Hunter too close to trail

[Guateboston]

Finished Norte and loved it! Just one experience left a bitter taste. Walking to Villaviciosa, at the edge of the wooded trail was a hunter posing with the deer he had just shot. Friends and family were taking pictures of him and the small deer he had killed. Regardless on how you feel about hunting he had to be hunting very close to the trail to be posing there. It made me wonder how close was he to the pilgrims?

 

[C clearly]

he had to be hunting very close to the trail

The various Camino routes go right by many areas that have signs "coto de caza."

 

[henrythedog]

Or the trail too close to hunter? Which came first?

I ‘hunt’ occasionally and to support the OP’s point of view, it’s poor form to be unnecessarily public; but there’s little control in precisely where a deer or boar will come to rest and they have to be evicerated quickly on the spot.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

Or the trail too close to hunter? Which came first?

I ‘hunt’ occasionally and to support the OP’s point of view, it’s poor form to be unnecessarily public; but there’s little control in precisely where a deer or boar will come to rest and they have to be evicerated quickly on the spot.

If the man was was on private land next to the Camino he probably had the right to hunt there. I recall hearing gunshots a few times and wondered what was happening. It was a bit unsettling.

 

[Corned Beef]

I could see the necessity IF the deer was armed and posed an immediate threat to the public.

 

[SabsP]

Some informative links.

FUNDACIÓN CAZA SOSTENIBLE - Importancia de la Caza en España

LA FUNDACIÓN CAZA SOSTENIBLE ES UNA ENTIDAD NO LUCRATIVA CUYA FINALIDAD ES PROMOVER LA CAZA SOSTENIBLE Y LA CONSERVACIÓN DE LA BIODIVERSIDAD

www.fundacioncazasostenible.org

Estadística Anual de Caza

Est_Anual_Caza

www.mapa.gob.es

And then the laws depending on the autonomous region.

BOE.es - Código de Caza

www.boe.es

 

[Camino Chrissy]

Thank you, Sabine, as these links (converted into English), help me to understand the rules/laws regarding hunting in Spain as I do not speak Spanish.

 

[Tincatinker]

Finished Norte and loved it! Just one experience left a bitter taste. Walking to Villaviciosa, at the edge of the wooded trail was a hunter posing with the deer he had just shot. Friends and family were taking pictures of him and the small deer he had killed. Regardless on how you feel about hunting he had to be hunting very close to the trail to be posing there. It made me wonder how close was he to the pilgrims?

It’s more likely that the deer had been culled even at some distance from the trail. Hunters in Spain are well aware of the penalties for culling Peregrinos. He will have carried the beast to the nearest available vehicle access. The shooters who cull the nature reserves in my home county follow the same practice.

 

[wayfarer]

It’s more likely that the deer had been culled even at some distance from the trail. Hunters in Spain are well aware of the penalties for culling Peregrinos. He will have carried the beast to the nearest available vehicle access. The shooters who cull the nature reserves in my home county follow the same practice.

Not sure when the season for culling peregrinos is but I think it's different for walkers and cyclists.

 

[naplesdon]

There is one spot on the Ingles close to a golf course filled with hunters and their cars.

 

[Bradypus]

Hunters in Spain are well aware of the penalties for culling Peregrinos.

I wish I hadn't just read this. I will have that Tom Lehrer song stuck in my mind for hours now....

 

[JPL]

On the CF in 2015, I saw this trailer of dogs while enjoying my morning coffee...then for the next couple hours, I walked among hunters, dogs, and gun shots...I am certainly glad it was not peregrino season!

 

[lt56ny]

Not sure when the season for culling peregrinos is but I think it's different for walkers and cyclists.

I think for cyclists there is no season it is all year.

 

[TrvlDad1]

Around here the weapon of choice for deer is a car. Even more dangerous.

 

[lt56ny]

The various Camino routes go right by many areas that have signs "coto de caza."

Depending on when and which camino you walk and where you are on Sundays you often hear gunshots from locals who are hunting. Just part of walking in the country and adapting to the culture and norms of where you are.

It made me wonder how close was he to the pilgrims?

I can't argue that is a little unsettling but as I said it is their home not ours. I doubt it is much different in rural areas in many other countries also.

 

[Corned Beef]

Around here the weapon of choice for deer is a car. Even more dangerous.

Yes - but not a pleasant sight.

Locally we have lots of deer and you can come across them as close as a 200m from home. Usually there is a local warning when they are on the move, rutting. Same for badgers.

When driving you can come across their bodies on local roads still twitching from having their necks broken by a passing car where the driver is not paying attention. But there is a local phone number for a specialised team to come out and humanely deal with the aftermath.

 

[lt56ny]

Yes - but not a pleasant sight.

Locally we have lots of deer and you can come across them as close as a 200m from home. Usually there is a local warning when they are on the move, rutting. Same for badgers.

When driving you can come across their bodies on local roads still twitching from having their necks broken by a passing car where the driver is not paying attention. But there is a local phone number for a specialised team to come out and humanely deal with the aftermath.

