Last weekend’s duck hunting incident, where two walkers were wounded by hunters, has shown we have a way to go when it comes to managing hunting and other outdoor activities. 

For the record, I am not against hunting, I think in many ways it is more humane than farming if it is your source of food. 

What I am against is silly use of firearms in and around hiking trails, dwellings, or general misuse. 

If you are in control of something deadly then the responsibility is on you to protect everyone else around you. 

While living in Central Otago, I myself have been involved in several near misses, including walking around a body of water and having shotgun pellets whiz within metres as a duck hunter made loose shots outside of duck hunting season. 

I have also been walking along the Clutha to Alexandra river trail and had shots fired over me from young shooters taking pot-shots, seemingly at nothing. 

I and two strangers on bikes actually took shelter behind the old gold tailings as one of them called Police. 

The riders told me they had counted more than 50 shots in five minutes. 

I have spoken to a few Australian friends and relatives who have ridden the Central Otago Rail Trail who say they wouldn’t do it again anywhere near a hunting season as the sounds and sights of guns and hunters put them off. 

When firearms begin to be used as toys, things get pretty messy. A bunch of silly shooters will eventually spoil everything for all of us if things don’t smarten up. 

I’ve spoken to one witness (a gun owner and user himself) who was near the two women shot last weekend and said the shooters were incredibly irresponsible and needed to front up to Police. 

I also heard from a number of trampers who say they saw multiple jet boats roaring up and down the Clutha with shooters firing from the back. 

I was contacted by a member of the public who says the media were wrong for portraying the shooters as breaking the law, and attempted to defend the shooter's breaches of hunting regulations. 

The exchanges were quite aggressive. When I asked if they wanted to go on the record to air the views, they declined and the exchanges stopped. 

For the record, Fish & Game have clarified it is illegal to shoot on the Clutha River from May 1 to May 9, it is also illegal to shoot from a boat while in motion/under power. 

Fish & Game Officer Bruce Quirey told The Central App the responsibility lies with the firearms user and urged the hunters to come forward. 

“We have very few details about the location and circumstances of the incident,” Bruce says. 

“One of the seven basic rules was broken here. We don’t know if the women inadvertently walked into the firing zone or if the hunters were not aware they were in the background. 

“Either way it’s the firearms user who is ultimately responsible and so it’s a matter for the Police to follow up in the first instance. 

“Two women were harmed in an unfortunate accident. 

“We encourage the hunters to come forward as soon as possible so we can all learn more about the circumstances and what we can do to avoid such incidents in future.” 

One of the women shot had apparently warned of misuse of firearms along the Clutha in previous duck hunting seasons. 

All I want to say is that there needs to be more education around proper firearms use, and stronger policing of when, where and how you can use them when it comes to public places like cycling and walking trails. 

If we don’t tighten our use of firearms up, it could end up worse than a wound, and then nobody will be able to shoot at all.