Lower the legal shooting distance for bow????

[Doc]

Doc, hunting suburban areas isnt about voyurism, your suggestion of such is pretty ridiculous, IMO. I hunt some suburban areas where you dont see any houses, cars or anything like that. I also hunt some areas where you can see houses, and while they are definitely different hunting situations than the larger tracts of land i hunt, it has nothing to do with even being the least bit interested in what the neighbors are doing. It has to do with hunting productive areas.

Oh damn ..... I knew I'd be stepping on somebody's toes with that remark. Sorry about that. It was kind of meant to be funny, but still probably represents how I would feel if I looked out my window and saw some guy in a treestand grinning back at me. I still feel that 500' is a decent and respectful distance to maintain from somebody's home (it really isn't all that far). And I also have to say that such proximity to homes and all the activity that takes place there is absolutely not my version of hunting. It may be fine for others and that's ok, but for me it's not the hunting experience that I want. So I repeat .... It's not a law change that will get support from me.

[landtracdeerhunter]

It is illegal to discharge a firearm,crossbow, or bow within 500 feet of a dwelling, farm building, or structure in occupation or in use. What defines in use?

[nyantler]

Had a friend that kept seeing this really handsome 10-pt coming to an apple tree in his backyard... he offered me the opportunity to hunt in a small patch of woods just off the back deck and near the apple tree... I respectfully declined... even though it was all legit.. it didn't seem right

[Doc]

It is illegal to discharge a firearm,crossbow, or bow within 500 feet of a dwelling, farm building, or structure in occupation or in use. What defines in use?

If that is the way it is worded, I would consider even a garage or shed to be a structure that is "in use". All of those things are structures that could have a person in them at one time or another. That is probably the common thread that runs through the whole statement. It doesn't sound like it has to be a structure that is "lived in". Again, it could be one of those laws that can be pulled and stretched to fit any kind of ticket that law enforcement may feel a need to write.

[liberty]

I think you are missing the big picture here. My present stand is 700 ft from any structure. I am on a small creek with no structures any where in sight. Like i said earlier my property is only 220 ft wide. I can never escape the 500 ft rule if some one places a B.S. shed 5ft off the property line 700 ft from their own home.. That is just wrong that the present law allows an A-hole to manipulate it in his favor. And yes according to the DEC a shed qualifies as a structure. .

[liberty]

One more thing. You as a hunter should never look to restrict hunting access if you would like this sport to continue long into the future. Remeber, hunting is slowly dying and with thoughst like yours it will die a faster death. Then the ANTI's have won.

[landtracdeerhunter]

How do these fancy above groung tree structure hunting blinds become legal to hunt out of. Lets face it, other people actions can change hunting properties. Most of these people don't even consider this when building, nor do they care. Sorry it's already the been the law for many years.

Edited February 26, 2012 by landtracdeerhunter

[waterweasle]

How do these fancy above groung tree structure hunting blinds become legal to hunt out of. Lets face it, other people actions can change hunting properties. Most of these people don't even consider this when building, nor do they care. Sorry it's already the been the law for many years.

how do they become legal to hunt out of??? I dont understand your question........you built it, you can hunt out of it( just like technically you can hunt out of your own house if you wanted) as long as you were 500' from another dwelling or structure, or had permission from those other structures

[G-Man]

if on the tax property description it is concidered occupied/in use. even if seasonal. and for those of you who do not live in surburbia it probably doesnt matter to you but if you did and owned 2-3 acre lots and were over run with deer that had no hunting of the population possible becasue of set back/bad neighbors. you might want this changed to protect you own bushes/landscaping.

[landtracdeerhunter]

Sorry bout that. Tried to reword the first sentence,but got posted. Just fumbling with the new laptop. Talking about neighbors building structures, taking hunting land out of use with the 500' rule. with no cosideration for the hunting community.

Edited February 26, 2012 by landtracdeerhunter

[waterweasle]

Sorry bout that. Tried to reword the first sentence,but got posted. Just fumbling with the new laptop. Talking about neighbors building structures, taking hunting land out of use with the 500' rule. with no cosideration for the hunting community.

gotcha

[nyantler]

I think you are missing the big picture here. My present stand is 700 ft from any structure. I am on a small creek with no structures any where in sight. Like i said earlier my property is only 220 ft wide. I can never escape the 500 ft rule if some one places a B.S. shed 5ft off the property line 700 ft from their own home.. That is just wrong that the present law allows an A-hole to manipulate it in his favor. And yes according to the DEC a shed qualifies as a structure. .