I have been involved in two incidents with deer. I used to travel extensively for work in areas of deep forest. It was absolutely beautiful. But both times the deer came out of deep underbrush next to the road and literally jumped into my car windshield. I can safely say there are many times drivers in (Southern Oregon) where I lived at the time had no chance at all. Also because local people in my town feed the deers they come out of their natural habitat and walk around town destroying flower and vegetable gardens, attacking dogs completely unprovoked and spreading lime disease. Please don't say we are encroaching on their land as there are literally thousands and thousands of square miles of pristine forest in Southern Oregon.

 

[Macman]

Finished Norte and loved it! Just one experience left a bitter taste. Walking to Villaviciosa, at the edge of the wooded trail was a hunter posing with the deer he had just shot. Friends and family were taking pictures of him and the small deer he had killed. Regardless on how you feel about hunting he had to be hunting very close to the trail to be posing there. It made me wonder how close was he to the pilgrims?

Walking the Norte in 2018 I passed close to a hunt in progress, well south of Ribadeo, using dogs, which I could hear from a long way off.
They had marshals wearing high visibility gear near the Camino and walkie—talkie contact with the hunters, and seemed very conscious of safety…

 

[Marbe2]

If the man was was on private land next to the Camino he probably had the right to hunt there. I recall hearing gunshots a few times and wondered what was happening. It was a bit unsettling.

Another reason to wear colorful bright clothing!

 

[Camino Chrissy]

Another reason to wear colorful bright clothing!

My backpack is a rather gaudy, bright turquoise. Not my favorite color, but it sticks out like a sore thumb and was an Osprey on sale.

 

[ken2116]

Finished Norte and loved it! Just one experience left a bitter taste. Walking to Villaviciosa, at the edge of the wooded trail was a hunter posing with the deer he had just shot. Friends and family were taking pictures of him and the small deer he had killed. Regardless on how you feel about hunting he had to be hunting very close to the trail to be posing there. It made me wonder how close was he to the pilgrims?

I've had hunters shoot in my direction and it's disconcerting... The responsible ones learn the locations of roads and trails and set up so as to be aiming away from them. If you know you might be in a hunting area, wearing bright clothing and occasionally blowing a whistle are two ways to alert them.

 

[Scott Sweeney]

Finished Norte and loved it! Just one experience left a bitter taste. Walking to Villaviciosa, at the edge of the wooded trail was a hunter posing with the deer he had just shot. Friends and family were taking pictures of him and the small deer he had killed. Regardless on how you feel about hunting he had to be hunting very close to the trail to be posing there. It made me wonder how close was he to the pilgrims?

The odds are that the deer was shot more into the woods and over growth. Hunters drag the deer out to an area where they are able to load up their kill to transport home. No one wants trophy photos while you are dragging a deer.
Unless you heard gun fire very close to the trail I wouldn't worry. Summer is an unusual time to harvest deer.

 

[rorerich]

On my late fall Caminos I often hear hunters' guns on Sundays especially. Last fall this darling little dog ditched her hunting party and walked with me for about a half an hour. I'm not sure how this relates to the conversation but I thought I'd share my little "Daisy" with you.

 

[domigee]

Finished Norte and loved it! Just one experience left a bitter taste. Walking to Villaviciosa, at the edge of the wooded trail was a hunter posing with the deer he had just shot. Friends and family were taking pictures of him and the small deer he had killed. Regardless on how you feel about hunting he had to be hunting very close to the trail to be posing there. It made me wonder how close was he to the pilgrims?

If this unsettles you, don’t even try walking the camino in France

 

[LesR]

I think it's different for walkers and cyclists.

Hmmmm... Open season on cyclists....? Tell me more...

 

[gerardcarey]

He had to be hunting very close to the trail to be posing there.

No he didn't.

 

[igailfh]

When I was walking Hadrian’s Wall in 2019 there were hunters on one section of the trail. Fortunately I knew they had seen me & kept walking but they did stay on the hunt. I could hear the gunshots & I felt most uneasy. So glad to get further away.

 

[Guateboston]

If this unsettles you, don’t even try walking the camino in France

I have completed the Frances. Never encountered hunter posing with his prey for pictures right next to the trail.

 

[SabsP]

I have completed the Frances. Never encountered hunter posing with his prey for pictures right next to the trail.

I believe @domigee refers to the different Caminos in France, not the Francés in Spain.

 

[Guateboston]

I have completed the Frances. Never encountered hunter posing with his prey for pictures right next to the trail.

Thank you for clarifying. My mistake

 

[domigee]

Thank you for clarifying. My mistake

My answer was half tongue in cheek half serious… When walking in France (not the camino francés in Spain), you do have reason to worry. They do shoot on anything that moves

 

[Peter Fransiscus]

No he didn't.

How do you know?? You where there to.

 

[hunsta]

Although I saw no hunting whilst in the area. I did notice the pigeon hunting blinds. Right alongside the path over the Pyrenees. Between Orrison and Ronsevelle.