Well yesterday was my first day of the season in Iowa. It opened on Sat but I was working as usual.

So after waiting since Jan. to get back in the woods myself and 2 hunting partners leave from my house at 4:30 am. We drive to one of the three farms we hunt in NE Iowa, ready for a great day.
We pull in and what do we see nailed to the barn by where we park?
NO HUNTING WITHOUT PERMISSION sign with a phone number, an out of state phone number!
In the past, the guy that owned the land, Teddy, lived right there. We went up about 3 weeks ago to put up another stand and a ground blind but no one was home.
We have hunted here for 5 years. We were not sure what to do but without permission of course we can't hunt here.
It's 6 am in the morning so we can't call.
We go to a farm, next door that we have permission to hunt on and drop off Jason to go to one of the stands there.
Larry and I are going to go to another farm about 3 miles away.
We pull in there and the owners son is out hunting there, rats!

Back to farm 2 we go. We only have 2 stands there so I take that one and Larry goes back to Teddy's to try to catch him and/or call the number when it get's to be about 8am.

I saw some deer driving in but nothing while on stand. Jason, who went in first saw a doe and a 8 point but no shots.

I pick up Jason at 10am and go back to Teddy's. larry says Teddy insn't home and he called and just got an answering machine.
We are bummed, this one out of the 3 farms we have hunted in this area is our favorite and most productive. To lose rights to hunt there would just suck.

I tell Larry to try the number again. He does and gets ahold of the husband. Seems 2 of Teddy's daughters have bought the land, live in MN.
Teddy is at a nursing home but is doing fine.
The husband says we will need to talk to his wife to obtain permission. The good news is she is on her way to check the farm and see her Dad.

Larry is still on the phone when she pulls in!

We have a nice chat with her and she gets our names and phone numbers and what trucks we drive. WE ARE BACK IN!

I am going to send her and her husband a nice care package of deer sausage tomorrow with a thank you card.

We didn't shoot any deer yesterday but at least we maintained permission to hunt one of our favorie spots!

Thats great that you're back in..but you should always secure your permissions well in advance of the season opening.

Good idea on the care package. I would suggest a cash token as well. I always butter my farmers hand at the beginning of season. I have been in the same spot for 11 years. I give him the first deer to. Processed and ready to cook. Glad your back in.

That is great news. I am glad to see that things worked out for you in the end. I know what it is to have a prime hunting spot taken away from you.

Yes, lesson learned.
Even if it takes several trips to catch the landowner.

I'm just happy we can still hunt there!

You might shoulda thought about that BEFORE opening day. Just a thought. Glad to hear it worked out, but you were LUCKY

Well we've been hunting there for many years now so it never occured to us that this kind of thing would happen.
We went up there about 3 weeks ago to check with Teddy and we just figured he wasn't home that day.

Lesson learned, get phone numbers so you can call.
I prefer in person visits but a phone number would be good. Of course we couldn't have got him on the phone either. He doesn't live there anymore.