ORIGINAL: quiksilver

Question for you guys who are from states with little public land: Do you think that the lack of public land keeps your resident huntingpopulation at reasonable levels?

I think it's just too much hassle for an average joe to run himself ragged banging on doors and begging for access when there's no public hunt easily available.Most weekend warriors don't want topay through the nose for a lease. I'm starting tothink thatthis actuallykeeps the hunter numbers in check. These people simply select a different hobby - one that has fewer barriers to entry. Or they marry the farmer's daughter.

Illinois is an interesting scenario, b/c the deer quality and the demand for non-resident alien invasion has driven up everybody's price. Simple supply/demand.

InPA, where wehave always had massive amounts of public land - we've always had ample supply to meet the rising demand. Now thatthe public land is getting overhunted and deer populations are thin, the orange army is migrating from the public land and banging on farmers' doors (or they just trespass w/o permission). Simply put, there's just not enoughavailable private land to meet the burgeoning demand. Private landowners are getting fed up with the hassle and the litter and the trespassing and the recklessness - so they're slamming the door.

Our public land is still there, but it's less attractive b/c everybody now wants to see 10 deer per sit, and shoot a PY deer. On public land, that's not easy. Big buck mania is definitely a contributing force.

Ryan: "Perfect Storm" is a good way to describe what's happening here.