Post by: Wudstix on October 22, 2021, 09:19:07 AM
:campfire: :coffee: :archer2: :pray:
Post by: woodchucker on October 22, 2021, 12:45:57 PM
With all of the craziness in this world, folks are moving to better states... Not me!!
New York SUCKS!!!!! High taxes, Home/Property prices and taxes, the economy, etc.....
However, we are truly blessed with hunting and fishing opportunities!!!
I can fish salt water/river Stripers, lake or river Salmon, Wild mountain stream trout, "Lake" trout (Browns, Rainbows, Lakers) We have lakes and ponds full of Bass, Pike, Walleye, and pan fish....
Hunting, we have Deer, Bear, Turkeys, Rabbits, Squirrels, Pheasants, Grouse, Woodcock, Ducks, Geese...
Hunt the Adirondacks, or Catskill mountains. Numerous State Game Lands, Farms & Fields, the list goes on...
Plus!! After 60 years, I pretty much know my way around the state!!! :thumbsup:
If I were to move... I'd be pretty much starting all over again, from scratch....
I'm just too damn old for that. :readit:
Post by: Crittergetter on October 22, 2021, 02:47:23 PM
Post by: Basinboy on October 22, 2021, 05:08:19 PM
Post by: Russell Southerland on October 22, 2021, 07:03:47 PM
Post by: Tim Reese on October 22, 2021, 09:31:06 PM
Post by: Tim Reese on October 22, 2021, 09:33:33 PM
Post by: Wudstix on October 22, 2021, 11:36:57 PM
:campfire: :coffee: :archer2: [size=78%] [/size]
Post by: Wudstix on October 23, 2021, 12:24:12 AM
:campfire:
Post by: GCook on October 23, 2021, 09:29:16 AM
They do have draw hunts for wildlife management areas and state parks but getting drawn is slim chances. So many people have moved here the demand for land to hunt is high and getting worse.
I leased for 3 decades. Sometimes holding two leases so I had a place to take kids or guests and still get my tags filled. Even now owning good hunting property we are leasing the land next to us and running some management hunts on it. Owning land far out costs leasing it and people dontvseem to grasp that.
Or you could do a weekend hunt or two on a place like ours that has the dee and pig numbers but you would have to expand your travel restrictions.
I feel that within a few decades there will be some very bad changes in hunting in the US. Even now national forests are over run during elk season and as you point out leases are on the rise due to supply and demand.
Post by: Wudstix on October 23, 2021, 10:31:52 AM
That’s awful there is not much public land there. We are so lucky in PA! There is some all over the state here and some really good ones close to my home and my camp. That’s the one thing PA has done a good job with!! What is the reason Texas doesn’t have so much? I have heard that before so curiousMost of the land in Texas is from the old ranches, that is all private. The state has not purchased land for public use, as in PA (my old stomping grounds). Also, toss in the German immigrants who brought their European concept of lease hunting to Texas and ther you have it.
Post by: jhg on October 23, 2021, 11:47:33 AM
...i The state has not purchased land for public use, as in PA (my old stomping grounds).
THAT is the reason Texas has little public land. Not who privately owns the land now or why, or what the historically learned land use concepts are.
There has been little motivation for Texas to purchase land. Unless the citizens push for Texas to develop a public land acquirement program and vote to fund it, Texas will never see public land access of any consequence.
I am sure there are some very vocal and wealthy interests in Texas that would fight tooth and nail to block a public land acquirement program. But ask yourself- what is freedom worth?
Post by: Wudstix on October 23, 2021, 02:25:21 PM
:campfire: :coffee: :archer2: [size=78%] [/size]
Post by: Soonerlongbow on October 24, 2021, 01:08:33 AM
Post by: dnovo on October 24, 2021, 08:45:00 AM
Post by: GCook on October 24, 2021, 09:33:31 AM
That’s a big part of it in Texas: Freedom. The state using public funds for private purposes.We are free here. Free enough to work three jobs so we can afford to give our family a good life and buy land.
Not just rich people own land here.
I don't get a new truck every couple years and we live in the same 1000ft² home we bought in 1987. But I worked 2 and 3 jobs to get out of debt quick. And even after retirement I own and work a business so I can continue to invest in and enjoy hunting property.
