I Can't Believe This Crap!
 

I just received my dues notice for this years hunting season. The land owner doubled our dues. I was paying $250.00 per year for deer and turkey hunting on 250 acres of land. Now, all of a sudden he went up to $500.00. I haven't had a chance to talk to any of the other members, but I smell a rat. I don't know if we had a drop in members to cause the dues to go up or if someone has made a substantial offer on the land.

This really bites!![:@] Sorry for the rant but my non hunting co workers just don't get it[:o]

The Topic has been revised - Lets keep it above board and clean

Cloudwalker's Basecamp

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

Join the club! I feel your pain!!!!!
Texas, even East Texas hunting club dues have doubled over the last couple of years! I guess its just a sign of the times, and/or supply vs. demand!
Worse, is that on "good" clubs/leases, the more you improve the place, the more likely it is that someone with more money will come along and out-bid you for hunting rights!

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

a bit high, how many hunters,10 to 12 dollars an acre for my area is average, but do know of land thats cheaper an acre, hunting is all about a dollars these days, good luck

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

Consider yourself lucky to be able to still hunt the land. You were getting it dirt cheap at $250 anyways... Everything that has a price tag ends up going up...

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

Two dollars per acre would be low for a lease agreement here , our average is $-6 for good land . If possible renegotiate your lease agreement to include a price control measure .

This would also be a good time to begin having your club look seriously at purchasing some land , leasing is as cheap now as it's ever gonna get , and your only real defense against rising prices is to buy now while the land values are still low enough to afford it . If you have enough members and the credit clout this would be your best bet . Another attractive feature of purchasing is that if the plot you buy has enough clear land for planting you could not only lease that part of it to local farmers for planting , but also get them to do all of your soil sampling , fertilizing , and food plot planting for you as part of the agreement . The lease payments they give you would also help to defray the property taxes .

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

we're payin' $750 for ours...but we have 990 acres.
i'd be a lil upset and would definitely get to the bottom of it.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

tht blows

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

I'm in two clubs this year. One is $1500 and the other is $2400. I will definitely drop one next year. I have some private leases and some I own that is more than enough.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

I myself dont see that as a bad price.2 dollars an acre thats not bad at all.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

sign of the times.pay it or dont hunt

RE: I Can't Believe This ..Crap!
 

Wow,I have never paid for hunting on land and I can't relate. I guessI am spoiled;I have two farms that I hunt and the landowners ASKED me if I wanted to hunt them and me and Hoytgirl have sole permission.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

The club I was in for 3yrs was $500 X 70 members on 1600acres owned by Proctor & Gamble and it was next to San Pedro WMA which is 55,000 acres.

On the last day of the third yearit went to $800 and I said Adios!

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

cardeer hit the nail on the head, sadly.[&o]

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

I would have expected better than that from you Cardeer , Frankly , you disappoint me with that attitude since you're a "self sufficient" kind of guy .

I haven't given up on the concept of free hunting , personally . I still go out and solicit free hunting and am granted access to nearly every place that I've asked permission from . Some of you really depress me with your attitudes , it's obvious to me that some of you have sat on your rumps and haven't even tried to get access , your talk of leasing is all too telling . Leasing is the lazy man's way of getting what you want , and it sickens me . Is bailing a little hay just too much to ask ? Are you too proud to string fence ? God forbid that you should earn "free" access , you might break a nail or something . Go ahead , make the leasing agents job easier by waving dollars , next year you'll be competing head to head with them and they'll win . Contribute to the monster and it will surely grow . Or you could do like me and trade your sweat for access , you'd be surprised by how many farmers respect that more than a buck .

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

I would pay and be happy with that price. My club sold out to developers and I can't find another one thay are all full and have a waiting list[&o]

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

Pretty much unheard of up here. Everything is "free" with the odd guy leasing something. That means one guy gives the landowner a few hundred bucks for exclusivety. That would really suck if it came to that around here. It's a tough go getting spots but if you get connected then you're off and usually have more than you can hunt. $0 an acre and a bottle at X-mas, some meat after the season and that's it.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

It sure makes me gratefull to be able to hunt thousands of acres of private land for free since it is Illegal to charge any feefor hunting access in Alberta or Saskatchewan.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

never had to pay to hunt anywhere i have hunted. i guess i should consider myself lucky. WOW ! ! paying to hunt someones land.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

Yes, I would consider you one of the lucking ones, here in my parts of the woods all the land is own by big timber com. and thay make you pay and than some of them will came in and cut trees doing hunting season. But you still have to beone of the lucking ones to just get in to a club that you don't have to dive for two hr. to get too. We do have some free land to hunt (WMA) but there are so many hunters that it is not safe its ok to hunt them doing bow season butI will not hunt it doing gun season.And it's so not easy to find people that will just let you hunt for free or pay for it I was told know two times just today. I will not give up!

