I know I can always count on you guys, guess doing the right thing and paying the fine after explaining the situation is the best thing to do.
Doing the right thing is always best and telling the truth will help.
While bow hunting in Colorado, I had a similar incident with a bull elk.
First I went two far from camp and in tough terrain. After the shot the bull increased the distance and fell in the worst possible place for recovery.
After flagging my way back to camp (Over 5 miles) I knew I was in for a rough recovery of the meat. I knew where a old logging road was so I flagged all the way to it. after walking the better part if 5 miles, I knew that I could not recover it by my self before the meat spoiled, so when I got back to camp I put together my pack frame and decided to get on my 3 wheeler and shorten the distance to the kill site. (It is illegal to ride 3 wheelers of the trails in national parks) but I was more worried about the spoilage than a fine.
I managed to get within 3/4 of a mile from the Elk with the 3 wheeler and walked the rest. After quartering and butchering the Elk an started the arduous task of packing it back to the 3 wheeler by myself. after many trips I loaded the 3 wheeler with as much as it would hold and started for camp (Three trips later it was done) My hunting buddies had not returned from a overnight spike camp hunt so I was on my on.
While icing down the Elk, A warden showed up and said looks like you had some success. Then he ask me where I killed the Elk, So I told him.
He ask how I got him out by my self, and to his surprise I told him !
He then told me that that was not allowed and I would get a fine for using the 3 wheeler off trail. I told him that recovering the Elk was more important than the fine and I was ok with that. After a lecture, he also stated that he had found the Elk remains left behind and that I had recovered everything eatable, and that he was not going to fine me for telling the truth and doing such a good job of saving everything that was usable. (He also said never to do it again).
So the lesson I learned was, Never shoot anything that would be hard or impossible to recover. And that not all game wardens are horses asses if you tell them the truth up front.
J E CUSTOM