Is hunting just for the rich now?

[Red_Eagle]

I ask because as I'm looking for a place to hunt I only find 3 types of land:

a) Private land closed to hunting
b) Private land that charges $150-$800 per weekend
c) Public land closed to hunting

It seems now that unless you own property or are willing to pay for guided hunt, there are no hunting opportunities left. I'm mainly talking about west Texas and New Mexico, but it was like this in western NY too.

 

[Rifleman1776]

That is tough. There are other parts of the country with public lands that do not charge for hunting.
I know, you are where you are and considering moving to hunt probably would not be feasible.

 

[markj]

Public land closed for hunting in tx? best move to Iowa we have a few acres here to hunt yet.

I see the same trend, whole counties with private land leased to a huge club, join the club and still have to pay to hunt there. Land we used to hunt for free in the 70s and 80s. Younger farmers seem to be money centric, their parents were not like that.

 

[.284]

You know in many ways hunting has become more of a business than a sport. TV shows, magazines, and the major outdoors retailers have people convinced that a guy can't be successful without investing a small fortune in equipment..........scents, scent control, feeders, food plots, minerals, cameras, calls, rattling bags, blinds, stands, and so on. Now, I'm not saying that I don't use some of these items.....I do. But jeez, whatever happened to good old fashioned woodsmanship?

And yes it sucks that you can't even go hunting without paying.....really sucks. Again, I say this a product of shows like "The Bucks of Tecomoney". Farmers no longer let guys come on their property to help control crop damage like back in the day. Part of this is the fault of hunters disregard for the property owner. But, a big part has to do with the income potential for the land owner. They know what those ranches get for deer hunts.

I am fortunate that Michigan is blessed with many acres of huntable federal and state land. However, I am cursed in that if I want to hunt private land I will most likely have to pay for a lease.

Good luck buddy. I truely hope you can find somewhere to hunt.

 

[hogdogs]

Florida has a good bit of WMA public access land. Even for an out of state mitt full of permits, you would be able to hunt the whole deer season for around that weekend fee you quoted... Minus fuel and expenses of course.

And after a couple phone calls, I often can help with some of that too...
Brent

 

[lefteyedom]

It is the Sport of Kings and Land Barrons. Even in Wyoming if you want a trophy animal you are going have to spend some real money. Cow Elk, Does and Fawns you can still hunt them with out putting out a load of cash.

Yes there is public land but it is expensive to get to, and often you are going to pay a trespass fee to get there.

 

[davlandrum]

I don't think that status is new in Texas. There has always been very little public land.

 

[shafter]

Thats rough man I feel for you. At least around here there's still plenty of places to hunt besides the family property.

Someone mentioned that hunting is turning into an industry and not a sport and they're absolutely right. Today it's all about technology to improve the hunt. Not going to happen to me.
A good pair of boots, wool pants and jacket, knife, compass, and a good Winchester is where it's at for me. I don't need the entire contents of Cabelas to go out and have a good time

 

[Tomas]

There seems to be a lot of public land to hunt here in WA. Still, the dreaded 'gates' are popping up everywhere. We have a late blacktail season starting the 18th of Nov., and the gate is now closed where I hunt. It's kind of a bummer because I can't get to some favorite spots without hiking 6 or 7 miles now - all up hill. Still, at least all the deer in the area are being left alone right now, and I still know some nice areas in there only a mile or two in. Idaho, where I still do most of my major hunting, seems to have a lot still, but those dreaded ski lodges are a concern there.

It does seem like it's becoming more for rich people. I've never paid to gain access to land, or paid to be 'guided', always preferring to do it myself. I choose research and patience, and striking out if necessary, over paying for anything I don't need to. I get a lot of satisfaction when I get one. Private land with fat, happy deer and elk, with no wolves or bears or other hunters to pressure them, ain't hunting to me.

We had some hunters drive all the way up from southern CA to our Idaho camp this year. They had no contingency plans if their camp was occupied. We were in "their" camp. They were rich, and snotty, and their guide asked if we would move (imagine?). We told them to shove it, so they literally pitched camp 20 yards from ours, where there were hundreds of other places to camp, all over the national forest. I let my ****** off akita bark at them for 2 hours while they stumbled around in the dark with their cool green flashlights, trying to figure out where to put their horses and wall tents in the rain. We laughed as they chopped down and burned **** fir in their wall tents, while our wall of red fir kept us toasty our our camp fire - we sleep in cheap campers and 3 season tents wrapped in tarps in case in rains or snows. They went into town the second day and all bought $300 deer tags, so they could hunt ONE DAY! Needless to say, they harvested no deer, no elk, and were rained on the whole time - all the while they could see our 'head' tree with four elk and seven deer all hanging from our numerous meat poles.

All I can suggest is get in shape and plan on driving a ways. If you get one, you'll likely have had to hike a long way in, so it'll be a long a tiring drag to get it out. Also, because you won't know the area well, at first anyways, you will likely strike out, or see so many other hunters you'll never want to go back. It's taken me years, and many wasted trips to find places to hunt here. It's still not great in WA (Idaho is awesome, though), but at least I'm out in the woods.

good luck, and keep trying!

 

[dwwhite]

For those that would condemn the "greedy" farmers or landowners, take a minute to look at it from their perspective.

Maintaining land costs money, lots of it. Fences need fixing, water lines need repairs, there's always weed and brush control, outbuildings are in constant need of maintenance etc. Depending on the state and the land use there may also be property taxes to be paid.

There's also an inconvenience factor to be accounted for. Naturally NONE of US ever cause any problems, but most landowners who have ever let anyone hunt on their place have had an issue. We've had gates left open, fences pushed down, pastures torn up by 4x4's, and most often, lots of litter in the form of beer bottles, cans, wrappers and shotgun hulls. Granted, the folks that do this are in a minority, but it is enough to sour you on letting anyone come out, especially for free.

