One Libby man’s recent misfortune quickly lifted the spirits of a woman in need.

The morning of Saturday, Nov. 15, the third weekend of the general rifle season, began for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Game Warden Jake Haberlock when he stopped at a man’s house to collect a mule deer doe the man shot the previous day while hunting.

The hunter told Haberlock he was shooting at a mule deer buck when his bullet struck the doe by accident. Mule deer does are not legal to harvest in this part of Montana.

The man called in his mistake, Haberlock issued a warning and collected the deer. Then he started calling numbers on a list of people who will accept such animals. Area groups, churches, food banks submit names of people for the list.

Haberlock’s list was a few years old, but after a few dials, he found someone to take the deer.

The woman was very thankful for the deer and Haberlock was happy the deer wasn’t wasted. She said she had her Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits halted during the recent federal government shutdown and had only received a partial check earlier that week. SNAP provides food benefits to low-income families to supplement their grocery budget so they can afford nutritious food.

“It’s nice to see it go to someone who needs it,” Haberlock said. “I also love it when sportsmen self report a violation.”

The man who accidentally shot the deer was apologetic and said he probably needed to check his rifle scope to ensure the bullet was going where he wanted it to when the trigger was pulled.

Next was a stop at the CWD sampling test station just outside Libby city limits at the state Department of Transportation’s shop grounds.

Several hunters were in line to have samples taken from deer they or family members had harvested in the general season. Chronic Wasting Disease was discovered in mostly deer in south Lincoln County in 2019. Since then, a sampling station has taken the place of a game check station.

CWD is an always-fatal neurological disease of deer, elk and moose. FWP collects samples annually from various locations across the state. Management zones were created where special deer licenses are used to track the rate of prevalence.

Jasmine Plata, an Oklahoman working seasonally with FWP, and Perla Geliga, a Floridian in her second season with FWP, stayed busy collecting samples that would be mailed to its Wildlife Health Lab in Bozeman.

Haberlock talked with a hunter he knew that had killed a nice white-tailed buck. The hunter was in line, too, waiting to have a sample of biological tissue, typically from the brainstem or lymph nodes, taken.

Hitting the road again to patrol, Haberlock said one of the more common cases he works on are people who buy summer homes in the area and then buy resident licenses in an attempt to save money without establishing a true residency.

He was also involved in the pursuit last summer of a young, wayward male grizzly bear that left the Flathead Valley. The bear found trouble on its way to the Yaak and when it returned to the Silver Butte area, the troubles continued and it ultimately met its demise.

“That bear really stuck to the heaviest cover when it was pursued and you don’t want many encounters like that with a grizzly,” Haberlock said.

Montana code says someone must live in the state for at least 180 consecutive days before they are eligible to buy resident hunting, fishing and trapping licenses.

“The fine can be from $300 to $500,” Haberlock said.

Heading south on U.S. 2, the warden in his third year stopped near a truck hauling a trailer. It had a blown tire and a man was working to fix it. Just behind the rig was a vehicle with some area residents who had stopped to help.

Haberlock parked his Dodge Ram further back where vehicles headed west could see it in an effort to prevent a traffic accident. He later grabbed his air compressor to help the man inflate the tire.

“Libby is an awesome community and those folks who stopped to help is just one of the things I see so often that makes it cool to be a part of,” he said.

He also checked a pair of anglers who were from out of the area at the Blackwell Flats Recreation Area where the Fisher River flows into the Kootenai River.

“We try to be prepared for many different situations,” he said. “First aid may be necessary so we carry medical supplies and there are times we assist local law enforcement on mutual aid calls. You really never know what may happen on any given day.”

He also said encounters with younger hunters and anglers requires a different approach.

“A lot of what we do is about education,” Haberlock said. “Not everyone reads the book or keeps up on regulation changes, so we do a lot to help people understand them. And when dealing with kids, you’re definitely trying to make sure the encounter doesn’t discourage them from continuing to hunt.”

Haberlock, a Bigfork native and avid hunter and angler, said one of his biggest challenges is finding time to enjoy those activities.

“There are still chances to get out, but there’s a lot of figuring out each other’s schedules and we may get a few days off during the season to hunt,” he said. “There’s always something to do and not much time between seasons. 

“You go from deer and elk season to mountain lions, then ice fishing gets going. Spring black bear begins not long after with summer fishing and then the archery season, so the time moves quickly and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”