed of some sort that was about 8 inches long and U shaped. He stuck it in his mouth with both ends sticking out of the corner of his mouth and then he blew on it. It sounded just like one of those round squirrel whistlers that you can buy. He told me it works just like the whistlers and it really helps him out.

We soon parted and I told him "Good luck finding some squirrels". I didn't feel he was a threat even if he was tresspassing. I never did hear him shoot any, but neither did we. Just wasn't a good day to find the bushytales.

Just wonder, how many here would have crapped their pants had they found a veitnamese on their land? Or just any tresspasser periond? I don't believe in running anyone off just cause they are trying to put food on the table, so long as they are only taking what they need and not wasting or giving it away.

[Big Dave]

If you really claim his soul deal with it from there. If not and you give him permission make him tell you when he is out there and tell him it is just him that has that permission
My .2

[tallpines]

I have encountered a tresspasser on my land, and I didn't dirty my pants, but I think HE DID.

I only ask him (in a fairly loud voice) "Who are you and what the he!! you doing in my woods?"

I guess he had never encountered a menopausal woman carrying a 270 in the woods before --- and he got pretty shook up.

I've only got 40 acres! I sure don't like someone else driving all the deer out!

Anyway----he told his friends the story --- actually our neighbors --- and it made for a good story. Everyone eventually got a good laugh out of it.

(The next year THAT same hunter got a 17 POINT! buck just 1/4 mile from us.)


To answer your question regarding the Vietnamese hunter.

Because we had the murders of 6 hunters so close to us, just 2 years ago by a Hmong hunter, I would probably be a little more concerned than I should be........but my thoughts would be that there may be an increase in the chance that this person may not understand my language, or the local hunting laws-----and ---especially if he is a First Generation Hmong, he may react differently than I might expect having been raised in an entirely different culture from myself.

So-- I would use much more caution and diplomacy....when I ask him to leave my property.


It use to be that I allowed other hunters on my land, after I got MY deer.
But now that, we've built a house in the middle of the woods, I tell everyone "no".

[Cabin Fever]

I happened upon an oriental hunter a couple of decades ago while I was hunting ruffed grouse. I don't know if he was Vietnamese, Cambodian, Thai, or Hmong or whatever. All I know is that he could barely speak American. He was very proud of his hunting ability and after much sign language and broken english he wanted to show me what his "take" was for the day. I walked with him to his car, where he opened his trunk. The trunk had several dozen dead song birds in it. I didn't even try to tell him this was illegal onaccounta I knew he wouldn't be able to understand me. I just smiled and walked away. In retrospect, I suppose I should have taken down his license plate number and called the game warden.

[Trapper]

