# Federal Game Warden Sightings??



## team cut em deep (May 14, 2010)

I have personally never been stopped by one but was wondering if anyone else has.


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## offshorefanatic (Jan 13, 2011)

Been stopped several times out of Galveston last year. They stopped me anywhere from 21-36 miles offshore.

Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G using Tapatalk 2


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## Ledfoot2 (Dec 20, 2011)

offshorefanatic said:


> Been stopped several times out of Galveston last year. They stopped me anywhere from 21-36 miles offshore.
> 
> Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G using Tapatalk 2


Who was it that stopped you? Coast guard?


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## offshorefanatic (Jan 13, 2011)

Ledfoot2 said:


> Who was it that stopped you? Coast guard?


Federal game warden and I believe one was nmfs

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## Sabine Flounder Pounder (Jun 15, 2011)

checked out my son last year out of Sabine


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## Muddskipper (Dec 29, 2004)

I got swarmed by the FEDS and a sheriff last year, as my truck matched the description of some poachers ..... They were cool .... and quickly figured out I was the wrong guy


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## hog (May 17, 2006)

Been Checked several times over the years out of Freeport.


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## awesum (May 31, 2006)

Muddskipper said:


> I got swarmed by the FEDS and a sheriff last year, as my truck matched the description of some poachers ..... They were cool .... and quickly figured out I was the wrong guy


Brian .... they realized you were the wrong guy when they saw all of those Chubs you had in your cooler .... :biggrin:


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## slabnabbin (May 25, 2010)

I was checked by one in Beasley, tx of all places while dove huntin.


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## CoastalOutfitters (Aug 20, 2004)

several times goose hunting, never on the water


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## SailFishCostaRica (Jan 7, 2010)

Yep, several times in deer season, and once on Lake Conroe about 7 years ago.


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## snapper tapper (Dec 21, 2006)

Was checked 70 mi. out of Sabine a few years ago. They said they were just out running the new whaler !


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## Pecos (Feb 20, 2006)

offshorefanatic said:


> Federal game warden and I believe one was nmfs
> 
> Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G using Tapatalk 2


What kind of boat were they running?

Pecos


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## En Fuego (Jul 26, 2006)

I saw him walking his dog yesterday! He lives around the block from me in our neighborhood. Real nice guy. He's all business on the water, which I can understand - just doing his job, but around the neighborhood, he's a real nice guy - good family man. That's a quality I can ALWAYS respect. He actually brought me over an underwater light that a friend of his built as a prototype to maybe market down the road. He wanted to get my opinion on how it worked, and maybe how to improve it Great light, but I was never able to try it in action. Stupid wind had me dry-docked.


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## texasjellyfish (Jan 23, 2006)

see the federal game wardens in brazoria county all the time, took this image yesterday


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## Deriso (Jun 21, 2011)

If you hunt near Anahuac you will get to know them on a first name basis.


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## McDaniel8402 (Dec 7, 2011)

Anybody know if a federal warden would stop a guy within state waters? If they did stop you, I'm not real sure what they would be checking for.


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## texasjellyfish (Jan 23, 2006)

they will wait in state waters for a boat returning from federal waters, they call it a saftey check



McDaniel8402 said:


> Anybody know if a federal warden would stop a guy within state waters? If they did stop you, I'm not real sure what they would be checking for.


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## bigfly55 (Apr 18, 2012)

was checked in the late 70's while duck hunting at the old army base (we used to keep the airboat there and drive our old aquasport across the bay)...idot put one of my 20 ga shells into my dad's 12. cycled it, couldn't get it to eject, ended up just handing it back loaded and said somthing along the lines of "here, you deal with it". was 2 of em, and I will never forget it.


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## Spectaker (Oct 24, 2011)

Every freakin' time I freshwater fish, I get stopped. I swear they follow me.


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## sea sick (Feb 9, 2006)

The Fed GW's are kinda like the chupacabra I guess...tons of stories about them,yet a few folks have seen them lol. I haven't been checked by one yet.


