WCW

I pay $500.00 a year for exclusive hunting rights on 300 acres of CRP land for pheasants and 60 big round bales (1500 lbs) of mixed hay to hunt a three mile stretch of bottom land for both deer and turkey.. The property owner has never said anything about how many people that can accompany me just as long as I am with them. You couldn't pay me to hunt public land or go to any pay to shoot rip off place. Things are a bit different out here in no man”s land.

GPMD

I think a lot of it has to do with supply and demand in my area as well. A lease my size is rare. They are mostly smaller plots here which is why I guess its at a premium. Interesting to see the rates for different parts of the country. Public land firearm is basically non existent here in Maryland. When i was in NJ there was quite a bit of land but it looked like you were hunting in a pumpkin patch with all the hunter orange. I bowhunted only for the first 8 years of my hunting life since my dad refused to let us go public land firearm. I must admit, having non public land is nice. My dream of course is to one day OWN my own land!! Id be in heaven. one day....one day........

jloop

I live in ND and hunt 17,840 acrs that I farm. 12,000 of crop land and very little woods and 5,840 acrs of grazin land for my cattle. As long as you dont shot my cows or make a mess it dont bother me if people hunt it.

SteveBNy

Then why respond to this thread?

Mottz

I get away with giving the owner some processed deer meat and a couple 30 packs of cold ones. Plus BS'n time when we cross paths. Hope that doesn't change for a long time!

GPMD

Our club is trying to get to a 10th guy to bring the rate to $650....i'd rather pay a bit more and have less people but thats just me. Honestly, I'd rather pay 700 for my own 100 acres that i can have to myself than $700 for 800-900 acres that i have to share with 7 or 8 others Im a greedy bugger

Topgun 3006

I'm with you on that! You would think they would want to pay a little more and keep member numbers down on 800 acres. I also think that taking guests should be very limited because the whole purpose of leasing land is to have a good area and not have to fight the crowds like on public land. I have seen two leases a friend has had here in MI and one allows one guest with him and it's a limited number of times over the calendar year. The other is with just a friend and their two boys and they are the only four allowed on the lease. His younger son can't even go on it because of that limitation. One lease my Dad had in Texas allowed him to have one guest (me, most of the time) and any animal that guest shot was counted on his take, so we were very careful on deer since it was a 2 buck limit on that ranch per leasee.

Mojotex

Our group pays $2650 each/year. There are 15 of us that lease 3150 acres of coporately owned, prime deer, turkey and small game habitat. Fees include year round hunting rights for fee payer and his immediate family members. Each member also gets 1 guest card that he can use to bring 1 non-family member. We have a fully equipped, very good hunting camp house that comfortably sleeps 16 or so folks + a 16' x 70' manufactured home for guests. Both have all utilities. We also have a large, covered skinning shed and walk in cooler that we built years ago in which we can hang 10-12 deer. Fees also include all utility payments and insurance, food plot preparation and planting (about 45 acres total) and stand construction/maintenance.

For those who are fortunate enough to own land or live where public land abounds, or where land owner access is common may not understand why I am shelling out $2650/year. It is simple. I hunted WMA's for a few years after I first moved to Alabama (Barbour Co. and Coosa Co.) I had scouted the Barbour area for 3-4 days, and settled in on a secluded spot. Eased in about day break. Climbed up 20 or so feet in a nice pine overlooking a decent hardwood bottom. When the sun came up good, it looked like a pumpkin patch. I could see 4 other hunters, all with 300-400 yards. Not so secluded ! Then about a year later, I was almost accidently shot while hunting on the Coosa area while I was taking a break and eating lunch at my truck. I heard five shots whizzed just overhead. So from that winter on, I gave up on WMA's and found a huting club. I'd love to ahve a "cheap" , good place to hunt, but that is not going to happen down this way for a while I suspect, if ever.

By the way if any of you need a spot to hunt in the deep south and have the coin, both Enon and Sehoy Plantations are now for sale. Something like 25,000 acres of absolutely land that has been expertly managed for both timber and game .... for decades ... pristine lodges, georgous plantation style home places. I suspect that for around $125,000,000 these can be yours!

If any of you buy either place, can I have permission to hunt it ... free ???

Stonewall308

I pay $350/year for around 700 acres. My club is actually over 7,000 acres, but most of it is beyond practical driving distance for me. I basically have the whole 700 acres to myself during archery season, and that alone is worth $350 to me. Hunting pressure is very high during the first few weeks of rifle season though; don't think I will even bother with rifle season this year.

This is in Northern Virginia; I commute an hour from home to my office in DC, and an hour in exactly the opposite direction to my hunt club.

sdhunter11

i hope this "pay to play" never reaches my part of the world, i have always been more than happy to help the farmers or ranchers with fencing, hauling hay and such in turn for hunting but never will i pay cash.