While on private land that I had permission to trap I was returning to my truck with a couple of raccoons. I was surprised by what was several gun shots from the other side of the river from where I was parked. After loading the critters in the back of the truck I thought I had better investagate as the shots were extremely close even though the property line was only 30 yards from the far side of the river and the land on the other side of the fence was also private and which I had permission to trap but no hunting was allowed there. I had promised those land owners that I would report any trespassers to them. The river had a drive across that could be be easily crossed without hardly getting your boots wet. Upon reaching the other side I heard a voice in a foreign language and I headed toward the voice not seeing anybody as I proceeded. I had walked half way to the property line and almost stumbled over a oriental man in camo laying in the tall grass. Upon recatching my composure I asked if he had permission to be on the property and the oriental man who could not speak english kept shrugging his shoulders. While trying to communicate with this fellow suddenly another fellow appeared from behind a tree between us and the river, he approached us and he stated that they had received permission to hunt from the land owner. Hearing this I told them my concerns and then informed them not to go past the fence as that land was not owned by the same land owner. The second man then raised his voice calling out toward the neighbors lands where two more of the group appearred and started back to this side of the fence. As they came closer to us another gent got up from the grass between us and the fence. It was at this time I seen on the ground a few sparrows where the first fellow was laying and then I caught a sight of one of the two that were on the other side of the fence carrying a dead cat along with a large proud smile. What really caught my eye was the banana clip on his weapon, If this was only a .22 it must have held at least 60 rounds if fully loaded. A bit of over kill if hunting small game. I know the cultures of these people are a lot different from ours so I did not make issue here, especially being outnumberd by five armed men. While these men made no jesture of being unrulely, I told them I'd check with the land owner as I left the property about their permission and thanked them for returning to this side of the property line. As I drove toward the farm house I passed a van that I thought was their vehicle and took down the licence plate number. I stopped at the farm house a spoke with the land owner and was told he had given permission to only two men and he would go out to check on them. The next morning I went back to check my traps and was flagged down by the land owner as I was going through the farm yard. He was a bit upset about some missing tools from the back side of his barn. He told me he never checked on the hunters and thought maybe they may have taken his stuff. He was upset with his self for not doing a follow up on my report and further told me he had received a call from his neighbor and was told that the neighbor had run off several Hmong hunters that were on his land. At this time I gave the land owner the licence plate number and told him to report his losses. From here I went to check my traps. My round was uneventful until I got to where my last three sets were. My traps were missing from the sets. Now it was my turn to be upset. This included a large live trap that I personally was developing for possible future mamufacture. The other two traps were footholds placed in pocket sets in the water at the rivers edge. I had crossed staked these sets because the loose gravel bottom so my catches would be secure. The stakes were still there but the swivel eye was pryed open so the traps could be removed. While inspecting the area for clues I found a large pair of channel locks in the grass on shore just above my sets. I returned to the farmhouse where a officer was talking with the land owner and informed them of my losses. The land owner did identify the pliers as one of his tools that was missing and the officer took my info and said he would look into the hunters of the prevous day. That afternoon the officer returned to me my traps and also told me he returned the farmers tools. His explanation was the hunters thought the traps were abanded or lost by there owner. I then asked if there were going to be any charges filed. He said this was only a misunderstanding and everybody got their belongings back and it would be of no benefit to further pursue anything and with that he left. I have since talked with my game warden along with his direct boss and several others in the law enforcement fields about this situation and have been left wondering if most of the rest of us are being discrimanated against. I have been very unsatisfied with their excuses for not wanting to meet and face issues with situations like this. Hunters in this state must be licenced and to do this they need to go through a hunter safety course I wonder if these fellows were required to do this and if they were ever informed of the game laws, or for that matter what is game? Theft and trespassing have laws against them as well does trap molestation. I wonder if it was me that did these same deeds would these same officers call it a misunderstanding? I don't consider myself prejudice and believe we all have to same moral reponsibilites to do right, not only in the outdoors but in all aspects of our lives. Somehow I think the standards change to fit the situation. Trapper

[comfortablynumb]

why would he be hunting songbirds.... hordevours?

[moonwolf]

Originally Posted by comfortablynumb

why would he be hunting songbirds.... hordevours?

I remember once reading an account from the journals of the fish and game folks in one state about apprehending a hunter who had a trunk full of meadowlarks. He thought they were quail, but he was still over the limit, even if they were quail. It wasn't a vietnamese or asian illegal hunter, either.
dumb.

[Haggis]

Not all cultures divide their lands and animals into mine/yours, cute/lunch groups.

I love the little French ditty about trapping a Lark and jerking its feathers out in preparation for dining on the same Lark.
Alouette, gentille Alouette,
Alouette je te plumerai,
Alouette, gentille Alouette,
Alouette je te plumerai,
Je te plumerai la tête,
Je te plumerai la tête,
Et la tête, et la tête,
Alouette, Alouette,
O-o-o-o-oh,
Alouette, gentille Alouette,
Alouette je te plumerai,

[ovendoctor]

a few years back my 2 sons and I came upon a couple of dnr officers making an arrest[3 foreigheners V.C.]
they had 2 of them at the dnr truck with squirrels[12'' deep and all the way acrost the tail gate of their truck]
we seen the third guy comming out of the woods with a bulging back pack full of squirrels
not bad for opening day[but I guess they dont know wat a bag limit is]

[blue gecko]

I've got a recipe for Robin if anyone is intersted.

