Jeepnut

I’ve gotten permission to hunt private property from relatives & friends of the family in the past but have never asked someone I don’t know very well. I’m getting ready to talk to one of our neighbors & I think I have a pretty good case to present but I thought I’d ask for any other tips that might be helpful. I’ll try to keep this short but here’s a little background info.

For the past two years I have lived & work part-time on a 150 acre Sod Farm. The 2 guys that work there full time just got permission to hunt there 2 years ago but they aren’t out hunting very often and last year I was able to hunt there as well. Last fall after we seeded the fields, we noticed a lot of damage to the fields from the large number of deer in the area. We had a DNR officer come out to observe & inspect the damage & he told us that we really needed to reduce the population of the local deer herd. He gave us a few extra doe permits to use last season.

However, as you can probably imagine, there’s not a lot of cover to hunt on a sod farm. We are surrounded by wooded home sites (~10 acres each) on one side, a farm on the other side with a pretty large (~50 acres) section of woods between his fields and ours, and we are all bordered by a WMA on the back side. The wood line on the side with the homes is the property line, so there’s no real good place to hunt there. There are some really good hunting areas on the WMA but it doesn’t take long for the deer to get real skittish and sparse over there once the season starts (they all tend to go the the neighbors place). We do have a few fingers of woods that extend out from the neighboring farm into our fields. These areas tend to act as funnels and are great places to hunt. However, with 3 of us hunting out there it doesn’t take long to over hunt those areas. Unfortunately we weren’t very effective in reducing the herd last fall.

The guys have been telling me that the old farmer next door doesn’t let anyone hunt on his property. I’m 99% positive that no one has hunted there at least during the 2 years I’ve lived there. However, I just found out the other day that these guys have never actually asked to hunt over there. So I’m planning to go talk to him soon to find out. I’m going to tell him about the damage to our fields and the visit from the DNR officer last fall & how he told us we should reduce the number of does. And I’m going to explain that there aren’t many places to hunt on our property. He seems like a pretty nice guy. I wave to him when I’m out on the tractor & he always waves back. I stopped & talked to him once last summer & he was pretty friendly, just not very talkative. I always try to mow along his driveway when I’m out mowing the fields just to be nice.

So how would you approach this situation? I would like for all 3 of us to be able to hunt over there, but I don’t want to push my luck when I ask him for permission. I think I would feel funny asking for myself & 2 other people. But at the same time I don’t want to go over there with all 3 of us and overwhelm him. I think I may just go over with our farm manager since he’s the one that actually met with the DNR officer & may have more to add to that part of the story.

justhrowit

You just have to go over there and ask, PERIOD!!!! If he is against Guns, say that you will just bow hunt. Emphasize you will not harm his land or leave garbage everywhere. I think the important part is after you get permission. Don' t just disappear. Keep stopping by to say hi. If you get a deer from his property, offer him some meat. If you hang a trail camera, stop by and show him the pictures. Just don' t disappear. Also, the next season, don' t just assume you can still hunt there. Go up to him again and ask permission again. I hunt on a 700 acre farm. I' m the only bow hunter out there. He actually wants me to bring others out with me. One, he is a farmer and hates the deer. Two....safety reasons. I would bring safety up if you want the two others to come out with you. Tell him, " I' d like to bring my two friends withme for safety reason" . What happens if your alone and fall from the tree, right? Also, I' d have your friends come with you. All three of you should go and ask. At least the other two should go and talk to him at some point. That way he can put a face with a name.

Things I did to let me hunt again this year. I dropped in all the time during hunting season, telling him about missed oportunitys. This year I brought pictures by for him to see. I sent him X-Mas cards last winter, etc etc. It helps that this farmer is a great guy and I enjoy his company. Overall, just be polite. Hope this helps.

bobcat 10

thats wright, justthrowit.if he needs help on the farm lend a hand.i no alot of people that just get rued and won' t talk to the farmer anymore.the farmer did not let them come back.treat the farmer or owner like he is your family be nice to him.

timbercruiser

Be prepared to offer to carry hunters liability insurance, be prepared to pay for leasing of the property, offer to do work or improvements to the property, explain to him about the deer population problem and about the problem the sod farm is having with the deer. I am currently looking at the leasing of about 1300 acres that I may be able to get by installing a few culvert pipes and a small amount of dozier work.

norsemen

wow, that sounds like it could hold a little more then just some doe and small buck
you might kill a monster in there, I would stop over dressed in clean nice cloths,
NO CAMO, and srike up a general conversation with him, and dont come on to strong, be very calm and relaxed, and then drop the oh by the way, would you
mind very much!!! I would NOT mention anything about herd reduction,
or any thing about friends,, if he says yes, then go back to the car, and come out
with a frozen turkey, or a ham, you will have a friend for life, and maybe the buck of your dream' s take it from me, this method works,, good luck,,