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## Wompam (Mar 6, 2012)

Got stopped by fed boys a few years back, 2 days before snapper season opened, 18 miles out of Mansfield. We were on our way in from catching grouper, they couldn't believe we didn't have any fish hid. Turned out to be real nice guys.


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## mredman1 (Feb 4, 2007)

*Game wardens*

They will be waiting for you in the Intercoastal when you return to Freeport. I have been checked numerous times. Most of the time, they are friendly. However, you can tell if they have an agenda. One time, they must have received a tip that someone was stashing illegal fish on a Cat Boat. They spent 30 minutes looking for illegal fish. I came out clean.

Mike


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## Ledfoot2 (Dec 20, 2011)

What does a federal game warden boat look like? I have been stopped by TPWD and Homeland security a bunch of times, but I don't recall ever even seeing one of these elusive boats out of Port A.


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## McDaniel8402 (Dec 7, 2011)

mredman said:


> They will be waiting for you in the Intercoastal when you return to Freeport. I have been checked numerous times. Most of the time, they are friendly. However, you can tell if they have an agenda. One time, they must have received a tip that someone was stashing illegal fish on a Cat Boat. They spent 30 minutes looking for illegal fish. I came out clean.
> 
> Mike


This here would be my point. If a federal warden stopped you in state waters, and there is no way that the warden could positively ID you as having been fishing in fed waters, and then returning to state waters, what grounds do they have to bust you for the fish you have in your box? Unless it happened to be a fish that violated both state and federal regs. Sensibly, you aren't likely to catch a 30 lb red snapper in state waters in August out of Freeport, but if they can't prove it, then who is to say?


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## Swells (Nov 27, 2007)

Ledfoot2 said:


> What does a federal game warden boat look like? I have been stopped by TPWD and Homeland security a bunch of times, but I don't recall ever even seeing one of these elusive boats out of Port A.


NOAA patrol includes 19 boats spread out in the US, with a major Texas station in the Galveston area - which is why they're more common in that area than perhaps down mid-coast and south. Not sure about the looks of the one we have around Galveston but here's a typical one, kind of similar to the Coastie's RIB:


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## funewgy (Apr 1, 2005)

Had one set a copter down other side of our decoys on Matty island back in the 80's. Got out of his chopper wearing hip waders, lookin all bad *** marching to our blind till he fell in a hole up to his chin. He was extremely agitated when he got to our blind becuase me and my buddy Joe were LOAO Wrote me out a wet ticket for no duck stamp. Took him about 20 minutes cause his ticket book was all wet.


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## clintj (Mar 23, 2011)

I have been checked by the feds three times in the last two years. Once at 65 miles out and the others at the jettys. they were with the la. game wardens and checked me on my way back to Sabine Pass. Now the tx game wardens I get checked every time I fish out of Sabine Pass I have been checked 5 times in less than a hour before.


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## ChampionOwner (Jan 27, 2010)

texasjellyfish said:


> see the federal game wardens in brazoria county all the time, took this image yesterday


Dont take this guy fishing with you, he doesnt know what he is doing and will complain all day long that he is bored.


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## Slightly Dangerous (May 21, 2004)

If you ever duck hunt out of Aransas Pass you will for sure get a visit from a Fed Warden. Every single morning they would pull up to our blind and check licenses, hunter-ed, shell capacity, etc.

Have also had them rally the birds on their way out so not all bad news.


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## ReelHard007 (Sep 19, 2012)

I grew up in the Mississippi Delta and it was legal to bait for doves as long as the bait was plowed one time. Natural spillage of grain from harvest was okay also. You could not start shooting until noon and all the plantations and farms put on big dove hunts and barbecues that were incredible and free. Each hunt had a look-out guy. The Feds drove powder blue Plymouth cars with huge whip antennas that could be spotted in that flat land from a mile away. The look-out would signal and everybody would get legal in a jiff. It was hilarious. Don't remember them ever writing a single ticket.


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## Gold Nuggett (Sep 29, 2010)

Was checked by one some time ago out of Hockley while waterfowl hunting-
he then booked 2 of my buddies- one had a new Merc, put his muddy 
birds in his friends truck and drove behind him to the clubhouse.
Federal guy then booked the truck driver for haveing 2 limits and wouldn't acknowledge the presence of the Merc driving 20 yards behind.

