If they are friends, it will be hard for you to boot them off. I think you should give them the ultimatum of doing their share of the work or they won't hunt next year. In the mean time, maybe you can come up with a few excuses of your own to limit thier time in the woods this year. Something else to consider is this, how much was your time in the offseason worth? Let your friends hunt and they can be responsible for most or all of the costs for the year. Let them pay for feed, fuel, meat processing, maybe even a shoulder mount, etc. Hit em in the pocetbook and they may want to get off thier butts next year.

Sounds like good suggestions. Now is a tough time to boot them, but I would make it clear about next year.

Drag your feet a little. Make them wait until the later part of the season. The "workers" should get the time to get the deer first and if there is time remaining in the season, then take them. Then would be a perfect time to say if you ever want to hunt here again, the dues need to be paid.

I would try and talk it over with them.... Hard subject to bring up - you say they are friends, so I'm also guessing you would liketo not be a total jerk about it? Butlending a handis the least they can do - time theystart pulling their weight.

Do you ride up together - to your hunting spot? If so, thatcould be a nice time to have a "heart to heart" discussion with them about it. With all the work that needs to be done, say that you and the other owner have agreed that you needsome help from the people that hunt the land..... No help, no hunting..... In a kinda nice way you can tell them they better save some weekends to help out, if they want to hunt next year

Some thing along the lines of earn a buck might work.[:-]

A day of labor for a week of hunting or how ever you want to work it out. Or if they don't want to spend the day helping they can can buy the day for $100.00 bucks.To earn their week of hunting.
Some people have no Idea how much work & money it takes to maintain food plots.Taxes and tractor fuel & seed all add up.
They Wanna playthey gotta pay.

My question is, how good of friends are they? I'd be honest andgive them an ultimatum....tell them the landowner is pissed at their lack of accountability, and he feels like they are moochers. Make em feel a little pain this year, like NO HUNTING the first week or whatever - something. Maybe it will help, and if it doesn't....bye bye. Whatever you decide, don't let THEMend up affectingYOU andyour situation with the landowner. Honestly....I've disassociated myself with the slackers over the years, I don't have time for it. Thats in all areas of life, business, hunting, sports, whatever. Everyone should be willing to pull their weight. Good luck, sorry to hear you're in that spot.

I wasn't going to cut them out this year.I think that would be wrong on many levels. I did tell them if I'm not there they can't hunt.That kind of pissed 1 guy off because he had plans to hunt 1 weekend that I'm not going.

I thought that next year I wouldn't call anybody and see if they call me. If they call and come up to help then they could hunt. If they don't call until September well I guess they will be out of luck.

I dont care what anyone says...hunting is NOT a leizure sport. Tell em its time to straighten up or get the heck out.

Brutal honesty. It's not always easy, but it's the easiest way to get something right.

Not a chance.

They are big boys. They can take care of themselves. Like someone else said, "you reap what you sow".