I hesitate to type what I am about to. It can be controversial.
Several years ago I was hunting some ground down the road from me. I made efforts to locate the land owner next door. He lives out of town. I was granted permission to recover deer on his property. That is all I wanted. Later I asked permission to shed hunt. He granted it. Over the course of 6-8yrs we became friends. Later I asked permission to coyote hunt. He said "Yes, but you also have to shoot any raccoons around my barns/garden/house, and groundhogs." This turned into him asking small favors. I would pull in and out of his driveway in the winter to make it look like someone was there. One night his wife was in town and he was out of town. She heard some noises around 10pm. He asked me to go check it out. I did without hesitation. At this point we have become friends. I was granted permission to hunt deer there last year and this year. NOBODY had hunted the property for decades prior to this. Great, right? Sure. For me it has been great. I gained new ground to hunt. More importantly, I have made new friends. They plan on retiring here and I look forward to keeping them as friends and neighbors in the future. They are genuinely good people.
Many times this is how permission to a property is gained. Years of gaining trust. Permission is maintained by keeping trespassers out, helping move some downed trees, maybe plowing their driveway. The downside to this? People who used to trespass or were never granted permission to hunt suddenly put a target on your back.
Next property: I grew up in the same neighborhood as these property owners. They watched me grow up. They buy a large parcel with old house and fix it up. Fast forward a couple decades and I was granted permission. Run some cameras. Alert them to some of the goings on at the property and verify what they suspected of trespassers. . . .Permission continues. Good or bad? It is good to have access to a couple prime properties. It is bad because the disrespectful people who were trespassing and hunting are outed. Suddenly, the very thing which helps land the property also gets a bad name for you. You work hard. You are honest. You have the trust of the land owners. You have the appreciation of the land owners for keeping an eye on the place while they are out of town. People get jealous. I was accused this year of calling the game warden for someone running deer. The person called me and asked me about it. I explained to him I do not have authority to call the game warden for trespassers as I do not own the property. I gave him the game wardens name and number and told him to call. I also contacted our local WO and gave him the name and number of the person who contacted me. Not sure if they ever spoke. It just disappoints me that someone would accuse me of such a thing. What also bothers me is I just contacted the land owner this week to let them know about a new tree stand on their property. I didn't hang it. He plans on removing it. Guess what will happen next? I will get accused of stealing it. The land owners were extremely appreciative. Keeping an eye on the place is exactly what they ask in return for hunting. Granted, their driveway generally gets plowed for free as well. lol
Every time a large buck is killed. . . Rumors fly. There are always naysayers. There cannot be a simple "That's great. Congrats!" There are always those who cannot be happy. To be honest, it is taking a lot of the fun out of it for me. The quest for big antlers is killing us. We continue to fight for access. We have rumors. People make up lies about someone who has had some success. It is simply disheartening. I don't care if I shoot a buck this year. If my son tags his first buck, nothing could top that in my eyes. I don't care if it is a spike or forkhorn. Watching him have success would be as good as it could get for me.
All I am getting at here is simple: Let's get along. Let's think before we accuse. Let's be appreciative for any time we have in the field and any deer we harvest to fill our freezers. Life is way too short. Big antlers are not worth it. They have created more anger, hatred, and hostility than they are supposed to. We need to remember why we are out there. Is it for big antlers or just to enjoy God's creation? I realize this is different for everyone. I enjoy both. But being out there is clearly a bigger bonus for me than anything. I realize many of the guys on this site, a very high percent in my opinion, are extremely ethical. Unfortunately, it only takes a couple to give us all a bad name. Hopefully a few lurking will read this and think twice. Be happy for others who have success. Maybe having a good heart will bring you some good fortune.
Several years ago I was hunting some ground down the road from me. I made efforts to locate the land owner next door. He lives out of town. I was granted permission to recover deer on his property. That is all I wanted. Later I asked permission to shed hunt. He granted it. Over the course of 6-8yrs we became friends. Later I asked permission to coyote hunt. He said "Yes, but you also have to shoot any raccoons around my barns/garden/house, and groundhogs." This turned into him asking small favors. I would pull in and out of his driveway in the winter to make it look like someone was there. One night his wife was in town and he was out of town. She heard some noises around 10pm. He asked me to go check it out. I did without hesitation. At this point we have become friends. I was granted permission to hunt deer there last year and this year. NOBODY had hunted the property for decades prior to this. Great, right? Sure. For me it has been great. I gained new ground to hunt. More importantly, I have made new friends. They plan on retiring here and I look forward to keeping them as friends and neighbors in the future. They are genuinely good people.
Many times this is how permission to a property is gained. Years of gaining trust. Permission is maintained by keeping trespassers out, helping move some downed trees, maybe plowing their driveway. The downside to this? People who used to trespass or were never granted permission to hunt suddenly put a target on your back.
Next property: I grew up in the same neighborhood as these property owners. They watched me grow up. They buy a large parcel with old house and fix it up. Fast forward a couple decades and I was granted permission. Run some cameras. Alert them to some of the goings on at the property and verify what they suspected of trespassers. . . .Permission continues. Good or bad? It is good to have access to a couple prime properties. It is bad because the disrespectful people who were trespassing and hunting are outed. Suddenly, the very thing which helps land the property also gets a bad name for you. You work hard. You are honest. You have the trust of the land owners. You have the appreciation of the land owners for keeping an eye on the place while they are out of town. People get jealous. I was accused this year of calling the game warden for someone running deer. The person called me and asked me about it. I explained to him I do not have authority to call the game warden for trespassers as I do not own the property. I gave him the game wardens name and number and told him to call. I also contacted our local WO and gave him the name and number of the person who contacted me. Not sure if they ever spoke. It just disappoints me that someone would accuse me of such a thing. What also bothers me is I just contacted the land owner this week to let them know about a new tree stand on their property. I didn't hang it. He plans on removing it. Guess what will happen next? I will get accused of stealing it. The land owners were extremely appreciative. Keeping an eye on the place is exactly what they ask in return for hunting. Granted, their driveway generally gets plowed for free as well. lol
Every time a large buck is killed. . . Rumors fly. There are always naysayers. There cannot be a simple "That's great. Congrats!" There are always those who cannot be happy. To be honest, it is taking a lot of the fun out of it for me. The quest for big antlers is killing us. We continue to fight for access. We have rumors. People make up lies about someone who has had some success. It is simply disheartening. I don't care if I shoot a buck this year. If my son tags his first buck, nothing could top that in my eyes. I don't care if it is a spike or forkhorn. Watching him have success would be as good as it could get for me.
All I am getting at here is simple: Let's get along. Let's think before we accuse. Let's be appreciative for any time we have in the field and any deer we harvest to fill our freezers. Life is way too short. Big antlers are not worth it. They have created more anger, hatred, and hostility than they are supposed to. We need to remember why we are out there. Is it for big antlers or just to enjoy God's creation? I realize this is different for everyone. I enjoy both. But being out there is clearly a bigger bonus for me than anything. I realize many of the guys on this site, a very high percent in my opinion, are extremely ethical. Unfortunately, it only takes a couple to give us all a bad name. Hopefully a few lurking will read this and think twice. Be happy for others who have success. Maybe having a good heart will bring you some good fortune.
