If you have permission to hunt on private property you should be very grateful to the landowner. During last year’s buck season I had a lot of time to ponder the subject. Unlike most of you, bucks weren’t strolling past my stand to any great degree–and if they were, I was probably helping somebody drag theirs out.
However, during some of the quiet time in my stand I began to think just how lucky I was to be there. My sons and I hunt on private property which we don’t own. It’s not a big parcel of land. There’s room for three and possibly four people to hunt. But it has always been productive with loads of mast and plenty of deer. We’ve killed multiple whitetails on this piece of property for the past decade.
The landowner has been gracious and always given us the privilege of hunting there. The couple who owns the property does not hunt and for quite a while weren’t interested in letting anybody on the land. They raise horses on the farm and have forever worried about irresponsible people making errant shots toward their home and livestock.
The story of how I gained permission is interesting. When we moved to the
Over time, I’ve always been very careful about the land. I’ve stressed to the boys we are guests here. We don’t invite others to join us. We close all gates. We pick up all trash. We honor their wishes if they don’t want deer dragged into the yard. For a few years, we even parked on the far end of the property as requested. I’ve built a couple of tree stands on the farm and have put up several store-bought models. I always asked permission before doing anything. The landowner allowed me to drive up to the top of the hill and now even offers to haul the stands on his UTV. He keeps an eye on things and lets us know about the deer he’s observed and whether anybody has messed with the stands we’ve left there during the off season.
Through 11-years the landowners have always been gracious hosts. We’ve always been allowed back every fall. We’ve shared venison with them and they’ve even allowed us to turkey hunt and squirrel hunt on their land. I couldn’t be more pleased or grateful with our relationship. I believe they feel the same way.
I get angry when I see abuse of hunting privileges. I cringe when I see posted signs, since the former typically leads to the latter. Just because land isn’t posted is no welcome mat. Even if you can hunt land that isn’t yours always ask—and get written permission…it is the law after all. Broken fences, open gates, litter, signs with bullet holes, uncollected game, rutted fields with ATV and truck tires, and a general lack of regard for somebody else’s property are not the image hunters need.
It doesn’t take a lot of effort to be nice and considerate of other people’s things. I believe most of us were taught that lesson before we even started school.