Hunting for food while cruising abroad.

[Keelhauler]

Ok…This not a post about defending you boat or second amendment rights. That rag has been beaten to death.

Does anyone have any firsthand knowledge about hunting while cruising? Once we leave U.S. waters, the guns will stay home. However I’m thinking of bringing our recurve bows and perhaps our crossbow along with our spear guns.

I should say that we are not trophy hunters nor hunt for the sport of it. We only hunt for what we need and nothing more.

I have heard on remote islands that if you have permission from the island chief or elder, you can hunt wild boar, deer, goats and so on. In that I have also read where some islanders had trouble with some local crocs that need to get sorted out and ask a cruiser that was a known hunter to help out with issue. I have hunted in other countries in Europe and in Turkey and it was pretty straight forward as far as getting permits and licenses. Of course each country has their owns laws to abide by.

So what about clearing customs while cruising and having sharp pointy things on board. Has anyone had any issues with archery equipment & Spear guns when clearing customs

Please only provide useful information about hunting and checking in to port authorities.

Thank You

[JPA Cate]

In some places we've been, it IS possible to hunt with the locals. Usually the terrain is pretty steep and slippery. And they expect you to be a good mate with them, not go off and do your own thing. Where I'm thinking of, they use dogs to corral the goats, which may be killed by the dogs, or by men with knives.

You will have to check the requirements of each country you visit, and in some, risk loss of vessel if they catch you sneaking.

In Australia, some friends of ours with a crossbow simply had it in plain view. The Customs men confiscated it (not legal in Oz), stored it, and they arranged for Customs to give it back to them when they left. Our friends were treated courteously, professionally.

Some places, the local government does not want the locals to have bullets, even small caliber, though you may be asked for them. Penalties apply, but vary by country.

Ann

[skipperpete]

As a bowhunter in Australia and overseas I can confidently assure you that its possible… here in Oz its easier to get permission from property owners to bow hunt pigs than with a centrefire rifle because of the zero risk of stock injury from an overshoot or through and through. Generally, wildlife here is totally protected but feral cats,goats,dogs and pigs are valid targets. There’s bugger all that we can actually hunt for food unless you’re a helluva good shot, rabbits and ducks are incredibly difficult to get close to and youre gonna need a lot of arrows….I now make my own with bunnings garden stakes or tentworld fibreglass tent rods. I’m not into the pig bowhunting thing, A. I only shoot what I can eat ( and wild pig tastes bad) B. Injure a boar and it could easily attack and kill you… in remote outback queensland you then return to being part of the food chain… the lower part.

[Keelhauler]

Thank you for the insight. I’m no stranger to hunting wild boar. Being from Florida in the U.S. we have some of the meanest pigs around and they can reach upwards of 800 lbs. when I was station in Hawaii on the Big Island some of the locals used dogs and knives. Tasty meat all depends on how quick you dispatch the animal and the preparation.

I would think that archery equipment would have less concern with customs than actual firearms but then again we now live in much different times. Good to know about the crossbow in OZ.

Thanks guys.

[dannc]

One really has to look at the specific laws regarding hunting and weapons in each country. Even bows can be problematic as Ann mentioned. A non resident hunter in a US state could/would pay quite a bit for a license and tag if needed.

Once upon a time, I was walking around a management area in Florida taking photos. I walked into the pine woods which were a maze with all of the Palmetto bushes. The place looked like it had been plowed by a tractor, but it was no tractor, but pigs. Big pigs.

The hair went up on the back of my neck. One of the few times that has happened. I walked back to the road ASAP. The Palmetto bushes were large enough, and plentiful enough, to hide a large number of big pigs. Given how close the bushes were to the open areas, if a pig charged out of the bushes, one would have minimal reaction time. The only "weapon" I had was a tripod. A retrograde movement was implemented.

An hour or so later, the sun was setting and I was on a road taking photos of the sunset. For some reason, I looked behind me and I saw a large black animal cross the road a few hundred yards away from me. The animal crossed the road from where I was in the woods. If I had blinked I would not have seen it since it crossed so fast.

My first thought was that it was a black bear because of it's size. Then a pickup truck drove by with dog in the back. Once the truck crossed where the animal had went across the road, the dogs started barking and howling, jumped out of the truck and went after the animal. By then I figured it out it was huge pig not a bear.

That big pig had to have been very close to me in the Palmetto maze....

I have eaten a fair amount of wild pig. It can be good or bad but it depends on how careful the animal is processed best I could tell.