Your situation is unfortunate, but there are limitations in everything we do.. with only 220 ft to work with... even with a 150' rule theoretically you could still be in violation if both your neighbors decided to build sheds on either side of you.... it's kinda like wanting to deer hunt with rifle, but only having a .22... you either buy a bigger caliber rifle or you don't rifle hunt... you can't expect them to change the law to accomodate you.

[liberty]

Your situation is unfortunate, but there are limitations in everything we do.. with only 220 ft to work with... even with a 150' rule theoretically you could still be in violation if both your neighbors decided to build sheds on either side of you.... it's kinda like wanting to deer hunt with rifle, but only having a .22... you either buy a bigger caliber rifle or you don't rifle hunt... you can't expect them to change the law to accomodate you.

I am sure this law if enacted would l not only benefit me. My property is 1000 ft deep. If both neighbors were ANTI's which they are not, I would have alot of room to move around away from the BS shed with the 150 ft rule.. Why do we as hunters have to be second class citizens when it comes to our hunting rights. We need to fight for our right to hunt and not constantly bend over and appease the ANTI's.

[bubba]

so you really think this guy is gonna put up a shed just to screw you? It must suck to feel so important. Sell your property and find a bigger place to hunt.

[Doc]

One more thing. You as a hunter should never look to restrict hunting access if you would like this sport to continue long into the future. Remember, hunting is slowly dying and with thoughst like yours it will die a faster death. Then the ANTI's have won.

Personally, I do not think the path to strengthening hunting lies in randomly eliminating regulations and controls. In fact I think that is the quickest way to watch public respect, tolerance, and sympathies for hunting erode. As soon as we begin to think that our right to hunt trumps the rights of property owners, we should be ready for a huge shift in public attitudes against hunting. Yes, hunting access is an important feature, but not at the expense of respectful and safe distances from the homes of others. That's just the way I see it.

[liberty]

Personally, I do not think the path to strengthening hunting lies in randomly eliminating regulations and controls. In fact I think that is the quickest way to watch public respect, tolerance, and sympathies for hunting erode. As soon as we begin to think that our right to hunt trumps the rights of property owners, we should be ready for a huge shift in public attitudes against hunting. Yes, hunting access is an important feature, but not at the expense of respectful and safe distances from the homes of others. That's just the way I see it.

I understand what you are saying and agree to a point. However, the law needs to be addressed so it can not be manipulated by somneone hell bent on ruining your freedoms in the name of property rights. Remeber we own property and pay taxes like everyone else including fees to hunt. We as hunters should have the same protections from manipulation of the law as the manipulators themselves.have.

[Guides ForHire]

500 feet = 166.66 yards. I believe that most people don't realize that the regs are the same for bow as does for gun. Thus less complaints. I see lots of bow targets that are in neighborhoods with less than 1 acre lots??? ??? I also think that it could increase the "hunting opportunity" in many areas.

How does everyone feel about this? Pros/cons? Please share...

I dont care about it for hunting but on many lakes and ponds and RIVERS this shuts the whole waterway down for bowfishing because some anti has a camp or in one case a SHED on the shore, now you're looking at a semi circle of that pond taking up three football fields of shoreline that we cant legally shoot a carp along.

its not right.

500 foot rules should never be allowed to extend BEYOND the property boundary of the person bitching.

like Vermont does with SAFETY ZONES, the original way antis would post their property boundary with safety zone signs, legal zones where no hutning or discharge of any kind can happen within 500 feet, it was QUICKLY realized they were shutting down hunting hundreds of yards BEYOND their own properties, so now its 500 feet of the BUILDING or to their property line, whichever is less.

That's how NY should be, you shouldnt be able to effect someone fishing 150 yards out in front of your home or camp or SHED simply because you are against bows and shooting non native invasive fish.

[G-Man]

Again this is bow, i could be 50 yards away concield and shoot, i know about 50% of ever bow hunter is shoting a bow in their back yard.And i can safely say that over half of them have not asked all owners/ neighbors or the surrounding property for permission. the perception to most not hunters is a bow is a 20-30 yard weapon and is not a threat, i do not honestly believe that they(they non-hunting community) even know about a 500 foot rule to be allowed to shoot it . yes your immediate neighbor may not care but in a average development just practicing your bow giving an high average of 100' wide lots(most are 65') you need to have permission from 4 neighbors on one side minimum and 4 on the other, not to mention the houses across a 50' wide road ... or behind you.. you may shoot behind a privacy fence.. fact is you are probably illegal..... just like shooting before or after sunset, or not properly immeriatly filling out your tag.. 500' is to far for a bow 150' is much more appropriate as there is not large report to give away your location. you would never try to shoot your deer rifle between houses... but you do your bow..the real question is why?? if you shoot your bow at your home in a surburban setting you must agree with this proposal.... or you just like doing illegal activities..

