Need Chicago area land for antlerless hunt
 

I am a newresident of the Chicagoland area needing a private land place for my stepson to hunt a deer for the gun season. Am hoping to find someone willing to let him on their land just to take a doe, as we failed to draw permits in this year's lottery.

He is 20 y/o,has never hunted before, and never even had a dad before to teach him. I am a serious hunter with 20 years experience, very responsible. Good teacher. All my priorIllinois hunting has been on public land, 90% archery. Am signing him up for hunter's ed, and taking him to a range this weekend to learn shooting.

We will put in for less desireable public land permits in the 2nd lottery, butit looks like they are all 2nd season. I am not all too familiar with the way Illinois does these gun lotteries, so I don't know our chances of drawing somethingin this 2nd lottery. I know county-wide permits are easily had if he hasa private land to hunt.

I owned land in Porter County, Indiana and let kids on there late season if they asked politely. Gave up after the abuses I expereienced. I know the big fees being paid for buck hunts, but have no idea if they charge for antlerless.

This plan may get busted anyway as he is going into the Marines. Just waiting on his green card, which may extend into 2009. We live in Kane County. Thanks.

Any advice on public land options would also be appreciated. Maybe I am missing something, but it looks like everything is on draws here.

RE: Need Chicago area land for antlerless hunt
 

Zim, I believe you have hunted Midewin before. What are the regulations there? I know they allow for shotgun and muzzleloader just not sure the details. I believe that passes become available this year on Monday, September 1st!

RE: Need Chicago area land for antlerless hunt
 

PM sent

RE: Need Chicago area land for antlerless hunt
 

PM sent

RE: Need Chicago area land for antlerless hunt
 

Zim I believe there is an over the counter antlerless hunt at Goose Lake Prarie/Heideke Lake area on state ground. If that does not work you can contact me via the information on my website www.agrirecland.com. I am a farm and recreational land broker and have some clients that I may be able to put you in contact with that would allow a second season or late season antlerless hunt.
Tom

RE: Need Chicago area land for antlerless hunt
 

Goose lake would be close for us. I saw the leftover tags list and saw they have a few on there as well.

Don K informed me my step-son actually does not need his green card or FOID to hunt this year due to a new one time apprentice hunter deal.I gave him the hunter's ed schedule at Gander Mountain so he will get his class in there this summer.

Thanks.

RE: Need Chicago area land for antlerless hunt
 

I'm not trying to start a fight here, but it is kind of interesting to note that you once owned private land and decided to close it off to young hunters because of abuses.But now you are asking other private landholders to openup their's to your kid. Not really knocking you, just noting some irony here.

RE: Need Chicago area land for antlerless hunt
 

What type of abuses?

RE: Need Chicago area land for antlerless hunt
 

The reason I mentioned that is because I am considerate and certainly know what landowner's don't want.

As to the abuses? Haha.

How much time do you have?

You probably wouldn't believe the stores I could tell.

RE: Need Chicago area land for antlerless hunt
 

We've got time. Do tell?

RE: Need Chicago area land for antlerless hunt
 

Ya, but I don't have time.

Here is a very abbreviated list. Out of the 11hunters I allowed on my land, I would allow only one back on there.

1. First dope was actually a trespasser from the neighbor's, who had not shot a gun before, took a 200 yard shot with a shotgunat a deer he could not identify as a buck or doe (buck only then). Shot dropped so much it broke the fawn's lower leg. Hunter wandered around in thecenter of my 45 acres until I confronted him. He expalined what happened and I found the blood trail, followed it until finding the bedded fawn. I told him to dispatch it and he was scared, could not shoot with the poor fawn looking at him point blank. Claimed he did not know where to shoot him. I told him and made him shoot. Sent him on his way home.

Enough with trespassers, that is a whole nuther batch.

2. Allowed my cousin to bowhunt. He gutshot a small buck and did not bother to look for it beyond 100 yards.

3. Allowed abusiness friend on there. He bow shot a doe. Then had a small buck come out, so he then shot that. He told me about the buck and I helped him drag it out. Hedid not tell me about the doe until I heard he was bragging on a jobsite that he shot 2 deer on my place in one morning.My next time back there I found the doe's remains not 80 yards from where the buck fell. Nice, huh?

4. A kid called me and asked to muzzleloader hunt late season. I said OK. Only asked him I insisted he hunt ethically. He wounded and failed to recover a doe. After questioning found he shot offhand from 70-80 yards, open sighted,and he had not taken one practice shot with that gun that year. He looked for the doe for only 10 minutes even after finding a blood trail.

5. I made an agreement with the president of my outdoors club to swap exlusive full season hunting rights to my property in exchange he take me and my kids fishing on his boat out on Lake Michigan. It was his idea. He was to call me when a good bite was on in the Lake, preferrably in March when the cohos are easy for my kids to catch. He hunted my land both seasons and never called me once about fishing. Last year when I asked, he said the fishing never got to a good enough quality to take the kids.

6.I gave permission to another guy, person "A". Hehad a friend help him set stands. This friend knew I was adamant only person "A" had permission. Turns out this other guy had to be run off 3 times during gun season. He was helping himself to hunting my land.

7. That is all I have time for, but the list goes on and on and on. These are but a few.

I do not regret it though. Itmakes hunting public land in Illinois so much more tolerable. If I see someone there, no problem, as it's their land too! Hell, I actually have less problems now.

RE: Need Chicago area land for antlerless hunt
 

Wow, your land must have been Ground Zero for bad things. That's more stuff than i can remember happeningin my entire township back in Illinois over the years.

I might be able to set you up with something on private land, but it is WAY south of Chicago.

RE: Need Chicago area land for antlerless hunt
 

I did not exaggerate anything. If anything I smoothed it over.

You should hear my trespassing/abuse stories! Haftatell one. Thislonghair hippie unemployed wifebeater son-in-law-of-neightbor walks out in the middle of my woods and unloads his Ruger automatic handgun into my hillside for fun, while me and a friend are hunting nearby. RIGHT under a no trespassing sign. My buddy peeked out from behind his tree to be looking into the barrel of this gun going off rapid paced. He was only 40 yards away! My buddy was so scared he jumped down from the stand, was only 12' high.Thing is, he had an artificial hip. No lie.

This dope was actually arrogant when confronted. Unreal.

8 years earlier he had dumped 50% of the parts to his Volkswagon at that exact same spot in my woods. Transmission, dashboard, fender, etc.His father-in-law even admitted it.

My land was rural but there were surrounding small housing developments and such which resulted in many of these confrontations.

I sold most of this land due to a divorce, with only two 10 acre parcels remaining for sale. I have had better quality bucks on Illinois public land anyway.

RE: Need Chicago area land for antlerless hunt
 

Have to say of the hunters I granted permission to, the one that bothered me the most was that business friend who shot the doe, had to see it die from his stand, and left it anyway because of the buck. I would not have cared if he harvested 2 deer.Why just leave one without saying anything? I would have tagged it and utilized the meat with a landowner tag. No problem.

Then for him to actually brag about shooting 2 on one of my jobsites to other subs??? What was this guy thinking?

Also, not one of the 11 guests ever did one single thing to show their appreciation.

RE: Need Chicago area land for antlerless hunt
 

I think that the closer you are to any big town or semi-rural housing developments the more trouble you are gonna have. My land is 10 miles from the closest town or semi-rural housing developments of any kind. So far fewer problems in terms of poaching and trespass of any kind.