[Rockin'B]

I watched 2 Minnesota DNR officers write citations for a pair of new Hmong citizens that had 11 5 gallon pales filled with blue gills that were maybe 4 to 5 inches long. They must eat head, guts and all. That's a little too much work to clean that many fish for one bite!
LOL

[tallpines]

Originally Posted by Haggis

.
I love the little French ditty about trapping a Lark and jerking its feathers out in preparation for dining on the same Lark.
Alouette, gentille Alouette,
Alouette je te plumerai,
Alouette, gentille Alouette,
Alouette je te plumerai,
Je te plumerai la tête,
Je te plumerai la tête,
Et la tête, et la tête,
Alouette, Alouette,
O-o-o-o-oh,
Alouette, gentille Alouette,
Alouette je te plumerai,

My goodness, I use to play that song on my accordian and sing along.
I had no clue of the meaning of the words!

[Ed Norman]

Originally Posted by ovendoctor

a few years back my 2 sons and I came upon a couple of dnr officers making an arrest[3 foreigheners V.C.]
they had 2 of them at the dnr truck with squirrels[12'' deep and all the way acrost the tail gate of their truck]
we seen the third guy comming out of the woods with a bulging back pack full of squirrels
not bad for opening day[but I guess they dont know wat a bag limit is]

I guess he did know the bag limit= bulging.

I have no experience with Hmongs, but it sounds like they are pretty efficient hunters, if a little too comprehensive. I used to hunt squirrels alot and don't know if I could fill a truck bed with a day's take.

[GREENCOUNTYPETE]

One of the guys i work with was on the chow vang jury

they like you to belive they don't know english but many of them do, how could you live and do buissness in usa not to methin in his case be a part of the army national gaurd without learning some english he gave his statment in english before claiming he couldn't understand it
they just want you to leave then alone so that can go back to their deeds
all i have to say is watch you back just incase they don't like witnesses
the excuse is usualy lost but truth is more like they don't care

anyhow he said that weather they had been heckling chow vang or not was
difficult to tell exactly who said what first but that was no reason to kill 6 unarmed people and wounding 2 others 1 with a gun

keep well armed and don't confront just leave out and call the dnr and sherriff
in wisconsin you get warned once about tresspassing second is 2500 dollar fine never thought you would be bringing the cell phone to the woods deer hunting but that is the fastes way to call it in.

and for anyone more than 20 squirrel ever the limit jail time sounds fair to me

[Farmer Willy]

Originally Posted by comfortablynumb

why would he be hunting songbirds.... hordevours?

They're quite popular around Mayberry, NC. They even have a restruant that specializes in them, 'The Bluebird Cafe' (I think they were a favorite of Thelma Lou, that's why Barney was always taking her there).

[dcross]

<<watched 2 Minnesota DNR officers write citations for a pair of new Hmong citizens that had 11 5 gallon pales filled with blue gills that were maybe 4 to 5 inches long.>>

I know a guy who ice fishes like that, ignores the bag limit, ends up with fillets the size of a fifty cent piece. I think he does it to stay away from the wife.

[Cabin Fever]

Originally Posted by comfortablynumb

why would he be hunting songbirds.... hordevours?

Hey, next time you visit, I'll cook up a mess of teriaki hummingbird wings! Yummmmmm

[FolioMark]

Songbirds are good eating all over the world, but little known in the US, except to gourmets. Ortolans, a kind of bunting are particularly prized. Heres a bit from the Wikipedia on Ortolans and the proper way to prepare them and eat them. And yes its important to eat them with a napkin over your head. The napkin helps to capture the fine aroma and you do indeed eat them bones and all.