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

I feel lucky, we pay $485.00 for 8 guys and 800 acres starting at my back door. hardly ever run in to one of the other hunters.
Dan

RE: I Can't Believe This ...Crap!
 

WOW!!! That is unbelieveably high. I only pay $400 for 3500 acres on the Eastern Shore. Is that a typo or is it really only 250 acres? Unless you are stuck on this spot I would dump that club.I hunt in Northeast North Carolina as well and some of the dues are high $550 at one cluband $850 at another but the first club is around 3600 acres and the second is 15,000 acres. There dues are based on a set price per acre and # of members. The price per acre on logging land has gone up considerably in the past 5 years from$3-$4 dollars per acre to up to $7 acre in some areas. Your situation smells like greed on somebodies part.Go to N.C Dept. of Game and Inland Fisheries site and they list thousands of public access acres forvery low fees, that's assuming you are even talking about N.C. based on your info to the left of the post. I have found some honey holes on public land, ecspecially military installments, if you can get access.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

In response to this, it is a sign of the times. In some areas land is dominated by hunt clubs and the land that isn't is usually owned by someone who hunts it privately or has hadbad run ins with club hunters and are very hesitant to grant access, even to an individual hunter. However, that is life,if you want to hunt there is land to be hunted if you put in the work. Considering the fact that most states listWMA, State and National Forest land, Military installations, and other public access areas on the Department of Game websites you can do a lot of searching from in front of your computer. These sites usually contain info on fees, access requirements, seasons, and just about all other pertinent info. I hunt in VA a lot and www.vdgif.com, under the find game link, is just an example if you are interested in looking.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

I'd hunt public land way before I'd pay the prices some of you guys call normal , accepting it as inevitable only feeds the dragon . Some of the best hunts I've ever had were on small public patches and a nearby national forest , the competition was nearly non-existant and there were deer aplenty . Do the legwork and you can always find a place to hunt for nothing , I've done just that for a long time .

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

Public lands are great to hunt and often overlooked. I do maintain my membership at some clubs for reasons other than land. I have some great friends and great memories from club hunting. If you are fortunate enough to find a good one it can be well worth the investment. The club I hunt with most of the time only has 30 members and there are a lot of kids around my kids age learning to hunt and getting to spend some good time in the field with their parents and at the same time they have kids around to relate to and learn with. Off season events, hunt camp comradery(sp?), and people to share in the excitement/success of huntsis a good thing. Ecspecially if your trying to spark interest in a young hunter or new hunter.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

Well You asked for it!!!!!

You guys should never had started paying to hunt. You brought this all on your self. They started to try that up North here and all the sportsman clubs banded together and fought it and woulden't pay. I don't think we will see that come back at least in my life time. Our big problem is development seems like they are building every where. We won't pay but they may build us out of a place to hunt.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

We didn't start it. In the south, clubs and timber leases have been in place for decades. We have the same problem with development and losing land to hunt as anywhere else. Every area is different and until you understand the dynamics of hunting in a particular region it is impossible to imagine what it is like. Places like Indiana, Massachusettes, Maine, and other northern states are certainly different than where I am at and your hunting history and traditions are different. How different, Iwould not know becauseI have never had the oppurtunity to hunt up north or live therelong enough todevelop anunderstanding of those particular regions. Club dominatedareas and constant developmentare nothing new where I hunt (Southeast VA & Northeast N.C.)and at this point seemhard to change. Sometimes you have to sleep in the bed that is made, whether you made it or not.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

i would kill to only pay $500 a year for quality deer land.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

