Ok so i will start by saying i am a member of many different forums on other topics, and i know forum members in general get tired of basic Q&A type stuff they have answered 1,000 times before so i will go ahead and apologize now for all my newbie questions, and for the fact that this is going to be a long post.

I will tell you a little about me to give you some idea of my experince. I am orginally from MI We moved alot when i was growing up. I did most my growing up in North Ga from 2nd grade to Highschool. My Dad took me on trips outdoors with him as soon as i was old enough to. Dad wasn't and still isnt much of a hunter. He knows how and has taken me out for some squirrel hunting over the years as well as Dove and most recently a pheasent tower shoot. Dad is mostly a fisherman and has thaught me alot about fishing over the years we get out at least twice a month together here in the Tampa Bay Area.

Majority of my hunting experince was actually taught to me by my bestfriends Dad. Gene is a die hard hunter who spends the entire deer season in the woods including being gone for thanksgiving, and christmas. He allways took us out during Doe days would show us how to look for signs, pick a good stand which was allways on the ground at the base of a tree, and talk to us about safety, and taking care of nature while we where there.

I have never shot a Deer or seen one while holding a firearm. I havent been Deer hunting since he last took me in my teens back before i found two legged deer (Woman) more intresting than sitting in the woods freezing my butt off. Now i am a Daddy and i want to pass on the enjoyment of the outdoors, Hunting, Camping, and everything that goes with it on to my children. I fish 2 days a week and enjoy taking my children out for those experinces. I have done alot of camping, canoeing, hiking. I know how to handle myself in the woods. I have experince with firearms, and Compound Bows. Now that yall have that history on me on to my questions.

I am currently looking at places to Hunt.
WMA's, and National Forest.
Howdo i go about choosing a place to hunt? I would prefer a place where my inexperince wouldn't pose a problem for the more experinced hunters around me.For exampleincroching on others hunting areas.

Where can i learn to field dress a deer? Are you required to before taking it to the place to have it processed?

Where can i go to practice with my rifle? Most gun ranges do not have faclitys for rifle practice.

How does a Hunting lease work?

Anything else yall can think of would be greatly appricated.

I am currently looking at places to Hunt.
WMA's, and National Forest.
Howdo i go about choosing a place to hunt? I would prefer a place where my inexperince wouldn't pose a problem for the more experinced hunters around me.For exampleincroching on others hunting areas.

Where can i learn to field dress a deer? Are you required to before taking it to the place to have it processed?

Where can i go to practice with my rifle? Most gun ranges do not have faclitys for rifle practice.

How does a Hunting lease work?

Anything else yall can think of would be greatly appricated.

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i'm not sure which state you are wanting this information for but if you locate your local game commission's web site....it should have all your states W.M.A's on it with all the info for each W.M.A.

i would rather teach hunting on private land/lease. however if your like me and do not have access to private hunting land or can't afford a lease...W.M.A.'s aren't a terrible place to learn. the only drawback is the over crowding of some W.M.A.'s. just make sure to where orange and be aware of other hunters.

i 'm not sure of a web site to teach you about field dressing. i learned from my father.

i dunno about your area but we have a public gun range that has a max distance of 100 yards. if you can't find a place like this, find someone with a chunk of property that will grant you access to shoot.

leases are basically you renting land to hunt. sometimes someone organizes a hunt club on leased land. they will pay the land owner for the hunting rights and divide that amount up between however many people he wants in the club. once a club is formed, the organizer (club president) can set ground rules for harvest limits and sizes on game. even though it may be legal to shoot a small buck by law, the club rule may be it must have a certain number of "points" on each side of the rack. if it is violated, a club fine may be issued or they may be kicked out of the club.

I am in Tampa, FL.

Do you think it would be wise for me to join a hunt club willing to accept a inexperinced hunter.

Are there Hunt clubs out there willing to accept an inexperinced hunter and willing to teach them.

http://www.huntingnet.com/forum/tm.aspx?m=1733225&mpage=1&key=back%2cstrap ? Hope this helps a little. Sent you an email also.

Thanks Great Post. The email you sent was very helpful.

Dude, I'm from NE Georgia. Hall County actually. As for the field dressing question...my local deer cooler will gut your deer for you. They have guys that do it for 10$...well worth the price if you dont feel like gutting your own. Call the processor and ask him. WMAs can be good places to hunt according to the guys down at the DNR check station

However, here, we have to drag a deer up the side of a mountain...You may or may not be able to use a 4 wheeler.

Your State DNR website should answer WMA ?s...plus there is usually a regional office number on the site...they are usually very helpful.

Where in GA did you live?

i dunno of any local clubs here in florida. i hunt primarily Central Florida. there is a public gun range in the Ocala National Forest off of S.R. 40. this is where i sight in at and practice. go to this www.myfwc.com website to get W.M.A. information. when the page loads up, click on the "hunting" link on the left side of the page. here you can find ALL of Florida's W.M.A.'s and their rules and regulations. also, if you go to the "South" section, i have a thread started in there titled "Florida Bucks". these are pic's of bucks that i, family members or friends have taken off of W.M.A.'s. i have alot more pic's aswell, just haven't had alot of time to put them on here. i'll add some from time to time.

I went to grade school in Acworth thats in Cobb county near the Bartow County line. Then we moved to Woodstock in Cherokee county thats where i went to Middle, and High School.

I know where Hall is Mom lives in Forsyth over in Lathem town.

We used to Hunt the Big Oak down in Montecillo I think thats Jasper County.

Yeah i have been looking at the FWC website at WMA's in my area.

Thanks for the link and advice.

So once you pick a couple you may be intrested in. Do you spend time before season opens scouting the area out. How do you decide what part of the WMA to hunt? How do you know if your encroaching on an area another hunter allready hunts or plans to hunt? Does everybody get together to talk about who gets what piece or area of land there going to hunt. Or is it just kind of a free for all and hope you dont set up next to someone else.

i scout several W.M.A.'s year around. when you spend enough time in each W.M.A., you will eventually run in to and meet the hunters that also hunt that area. we also use "flagging" tape to mark an area we will be using. i usually put the dates i will be hunting on the tape with a black sharpie marker to let other hunters know when i will be in the area. this is a common courteousy task that alot of us practice. as you start to scout the different W.M.A.'s around, you'll will find your favorites. your favorites will be determined by the type of terrain the W.M.A. is. here in Central Florida we have everything from palmetto flats, to hardwoods, to swamps, to pastures, etc. once you get started hunting, you will take a liking to hunting certain places. i for one love hunting swamps for one major reason...most hunters hate walking/wading through water, fighting skeeters, etc. so this keeps them away, you'll notice the swamps are the less crowded area's. i might be heading to Jumper Creek one day this week (wed., thur. or fri.). i haven't decided yet which day. if you are off any of these 3 days and are willing to join me, let me know. i have personally never hunted this particular W.M.A. but i hear it has good deer and TONS of hogs.