Dear Editor,

(Re: “Bowhunting bylaw sought,” Question, July 29)

As a long-time traditional archer, I was shocked to learn about Sylvia Dolson’s plans to ban all bowhunting in the resort and beyond. This is the same person who brought us bear contraception for Jeanie the bear. Remember these are wild animals — not our local pets.

As a bowhunter and long-time resident, I wanted to provide my insight.

I can agree with Ms. Dolson on a few points:

Firstly, that all crossbows should be banned throughout the province and in my eye, Canada-wide. A crossbow is a rifle stock with a bow-laid across it that is held with a trigger mechanism and shot similar to a rifle. Crossbow users are typically gun hunters who are trying to get in on the early bow season, without the dedication, training and ethics of a traditional bow hunter, and many hunters fail to comprehend the limitations of their weapons.

Instead, I use a traditional bow (longbow, compound or recurve), which takes time, effort, practice and skill to master. Traditional bowhunters are in touch with their environment and their hunting surroundings. I also practice archery — the oldest sport in the world and a designated Olympic event.

Secondly, I agree that legally shooting at bears from the Callaghan Road and Highway 99 is neither sporting nor humane. When it comes to baiting bears for viewing, Whistler Blackcomb is just as guilty since it baits bears for tourists by planting luscious grasses and clover — plants that are not native to this area. Back in the day, it was mostly salal and blueberries.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve picked pine mushrooms while hiking with my bow and enjoyed many a grouse dinner, hunted locally for subsistence within an hour-and-a-half walk of my home in Creekside (or hunted with my mountain bike and trailer between Lost Lake and Chaplinville). I am a hunter that judges a hunter by what he has in the freezer and not by what he/she has hanging on their walls.

The fear mongering generated by Councillor Lamont about mountain bikers being shot in the chest with a bow shows his lack of knowledge of the sport. With the aspect and thickness of our forests, long shots are not taken, and an ethical shot is 35 yards or less. Most of the trails in the valley were at one time either animal and/or hunting trails, long before WORCA took ownership of them. These include the Khyber, Cougar Mountain, top of Rainbow, up into Garibaldi Park and Black Tusk, the Soo, the Rutherford and the area known as “pick-up sticks.”

Bowhunters can hear mountain bikers and hikers coming from over 150 metres away — farther than our bows can even shoot. There are far more injuries generated in the “trauma parks” than in a hunting incident in the valley. How many rhythm or pump tracks have been set up on public land?

As a bowhunter, I pay $150 per year in licensing fees and tags to hunt on Crown land. Maybe it’s time to license mountain bikers using the backcountry? I’m sure this new fee or tax could help out our cash-strapped B.C. government.

When it comes to dogs, they are required by law to be kept on leash when entering a provincial park. Every year, there are incidences of dogs maiming and killing deer. I wonder how many of those dogs kill for subsistence?

I know my views aren’t popular with many, but this is the way I enjoy the Whistler backcountry. For most archers, it’s a lifelong sport just like skiing. Remember that we all preach to Ullr — the Norse god of skiing and archery.

If you piss him off, we could all be in for a bad snow year.

Curtis Christian

Whistler