You can rest assure I know where you are comming from I lived in S.E. VA. for 12 years and hated the way the hunting was there every min. Clubs like Franklin hunting club. Frogg hunting club, Unitis and Sunbeam would give me a fit. I owned 14 ac. in S. Hampton Co. and they would treat it like it was theirs total disrespect. The average member no problem, the dog men,and the officers would run around the woods trying to cut the dogs off and if that ment going on my property so be it. Ya call the law on them and they were in the good ol boy network and give me a bunch of mouth garbage. An hour latter they would be right back. While the average member had to draw a stand number and not move from that stand or he would be fined the first time and thrown out the second time. All the time you have fools running around trying to cut them off. I had a lot of fun with my friends hunting there but 50% of the time the club would ruin it. And I tell you it wasen't just one club it was all of the above mentioned. And if you are a regular member of one of those clubs I feel bad for you. And if you are one of the bumms I mentioned shame on you. But to me thats what a VA, sportsman is. I would spend as much time in Rockbridge Co. hunting the mts. as much as possiable so I didn't have to deal with those bumm's on my own property. But as you must know the season up there is short so I could not hunt or deal with them. Anyway I sold that property to a state police officer so I thought they would get theirs but come to find out he was a member of their club and they ended up with it anyway. God I hate Va. So thats my story and the way it was. I know you have many more deer down there then we have here but you can keep every one I will stay up here and hunt my few deer and be happy. No dogs and when you run into another hunter you usually get a smile a hello and a hand shoke.By the way if you ever get up this way look me up I have property in Maine and Mass. and your more then welcome to hunt on it when ever you want. Good Luck Mike

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

I ma trying to find a place to hunt in KY. I have asked some neighbors and friends that hunt and the overwhelming response is.if you want it you have to pay for it.

The idea of a lease works great for land owners and since it now is a common thing and since people are willing to pay it's our only option in a lot of cases.[:@]

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

maybee the taxes went up on the land and they are just passing it onto you. thats what usually happens here in va. i pay $400 for one club and $435/for five years at another club.

RE: I Can't Believe This ...Crap!
 

It's not too late to rebel fellas(well , maybe it is in Texas;)) , dig your heels in and say "Hell no , I refuse to pay that !" .

If you go to enough doors and keep knocking you'll eventually find somewhere . Refuse to be ripped off , it works . If you absolutely "must" lease then at least be a smarter shopper . If one place is too much go to another until you find what you're looking for . Once you find a good spot that isn't currently locked up ask the landowner for a long term lease instead of an annual one . Think 20 years down the road and be prepared to pay for it or become a public land specialist . Publics can be surprising if you're wiling to do what it takes to get the most from them . Do like me , study topo maps at sites like TerraServer and find the smaller overlooked publics that others don't use , monster deer hide in amazingly small areas . Bigger publics can also yield great hunting if you just go deeper than the weekend warriors , most get very little traffic during weekdays for example . I personally love blind hunts , and doing some cyber scouting can put you where others don't or won't go . Buy a deer cart and a lightweight climber and get out there , the worst you'll lose is some weight .

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

I am knocking on doors but I am in an area that I am not too familiar with. How do you recommend that I find the right guy to talk to.

Do you just go to the nearest house to the land you are intrerested in and hope it's the owner?

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

My solution to the dilemma of ready access to hunting ground was to go in debt and buy a small patch of woods in southern Illinois. I also have permission to hunt another several hundred acres of land in the same area. However, i do feel sorry for people living in heavily populated areas where the price of land is outrageous and there are fewer people willing to let you hunt on their land. However, I agree with kevin that putting some effort into looking for folks that will let you hunt can pay off. You can buy plat books at any county courthouse that show the owners of every piece of land in the county. With that info, you can then start knocking on doors and asking. You will likely be told no a lot, but, you just need one yes.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

I feel for ya. 10 years ago, I didn't ever recall seeing land leased in Kansas. Now Dept. of Wildlife and Parks manages the hunting as an economic tool. I don't blame the landowners for leasing. It only benefits the non-hunting landowners.

I blame the Wildlife and Parks for letting it happen. Many, many poor decisions. Mostly all politcally decided with money initiatives.

