Not very safe - if it happened the way I think....

[Mistered]

Yesterday when I pulled up to my shooting area I noticed a large, shiny piece of rifle brass on the ground and I picked it up and it was a 7MM Mag.
A while later I happened to look to look to my left and saw another piece about 15 yards away so I walked over to pick it up.
Then I saw another about the same distance, and yet another totaling 6 pieces.
I was trying to figure why the distance between them and then it occurred to me we had a recent deer and elk season in this area so my deduction is the hunter was probably shooting on the run at a fleeing animal. Bad idea if it happened this way.

[Mags]

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Ya not a good idea!

Yesterday when I pulled up to my shooting area I noticed a large, shiny piece of rifle brass on the ground and I picked it up and it was a 7MM Mag.
A while later I happened to look to look to my left and saw another piece about 15 yards away so I walked over to pick it up.
Then I saw another about the same distance, and yet another totaling 6 pieces.
I was trying to figure why the distance between them and then it occurred to me we had a recent deer and elk season in this area so my deduction is the hunter was probably shooting on the run at a fleeing animal. Bad idea if it happened this way.

[TMB]

Agreed quite foolish.

[Shawn1974]

I was always dumbfounded when I would hear about how certain hunters would go through a box of shells on opening day...I had a box of shells last me 4 deer seasons...including shooting to check the scope! I don't like the 'spray and pray' method.

[JEBar]

I've often gone through a couple of boxes (or more) of shells during a day's hunt .. .. of course those were dove hunts .. ..

[Mistered]

What I don't like is being out hunting and hearing someone blaze away in the distance. I often wonder what direction they are shooting in. Sometimes I have counted more than the legal limit of five rounds.
Actually it's not as bad as it used to be since Oregon has gone to nearly complete lottery system for hunting as well as my own hunting (for the last several years of it anyway) has been blackpowder so no chance of indiscriminate shooting.

[RanchRoper]

"You'll shoot your eye out!"

[Mags]

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Isn't that what "MSR"s are for?

... I don't like the 'spray and pray' method.

[dave77]

Many years ago there was a group of drunken hunters that literally surrounded a herd of elk and opened up on them killing bulls, cows and calfs indiscriminately. I knew a guy who told me he was hunting nearby and bullets were flying everywhere, he feared enough for his safety that he dropped and crawled away. I had heard that the game department sent armed wardens into the area in helicopters to catch them.

The woman that trained my horse was telling me she was out riding once during hunting season and a bullet creased her saddle horn. She rode up to him and asked how the he** he could mistake a large horse and rider for a deer. He was very embarrassed and apologetic.

I know these are fairly uncommon incidents and I have friends that I know are responsible hunters but stories like these have kept me from hunting.

[Mags]

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Similar but did not end well. A friend and his wife were out hunting. Wife was mistakenly shot by someone in another hunting party. That someone was profusely apologetic. Wife gave him a good cussing out anyway, before bleeding out and passing away.

[Mistered]

Wife was mistakenly shot by someone in another hunting party.

Oh man that is tragic....but the story is an old one.

Many years ago Outdoor Life magazine did a story on accidents such as this with some interesting study and research as to how and why some of these incidents take place.

[runnin n gunnin]

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Similar but did not end well. A friend and his wife were out hunting. Wife was mistakenly shot by someone in another hunting party. That someone was profusely apologetic. Wife gave him a good cussing out anyway, before bleeding out and passing away.

Damn Mags, that's hard. As much as I loved hunting big game, I stopped several years ago just for all the reasons cited, focused on upland game only.