Not exactly range related, but...
About 0400hrs this morning, lights swept my downstairs bedroom. Now, I live out in the middle of nowhere, by myself, so headlights from a car are a rarity, and I am an extremely light sleeper. So I get out of bed, pull on my jeans, boots, and shirt, then slip my Glock 31 into the FBI cant holster that is always on my belt before throwing a loose jacket on. I head out the side door, and see a 4-door truck parked about 100yds down my dirt access road that bisects my property. I head over to the truck, but don't see anyone, so I turn and start down the road. About 75yds in front of me is a hunter, in blaze orange, walking down the road with a rifle in his hands. I come up behind him and ask him what exactly he thinks he's doing on my land, and apparantly I surprised him because he turns around very quickly, sweeping me with the muzzle of his rifle, and replies that he's using the access road to get to the public woods that border the back of my property. I, very calmly, ask to see his rifle, which he hands to me. I'm fairly certain it was a Winchester 94, and the hammer was cocked. As I cycle the action, a live round flies out, and completely destroys my calmness. I very tersly explain that the woods he was so bent upon reaching were about 1.5k from where he currently was, and not only was he trespassing, but he was bringing a loaded gun onto my land without my permission, all while I unloaded his rifle. Handing him the unloaded rifle and rounds, I informed him that I would escort him back to his vehicle. At this point, the older man tried to protest (he was about 25-30 years my senior) saying he was just trying to get a little hunting in. I told him that due to his lack of safe gun handling evidenced by him not only sweeping me with a "hot" weapon, but also planning on hiking 1.5k to the woods with that same "hot" weapon that I did not want him hunting anywhere near me, nor using my property as a means to assist his unsafe practices. I also informed him that I was very friendly with the local Sheriff, and would gladly keep the hunter company until the Sheriff could arrive to sort the matter out. (my hand was visibly resting on the butt of my Glock) Mr. Hunter (wisely) decided my escorting him off the property might not be so bad after all, and he left without further incident.
Funny enough, if he had come to me any day during the month proceeding hunting season, I would have had no problem allowing him to use the access road...just don't like people thinking that simply because it's there, they can use it...
So I bench my rifle, walk over and ask 'em if they'd mind using the nets the range has 'cause I'm gettin real tired of their brass hittin me.
