I was out shooting today and a fish & wildlife truck parked a distance away.  I finished the mag I had in my rifle, picked up my brass, put all my stuff away, and get in my car to leave.  I make it back to the road and the f&w guy pulled me over.  He asks if I knew that I was shooting on "fish and wildlife land" (I admit I am completely ignorant about public land stuff in WA as I don't hunt).
He then asks if I picked up all my casings (I'm assuming to get me for littering). I tell him yes and he then asks for my ID.  I give him my ID and he then goes back to his truck, and when he comes back he tells me he needs to check my rifle.  I open the trunk and the case, and he inspects the rifle to ensure it is unloaded.  Now, I know that was to see if he could get me for transporting a loaded rifle.  After this is done, he tells my about how if people shooting out here don't pick up after themselves they will not allow any shooting to be done where I was at.  Where I was shooting at people have left cardboard boxes that were used as targets and there are some shell casings scattered about.  When I go there next to shoot, I plan on bringing a few trash bags to clean the place up, as I would like to be able to continue to shoot there.
Some questions I have:
1)  Why did he pull me over?  He didn't state the reason and  I should have asked this while it occurred, but I was just looking to be cooperative so I could leave.  I did some reading and understand that they have more leeway in stopping and doing inspections for hunting and fishing, but I was obviously not doing either.  Do they have the same standards as regular cops in regards to probable cause?  Is me doing some target shooting enough for him to pull me over after I left?
2) Was me possessing the rifle enough for him to be able to pull me over and check the rifle?
3) What goes into not allowing people to shoot on "fish & wildlife land"?  Is that something he, the individual, decides?
Please don't take this as me trying to bash any LEOs or the warden/ranger/officer/whatever his title is that pulled me over.  He wasn't a jerk about anything and the stop went smooth.  I am just trying to understand the mechanics of the interaction I had in order to try and avoid another one in the future.

 
 

On fish and wildlife land they do have more leeway for stops. Good news is he did not fine you which is allowable under the law in a no target shooting area. It may seem odd, but on these lands shooting at animals is allowed but target shooting is not. Sounds like you got a decent warden though. PC for the stop was you being in a wildlife area with a gun. Fish and wildlife areas are set through I believe DNR and there are some public forum meeting that go into the decisions. Most of these lands should be properly marked with signage detailing prohibited activities. I got spot checked by a game warden last year for driving through National Forrest land. Warden was professional and friendly and provided intel on where he had been seeing deer and where other people had been having luck.

One of my biggest annoyances about shooting in the woods is the lack of signs saying target shotting is allowed.

We have all seen the no shooting signs, but how do you know if you are on DNR, fish & wildlife, national reserve.... Without checking multiple maps.

I thought game departments had different search powers when looking for wildlife infractions? I don't know how this would extend to other areas. What do you think of your first contact with WDFW ? I would contact the regional office for the real answer why they would stop you and leave feedback for them. They should be able to answer your questions.

Suspicion of a loaded firearm? One of WDFWs many ways to contact sportsmen in the field. Typically happens during modern hunting season-they know you have a firearm. Sounds like they saw you with one so of course you have it loaded in your vehicle.

The forest service has closed areas to shooting because of public danger and WDFW can do the same thing.

Here is the link for the actual WDFW shooting RCW:
http://apps.leg.wa.gov/WAC/default.aspx?cite=232-13-130

I think these are slightly different than national forest rules. Because of the different passes, public lands and private lands it is a good idea to know what and where you are when you go out in the field in WA these days.

There are a few smartphone apps that will overlay BLM/DNR/DFW land with GPS data.. Very useful. Some newer GPS also have this built in.

Fish and wildlife game wardens are sworn peace officers who may enforce all other laws
of the government that employs them. They may issue warnings and citations,
as well as confiscate items and arrest persons associated with a suspected infraction.
Wardens patrol their assigned area, monitoring for violations and investigating reported problems.

If you were on controlled land, I'm sure he was making sure you knew to clean up and not cause
problems.

I have no idea why he pulled you over and ran your name. Maybe just bored ? Maybe habit.

Most I have met are pretty cool.

I was looking for something else and found the link to send them comments about contacts in the field.

Feedback

Just to clarify a couple of things:

1) target shooting is allowed unless posted otherwise, as long as you follow the WAC (see link a couple posts up by BlueWedge)
2) WDFW lands are not set by or managed by the WDNR

Thanks for all the info.

You must have either a valid Discovery pass or WDFW pass displayed in your vehicle to park on WDFW land.  Might be his reason for contacting you if you didn't have one.

On the positive side, apparently, you were doing something you shouldn't have been, and got away without a citation.  Getting a friendly warning can go a very long way toward getting positive public opinion for an agency.  That opinion can sometimes do great, or horrible things when budget time comes around.

It appears that you got a decent warden that was only doing his job, and that didn't have it out to get anyone.  Would that there were more people in law enforcement like that.

Sending in a commendation when a field contact goes well can do a great deal to reinforce how that warden deals with other people in the future.  Those commendations sure don't hurt when it comes time for a personnel review either.  It would sound like that was the sort of warden we would like having in a management position...(if he can be kept out of the Kool-aide).

From the OP's post, it doesn't sound like he was doing anything wrong and didn't get a "warning". I agree with the rest of what you're saying though.

I have always had good interaction with the gamies.

Once, I spilled syrup on my pants on opening morning, and did a quick change.  Got checked and didn't have my wallet (no license).
He drove me to my trailer and checked my license.  Said good to go.