The contrast to the friendliness and good nature of the Texas Pks guys was 
striking.


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## ReelHard007 (Sep 19, 2012)

Gold Nugget my Girlfriend and I were dove hunting side by side in Monaville and each had 13 doves. I had all the doves in my bucket because it held ice and when the State Warden checked us he made me split them because he said if the Fed checked me I would be ticketed for too many in my possession even though we were together. Thought that was crazy.


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## Yams (Jul 16, 2008)

Kind of off subject, but kinda not...

Those guys who sit at the boat launches and have a "survey station" where they ask to see your fish as you are loading your boat...do they have the authority to ticket? I always assumed they did, but then they always say they are just doign research.


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## DEXTER (Jun 28, 2005)

Yams said:


> Kind of off subject, but kinda not...
> 
> Those guys who sit at the boat launches and have a "survey station" where they ask to see your fish as you are loading your boat...do they have the authority to ticket? I always assumed they did, but then they always say they are just doign research.


Hmm. Good question.


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## CaptDocHoliday (Feb 3, 2011)

Yams said:


> Kind of off subject, but kinda not...
> 
> Those guys who sit at the boat launches and have a "survey station" where they ask to see your fish as you are loading your boat...do they have the authority to ticket? I always assumed they did, but then they always say they are just doign research.


My hunch is no (being that they don't carry guns or handcuffs, I think they are biologists and not LEO). I had a couple of the survey ladies check me at Matagorda once during a tournament. I had 2 live reds, and when the lady pulled the first one out to measure, it kicked and fell to the floor of my no-sides boat and nearly got away before she pounced on it....they eye-balled the other one...


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## cadjockey (Jul 30, 2009)

Yams said:


> Kind of off subject, but kinda not...
> 
> Those guys who sit at the boat launches and have a "survey station" where they ask to see your fish as you are loading your boat...do they have the authority to ticket? I always assumed they did, but then they always say they are just doign research.


I asked the young lady doing fish surveys at the dock in Freeport that question a few weeks ago. She said she wasn't a law enforcement officer but had one on speed-dial that could be there shortly should she require such services.


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## quackersmacker (Jun 15, 2005)

Only time I've been check by a Fed is while duck hunting in Nueces. Never seen one in the ULM or out of Packery.


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## ronhamilton (Mar 2, 2011)

Only once teal hunting. Not pretty, but prevailed in federal court.


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## texasjellyfish (Jan 23, 2006)

ChampionOwner16 said:


> Dont take this guy fishing with you, he doesnt know what he is doing and will complain all day long that he is bored.


PM sent


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## Muddskipper (Dec 29, 2004)

We had the feds roll up to us at a gas station while getting gas coming back from a trip ...

He simply walked up and asked to see our birds 

Plain clothesd but had a gun and a badge on his waist.

He did help clarify the law of taking home your buddies brids, and showed us the proper doc. found in the TPWD manual.


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## CHA CHING (May 21, 2004)

I've never seen a Federal Game Warden. Now I Have been stopped by the National Marine Fisheries Guys more times than I wanted to. They were working very hard out of Matagorda and Port O'Conner last year.
They caught one guy, supposedly a 2cooler with 40 snapper on the boat and this was the week after the season had closed. The worst part was there were 18 fish filleted and hidden.
So yes they are out there and they will track you on radar and even confiscate your chart plotter for proof.


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## My Little Big boat (Apr 24, 2012)

I was tied up to a rig last year,We were about 30 miles out, had a boat that looks like the one posted (Alum with inflatable sides) come up and check out our coolers to make sure we didn't have any snapper. His exact words were "Do you have anything RED in the cooler?" opened the cooler so he could see the 2 king fish we had and he left. They didn't board us and check the boat like the Texas game Warden does...Those Texas game wardens look in every nook and cranny when they check you...