Another consideration is landowner liability. Again, NONE of US would ever think of suing a landowner, but what happens when Jim, who you've allowed to hunt decides it's okay to invite his brother Joe, just this once. Joe says, well, I've got custody of the kids this weekend, so they'll come too. Now Johnny, who's eight, breaks his arm while playing on MY abandoned farm equipment. Johnny's Mom freaks out when she gets the call from the emergency room that he's got a broken arm or worse. She contacts a lawyer who convinces her to sue. She's not going after ex-husband, or ex-brother in law, who don't have two dimes to rub together, she's going after the "Rich Rancher" who's got a couple of sections valued at $2000 an acre. Never mind that the landowner may be barely scraping by raising a few goats or cows, he's the one with the high net worth. On paper, he's a multi-millionaire, and an easy target.

Also, most hold harmless agreements signed by guests, IF signed by guests, are worth the paper their printed on, and that's it.

Now we're talking about additional insurance policies if you're going to have hunters on the place. I can't afford the insurance if I don't have a revenue stream to pay for it.

Another comparison to make is that of a family with a garage apartment. None of us would expect them to accept anyone off of the street for free, or even a below market rent. They have an asset that is worth a certain price on the open market, and should be expected to maximize their profits. So should the landowner who has a marketable asset, i.e. huntable land. Many of these folks are farming and ranching families who have a tough enough time as it is, and the additional cash flow from a hunting lease can often make the difference between keeping the family place or not.

Sorry for the rant, but I'm afraid that this subject is a bit of a sore spot for me.

 

[sc outdoorsman]

Almost all of the public land in SC is National Forest. None is in my county so I would need to drive around an hour or more to hunt it after paying $25 additional for a license. I used to hunt this land every year and did fairly well.
There used to be about twice as much public land, but the timber companies started leasing all their land to hunt cubs. They came out better than the tax break the gov't was giving them.
That brings me to the other option. Groups will get together and lease tracks of land and form hunt clubs. These generally run between $500-$2500 a year depending on where it is and how it's run. Most hunters choose this route if they have no other option.
There are also commercial hunting operations that are extremely expensive in comparison.

 

[LSnSC]

dwhwite makes an excellent point. Times and society have changed. There is no way I would take the risk of letting someone I dont know hunt any of my property these days. Common sense is very uncommon and there is an trial lawyer hiding under every rock it seems. Hunting leases and liability insurance are SOP for private access in my neck of the woods.

 

[hickstick_10]

I dont mind letting fellas hunt on my section, provided the hunt like a man. I would never EVER dream of charging someone to hunt, although other neighboors have tried to, I think its despicable.

That means no pea bags hanging all over the damn place, no corn piles and the quad stays home. Why? Its pretty obvious I dont want pasture torn up or quad trails cut through the brush. And Im letting the man hunt on my land, not fricken sit there and shoot deer like its a carnival game. Maybe its harder to find deer elsewhere but all a man has to do to see a moose or deer here is get up and sight tight early in the morning. I don't feel at easy with a man toting a scoped rifle around my property who can't, or wont drag some meat to his truck. If hes to fat or lazy to do that, then he shouldn't be hunting anyways and I do my part to make sure he doesn't hunt on my land.

One man came with his old smoke pole flinter and asked permission, I was so tickled at the sight of it he gets first dibs at season opening. He gets a deer every once in awhile, and the land to himself while hes hunting.

Sorry but hunters have a LONG way to go to improve their image in the public (landowners) eye. All you have to do is turn on the hunting channel to see whats ruining our image.

And for those who are trying to butter someone up for permission, there's no harm in offering to help with some chores, its what neighbors do.

 

[Doyle]

Florida has a good bit of WMA public access land.

Brent, that is true up in the northern part of the state, but here in the southwest, we have a severe shortage of WMA's. The nearest to me is about a 2 hour drive and it is so tightly controlled that it isn't worth the drive. I can't wait to move back to GA or north FL.

 

[oneounceload]

NM should have plenty of BLM land - that is public, open land. There is also Colorado and the other Western states with plenty of open public land for hunting

 

[ritepath]

Basically my whole county is national forest and farms....It's a hunters dream.

http://www.zipmap.net/Virginia/Bland_County.htm

You have to be in good with the farmers like anywhere I suppose.

 

[kaylorinhi]

Northeastern NC

Up here in Currituck/Camden area it is almost all private land but I have yet to be turned down, certain restrictions as to time and amount yes but no blatant no, YET! I started with some of the guys that worked with my GF and now getting permission of my own! Must be tough out there brother sorry for you guys!

 

[Cowboy_mo]

We are fortunate in MO to have many acres of conservation owned land and National Forest open to hunting. Much of our regular farm land has been leased out to individuals, clubs, etc. and I can tell you the rates being charged are far above the cost of "additional liability insurance" and in most cases a reasonable profit. But hey, the rich guys are willing to pay it so you can't really blame the farmers for charging it.

It is a shame that a few people who don't clean up their trash, don't respect the landowner's property, and are basically jerks have ruined the 'free' access to private property.

 

[sserdlihc]

I am not rich by any stretch of the imagination, but I hunt several pieces of land at no charge to me at all. I just share the wealth of the kill whenever we cook a hash or something.

Of course I could lease some land, but I kill enough deer every year that it would be a waste of money for me.

 

[Red_Eagle]

What I liked in NY was, if a land owner gave you access, he was shielded from liability if you got hurt. If they charged you for access they were liable just like any other business.