[G-Man]

Oh and i live way out in the country and this law change will give me almost another 3 acres to hunt on my own property. let alone at my mothers ..the neighbors there all want the deer shot lucky they allow the discharge there or the entire property would be unhuntable...

[nyantler]

I am sure this law if enacted would l not only benefit me. My property is 1000 ft deep. If both neighbors were ANTI's which they are not, I would have alot of room to move around away from the BS shed with the 150 ft rule.. Why do we as hunters have to be second class citizens when it comes to our hunting rights. We need to fight for our right to hunt and not constantly bend over and appease the ANTI's.

You might have a lot of room if your neighbor doesn't keep moving or putting up a BS shed every time you move farther away.. but my point is that as things, people and places evolve you had better be prepared to adapt and not look to the law to change to accomodate you.. I purchased 6 acres (150x 1800 foot lot) 20 years ago and built my home there.... at the time I had no neighbors and no concerns about encroaching on anyone when it came to hunting my own property... yet I was smart enough to realize that nothing stays the same forever and I would someday have neighbors to deal with... I am fortunate that I have become friends with the neighbors and have permission to hunt anywhere I want.. but before my neighbors came along I realized that I would need other places to hunt in case things didn't work out so great around the house as far as hunting access was concerned especially knowing that I may not always have those same great neighbors... I never once thought to wait and see what happened first then complain that the distance laws were crazy and jeopardize my hunting season by not having a place to hunt... I now have many other places to hunt and rarely hunt near my home... I adapted and am not concerned about having a place to hunt... being proactive is always better than being reactive... especially when it comes to something that I am as passionate about as hunting... like i said... if all you have is a .22 and you want to deer hunt with a rifle... you'd better get another rifle.. not wait for them to change the law to allow deer hunting with a .22.. otherwise you might find yourself very disappointed come deer season.

[G-Man]

joe , while i agree you should have other places to hunt, some of the best hunting is in surburbia, large estate type lots lend themselfs to overpopulation of game in a small area, instead of the tax payers having to pay "sharp shooters " or worse yet police officers on overtime.. to kull the deer population wouldn't it be better to allow legal hunting in those areas using bow? in order to do this without upsetting a lot of "upscale home owners if you will" the legal distance for bow needs to be reduced..166 yards is a long long way for bow, 100 yrds or 75 or some other number should be allowed. Fact is people are practiceing illegally in these neighborhoods with out realising they are illegal. this would allow someone to protect their shrubs even though their neighbor 300' away feeds the deer(illegal as well) and doesn't want to see bambi hurt.The law should be changed not for a single case of i want but for the betterment of the communities where this is a problem... it may not be a problem where you live but these problems do exist in a lot of communities...

Edited February 27, 2012 by G-Man

[Doc]

I wonder why this is a state law anyway. Why shouldn't such things be determined by local laws that can be tailored to the specific conditions, needs, and requirements of the municipality? That way, if some township feels the need to reduce their deer population, they can make whatever specific modifications to their own law to enable whatever they feel they must do.

[liberty]

Excellent point!!! NJ seems to have great success since enacting the 150 ft rule for bow. This law in NY is like every other reg in NY. It is far reaching and burdensome. ThIs is an example of why people and business flee the state. Overregulation. By the way, the DEC is in favor of the 150ft rule. If you are a hunter I do not understand how you could oppose opening new areas for hunting. Is it possible you are trying to protect an area where you live ????? HMMMMM

[G-Man]

Doc, many towns/villages have their own no discharge of firearms..and by state defintion this includes bows, i cant tell you the number of people i see practicing in a village that has a no discharge of firearm law, shooting their bow illegal but ignored by local law enforcement . several caome to mind... lancaster, depew, west seneca, cheektowaga off the top of my head right around buffalo... if this was truly so dangerous wouldn't local pd stop them? there is no reason not to reduce this for bow it seems that the bow got lumped back in with firearms at the statelevel when the 500' rule was enacted, its time to remedy this error...

[SteveB]

yes your immediate neighbor may not care but in a average development just practicing your bow giving an high average of 100' wide lots(most are 65') you need to have permission from 4 neighbors on one side minimum and 4 on the other,

Aren't you going to need permission to recover from those same neighbors when the deer you shoot makes it off the 65ft wide strip?