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## brentwhitis (Jan 25, 2008)

*TPWD enforcing FED*

I have been only checked once. A few years back we were fishing in the Ladies Kingfish Tournament out of SPI and were checked by TPWD ENFORCING, FOR THAT DAY, Federal Fisheries Law !! No joke !! We were about 35 miles offshore when they checked us, in a TPWD boat. They said they were "hired for the day" to enforce Fed. laws. Anyway, as always they were very nice.........and oh , we WON THE TOURNAMENT THAT YEAR !! 

Brent


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## Major29 (Jun 19, 2011)

There was one riding around with a state game warden checking dove hunters on opening day of dove season. We usually see one at least once a season in that area.


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## FishingBoyz (Sep 6, 2011)

*Stopped by Customs*

We were stopped last year by a Customs boat. A long 36-40' center console that had three 300 hp motors. Nice boat and nice guys.


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## Jolly Roger (May 21, 2004)

Got stOpped about 55 miles out of Sabine this year by a Louisiana Warden weekend after red snapper season closed. They were in a 40' Metal shark, and were checking Fish boxes for red snappers. Since they were way out of state waters, had to be working for the FEDS.


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## bwguardian (Aug 30, 2005)

I have a long time good friend who is a Lt. TPWD warden. He gets paid something like $200 a month and carries a federal badge so he can check federal regulations for federal waters.

To answer a question a page back about the guys and gals at the docks for surveys...they are biologist, also have a long time good friend that did this out of the Seabrook facility. They are not law enforcement and do not have the authority to write tickets but I can assure you they know where the wardens are working that day and can have one show up in a heart beat!


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## crw91383 (Nov 21, 2008)

My sister used to work for TPWD and conduct those surveys at the ramps. They are not any form of law enforcement and those surveys are vey important for the fisheries database. She used to get so frustrated when people would not want to participate.


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## tokavi (May 6, 2006)

Jolly Roger said:


> Got stOpped about 55 miles out of Sabine this year by a Louisiana Warden weekend after red snapper season closed. They were in a 40' Metal shark, and were checking Fish boxes for red snappers. Since they were way out of state waters, had to be working for the FEDS.


Louisiana wardens get paid grant money to enforce federal regulations. In other words the feds pay them overtime to do what the feds can't do. They normally run a Whaler with an aluminum pulpit out of Cameron. Mashed up one of Tunahunters motor cowlings a few years ago checking us on our way out. They were not friendly, professional or in any way like TP&W Wardens. Never paid for the damage to the cowling. Still ********* me off.


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## tokavi (May 6, 2006)

crw91383 said:


> My sister used to work for TPWD and conduct those surveys at the ramps. They are not any form of law enforcement and *those surveys are vey important for the fisheries database. She used to get so frustrated when people would not want to participate*.


 These are the numbers the feds use against us when the claim we are over our limit each year in total pounds of snapper. I quit participating in the surveys when a "biologist" doing the surveys checked us coming in from offshore a few years ago. Two of them asked and were very polite. Opened the box and began pulling fish and dropping them on the floor of the boat after weighing, measuring, logging data. Pulled a scamp grouper out and identified it as a gag. I pointed out it was a scamp and showed them the "tasels" on the tail and such. One looked at me and told me I didn't know what I was talking about. They finished and left the fish in the boat for us to put back in the cooler. I'm not "volunteering" for that.


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## crw91383 (Nov 21, 2008)

tokavi said:


> These are the numbers the feds use against us when the claim we are over our limit each year in total pounds of snapper. I quit participating in the surveys when a "biologist" doing the surveys checked us coming in from offshore a few years ago. Two of them asked and were very polite. Opened the box and began pulling fish and dropping them on the floor of the boat after weighing, measuring, logging data. Pulled a scamp grouper out and identified it as a gag. I pointed out it was a scamp and showed them the "tasels" on the tail and such. One looked at me and told me I didn't know what I was talking about. They finished and left the fish in the boat for us to put back in the cooler. I'm not "volunteering" for that.


New flash most of them are either student interns or grad students working on a phd doing it for **** near minimum wage.Regardless of what you believe the numbers are important to all of us. The numbers my sister reported were reported to the state and they were specifically tracking the numbers on triple tail and snook in an attempt to find a spawning pattern.


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