Wikipedia says:

For centuries, a rite of passage for French gourmets has been the eating of the Ortolan. These tiny birds—captured alive, force-fed, then drowned in Armagnac—were roasted whole and eaten that way, bones and all, while the diner draped his head with a linen napkin to preserve the precious aromas and, some believe, to hide from God. —The Wine Spectator

A description of eating an ortolan:

You catch the ortolan with a net spread up in the forest canopy. Take it alive. Take it home. Poke out its eyes and put it in a small cage. Force-feed it oats and millet and figs until it has swollen to four times its normal size. Drown it in brandy. Roast it whole, in an oven at high heat, for six to eight minutes. Bring it to the table. Place a cloth—a napkin will do—over your head to hide your cruelty from the sight of God. Put the whole bird into your mouth, with only the beak protruding from your lips. Bite. Put the beak on your plate and begin chewing, gently. You will taste three things: First, the sweetness of the flesh and fat. This is God. Then, the bitterness of the guts will begin to overwhelm you. This is the suffering of Jesus. Finally, as your teeth break the small, delicate bones and they begin to lacerate your gums, you will taste the salt of your own blood, mingling with the richness of the fat and the bitterness of the organs. This is the Holy Spirit, the mystery of the Trinity—three united as one. It is cruel. And beautiful. According to Claude Souvenir, chewing the ortolan takes approximately 15 minutes. [1]

Ortolans used to be netted in great numbers, kept alive in an artificially lighted, or darkened room, and fed with oats and millet. In a very short time they became enormously fat and were then killed for the table. If, as is supposed, the ortolan be the miliaria of Varro, the practice of artificially fattening birds of this species is very ancient.

In French the word ortolan is used so as to be almost synonymous with the English bunting; thus, the ortolan-de-neige is the Snow Bunting (Plectrophanes nivalis), the ortolan-de-riz is the rice-bird or Bobolink of North America (Dolichonyx oryzivorus), so justly celebrated for its delicious flavour. But the name is also applied to other birds much more distantly related, for the ortolan of some of the Antilles, where French is spoken, is a little ground dove of the genus Chamaepelia.

In Europe the beccafico (fig-eater) shared with the ortolan the highest honours of the dish, and this may be a convenient place to point out that the former is a name of equally elastic signification. The true beccafico is said to be what is known in England as the Garden Warbler (the Motacilla salicaria of Linnaeus, the Sylvia borin of modern writers); but in Italy any soft-billed small bird that could be snared or netted in its autumnal emigration passed under the name in the markets and cook-shops.

The beccafico, however, is not as a rule artificially fattened, and on this account was preferred by some sensitive tastes to the ortolan.

One way French diners ate ortolans was to cover their heads and face with a large napkin for the gourmand's aesthetic desire to absorb the maximum odour with the flavor. This famous use of the towel was launched by a priest, a friend of Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin.

François Mitterrand's last meal was said to consist of ortolan.

Theres also a wonderful one act play by Maxwell Anderson called A FEAST OF ORTOLANS. Its about a group of french aristocrats who are having a little snack of Ortolans and discussing liberal politics when word arrives of the Fall of the Bastille and the host is found murdered by one of his servants. Just the thing for the local theatre groups dinner show.

I guess if you get hungry enough, songbirds can be a good meal. My mother spent her childhood years growing up in the dust bowl/depression years here in Oklahoma. She would tell me stories of how her dad would set up a deadfall trap and bait it with cornmeal. Run a string from the deadfall through the door keyhole. When enough birds gathered under the big flat iron he would yank the stick out from under the deadfall and catch dinner for the night.

[Ed Norman]

I once read a book about chesapeake market hunters from the late 1800s. When they weren't slaughtering ducks and geese, they mowed down robins and orioles and other songbirds, by the barrel full, to ship to Baltimore for restaurants.

I've eaten blackbirds and meadowlarks. The meadowlarks taste exactly like mallard.