Later,
Dan

[dlj]

Cross bows tend to have greater restrictions that bows. If I were considering what you are proposing, I'd leave the cross bows at home.

dj

[Shrew]

Originally Posted by Keelhauler

I have heard on remote islands that if you have permission from the island chief or elder, you can hunt wild boar, deer, goats and so on.

I'd be surprised if there are really any 'Island Chief's' any longer. IF so, I'd suspect this is largely a ceremonial title.

Islands are getting heavily developed, just like other places in the world. I would be surprised if any of them are entertaining 'tourists' hunting. Especially if locals are subsistence hunting.

[skipperpete]

Originally Posted by Keelhauler

Thank you for the insight. I’m no stranger to hunting wild boar. Being from Florida in the U.S. we have some of the meanest pigs around and they can reach upwards of 800 lbs. when I was station in Hawaii on the Big Island some of the locals used dogs and knives. Tasty meat all depends on how quick you dispatch the animal and the preparation.

I would think that archery equipment would have less concern with customs than actual firearms but then again we now live in much different times. Good to know about the crossbow in OZ.

Thanks guys.

Hi keelhauler , just to clarify....I don’t use a crossbow. There are some available but I suspect that the law requires some sort of permit. There is a fairly dedicated group that goes after pigs with knives and spears, I’m not in that group either.

[old pirate]

[QUOTE=Shrew;3834974]I'd be surprised if there are really any 'Island Chief's' any longer. IF so, I'd suspect this is largely a ceremonial title.

Come to the western Pacific. Chief or Headman’s permission is often required, even if out of courtesy only. This also ensures protection (to some extent) from rascals and bad fellas. Even central Pacific, Fiji, permission from the headman is a must.

[JPA Cate]

Yes, there are parts in the South Pacific, where the local chief has a lot of real power: one is must give a gift, inform him of what you want to do while in his realm; and his permission to visit is not only required, but without it, you do not receive his protection. "Rascals", as mentioned above, but they can be thieves, or rapists, so a weak word for what they actually do.

When we say "chief", I think it diminishes their actual power: they are more like the kings in Europe in Charlemagne's time. Actual power of life and death over their subjects.

Ann

[Mike OReilly]

If you're truly only interested in sustenance ("We only hunt for what we need and nothing more") then surely it is far easier, and a lot less problematic, to look to the sea. Fishing, and all manner of invertebrates and shell fish, are widely available. It's easier to legally harvest. And if that's not your fancy, you can always go foraging for land-based foods like berries or wild veggies.

[JPA Cate]

In the South Pacific, you need permission for foraging, or licenses. Understandable, places on subsistence economies, they want to keep adequate food for the locals. It is really very different from the US and other first world countries. But nowhere are you welcome to steal food. "Foraging" is subject to local control, and every breadfruit or banana tree has someone in traditional land who owns it.

Ann

[thomm225]

I've seen deer swimming across the creeks up here on the Eastern Shore.

If I was hungry and had my crossbow, I could easily get a deer that way from my boat.

Otherwise I'd hunt them the normal way on land which can still be done from a boat. Just row ashore and go to a good spot.

It helps if you know the spots though.

https://www.chesapeakebay.net/news/b...-eastern-shore

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bwhjL3H7iU

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by JPA Cate

In the South Pacific, you need permission for foraging, or licenses. Understandable, places on subsistence economies, they want to keep adequate food for the locals. It is really very different from the US and other first world countries. But nowhere are you welcome to steal food. "Foraging" is subject to local control, and every breadfruit or banana tree has someone in traditional land who owns it.

Ann

Well obviously one must respect the local laws and customs of the place you are. Same can be said about fishing; most jurisdictions require some sort of license, and you can't just take anything and everything.

I'm just pointing out that if the OP is sincere about getting their own food, then there are ways that are generally easier to do functionally and legally.

[Keelhauler]

Thanks gang for all the replies. Mike O. Fishing is certainly part of our provisioning. Especially sconce we can freeze dry our own food fresh out of the water. Yes you heard right, a freeze dryer not a dehydrator. That is on another post below this one. Ann, Pete, Shrew, old Pirate,Thomas, elk and Dannc, thankyou for all the South Pacific info. However we are currently in the Great Lakes and we will be heading o Europe and the Mediterranean then to the Caribbean. So it will be some time before we head back to the South Pacific. Oh Dnnc thank you for the related story in Florida. It true the pig are huge there. Ann are you currently in the SP?

Please let me know if anyone has had any clearing issues.

Thank you