I have hada few spots that have been leased away from me. Luckily there are still a few farmers that still let me hunt with any money exchange, by helping them out every once in a while. WhetherI help the farmerround up cattle, or set up irrigation. That's the way it should be, to get permission to hunt.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

I'm with yoy on this one CamoCop I will pay even more than that if I can found a place close so I did not have to drive 100miles just to hunt. huck the is not much I well not pay so I can hunt within 15 or 20 min of home that means more time for the family and with a season as long as Alabama's that means a lot.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

Kevin1 that idea soundsgreat except for the fact that if you say "hell no" there is a line of people behind you saying"hell yes" because of the shortage of land. Trust me Indiana and the area I hunt inSoutheast, Va/Northeast, NCmight as well be different worlds when it comes to land and hunting. Most leases are not landowners they are corporations (timber companies) and we all know what drives them. So if you are fortunate enogh to get a good lease and they raise the rates onyou upon renewal you have no power, it is pay or give up the land. And as hard as it is to find land most simply pay. There is no smart shopping usually because of the limited land and # of people looking.Kevin1 you areabsolutely right about the public lands and it is surprisingly easy to find some prime honey holes.As I find more and more public land I plan on eventually phasing out my club memberships except for my Eastern Shore honeyhole(giant deer) and an occasional guest visit at friends clubs.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

Interesting thread...I have seen both sides...I am fortunate enough that my family owns 3 farms in eastern NC...full of game...they are farmed, but we also manage the wildlife...its a great feeling to take friends there and see them kill their first deer, quail, duck, turkey, squirrel..whatever...I'm 50 and enjoy bringing others into the sport of hunting and fishing....Part of the experience is also cooking what we kill....

I also travelled quite a bit when I was in the corporate world...and have lived in 3 different states...Where I had to get out and find a place to hunt...If you put in the time and get to know the locals you can usually find a good place to hunt...Public lands can also be good...if you find the areas that aren't overcrowded....Fortunately I grew up farrming and working on farm equipment, so I bring a little more to the table than the average guy...If you start looking 2 weeks before the season...You will be left out....I have no problems with landowners asking for lease money...What is charged usually doesn't even pay the taxes on the land and most landowners have had bad experiences with slob hunters....So, if you don't want to pay...don't but don't blame the landowner... Would you let a stranger use your car for a month and bring it back low on gas, in need of repairs and a good cleaning???

The facts are that in the Southeast we are loosing tons of land each year due to develpment...Farm land outside of areas like Charlotte, Raleigh and Norfolk are being bought each and ever day for this purpose...It will be much tougher to find good land to hunt in the next 20 years....If you love to hunt it might be time to start looking for land to buy...As my dad used to say "They aren't making anymore land" and "A good farm only comes up for sale once in your lifetime"...He has been dead over 30 years...But these words still ring true.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

Maybe its just the part of the country where I grew up, but I don't recall any incidents of landowners having bad experiences with slob hunters, and I haven;t had any either. I think that a lot of damage to fences and fields done by drunk teenagers on 4-wheelers/4-wheel drive trucks gets blamed on hunters. Ditto for people going out into the country to dump trash. I'm not saying that hunters don;t do bad things occasionally, and I'm sure that some folks here will be happy to tell us about them. However, if you take a close look at many of the claims made by people about damage to property or other transgressions, it is usually attributable to folks other than hunters or legal hunters.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

Lets just say that we have....many times...and they were "hunters"...But I guess that should be another thread and I'm not sure open forums are the place to hang our dirty laundry.

RE: I Can't Believe This Shhi.....Crap!
 

When trying to get access to private land it's pretty much a numbers game , you knock on doors or approach the landowner in his yard(better) and politely ask to discuss it with him . Once you get a yes they will frequently reccomend you to fellow landowners , especially farmers . Offer to do some labor or snipe varmints for them , sometimes that can be worth more to them than cash .

My entire point was that you don't have to be one of the "say yes to any price" drones yourself , there are alternatives if you look for them . I've hunted many places totally free of charge , public and private , before I finally bought a house with a small amount of acreage . Other than a $4 per day entry fee at a local national forest I haven't been out any money , and I can get a season pass to that forest for only $25 . You seem to be making the same mistake that many others do in thinking that private land is the only good land , and that's just not true . Yes , I'm aware of the differences between hunting here and Virginia , that still doesn't preclude you from being more enterprising than those who just roll over and pay up . You don't have to be in a hunt club to hunt . Believe it or not they don't control all of the good land . You can still hunt for free or very little if you just look around , if I can so can you . Those who give up might as well start saving up to buy land , and where you live that may be even harder than finding a good lease . Start using your noodle instead of simply breaking out your wallet every year , yeah , it can be tough at first , but once you master saying no it comes a lot more natural . Let the suckers pay to hunt , as they crowd the private ground they're just driving more deer off of it every year . Guess where those deer go . ;)