Yes it is expensive. And the Californians moving here is making a mess of values and taxes and politics. But it's still possible. I invested with two good friends and formed an LLC.
Post by: Wudstix on October 24, 2021, 01:05:27 PM
:campfire: :coffee: :archer2: :o
Post by: Soonerlongbow on October 24, 2021, 10:00:48 PM
Post by: Soonerlongbow on October 24, 2021, 10:23:18 PM
That’s a big part of it in Texas: Freedom. The state using public funds for private purposes.We are free here. Free enough to work three jobs so we can afford to give our family a good life and buy land.
Not just rich people own land here.
I don't get a new truck every couple years and we live in the same 1000ft² home we bought in 1987. But I worked 2 and 3 jobs to get out of debt quick. And even after retirement I own and work a business so I can continue to invest in and enjoy hunting property.
Yes it is expensive. And the Californians moving here is making a mess of values and taxes and politics. But it's still possible. I invested with two good friends and formed an LLC.
When I lived in North Texas way back in 90’s deer hunting was pretty much nonexistent, most people paid the out of state fees and drove across the state line to Oklahoma. Could find places to small game all day long, just never deer.
Post by: GCook on October 24, 2021, 10:43:54 PM
I know folks who lease in OK. And the prices seem more reasonable but by the time you buy all ofbthe out of state stuff and drive there from down where he lives it would be tough.That’s a big part of it in Texas: Freedom. The state using public funds for private purposes.We are free here. Free enough to work three jobs so we can afford to give our family a good life and buy land.
Not just rich people own land here.
I don't get a new truck every couple years and we live in the same 1000ft² home we bought in 1987. But I worked 2 and 3 jobs to get out of debt quick. And even after retirement I own and work a business so I can continue to invest in and enjoy hunting property.
Yes it is expensive. And the Californians moving here is making a mess of values and taxes and politics. But it's still possible. I invested with two good friends and formed an LLC.
When I lived in North Texas way back in 90’s deer hunting was pretty much nonexistent, most people paid the out of state fees and drove across the state line to Oklahoma. Could find places to small game all day long, just never deer.
Even the prices in OK are rising. It's not just a TX issue. It's a too many people and not enough land and game issue.
Here many landowners have taken up good management practices because they know deer hunting is big business.
Post by: Wudstix on October 24, 2021, 11:11:36 PM
:campfire: :coffee: :archer2:
Post by: amicus on October 25, 2021, 11:56:05 AM
Post by: jhg on October 25, 2021, 01:32:36 PM
I enjoy living in The United State of Texas, for the most part. Hunting is one of the sore spots. I'll be looking into land as I get the bills paid.
:campfire: :coffee: :archer2: :o
Yup. Every man for himself. I don't mean that personally at all, and owning your own land is a goal many of us have so I am certainly not knocking that by a long shot. But there are a lot of valid reasons someone may never be in the position to acquire a parcel large enough to hunt.
My point is that in regards to hunting access, as long as the only solution the residents of a state such as Texas choose to think of is to gain as an individual, rather than for everyone, there will never be public land access that matters. Wealthy landholders or landholders who hold land via heritage, love keeping land attitudes archaic and the general public, divided.
No, I do not suggest anyone be forced to give land away. But when they choose to sell or divide, why not provide them the option of something else than private ownership?
Public access is an asset to a state.
If you disagree look at Colorado. You might take issue with a lot of how its done but hiking, camping and hunting/ fishing is available to the average working family ONLY because that land is public. I don't see ranchers offering up their property, even when its not actually used for beef production, to anyone except wealthy sportsman.
And Colorado benefits hugely in terms of dollars spent by rec users dropping coin at convenience stores and diners as two examples. That helps small local economies and small business, exactly the place you want your money to flow. That money pays local taxes that fund schools and hospitals, two very vital and economically stressed institutions in rural America.
Public access is not without its inconveniences, but way more is gained by having that access than is lost.
Post by: Wudstix on October 25, 2021, 06:23:34 PM
:campfire: :coffee: :archer2:
Post by: Wudstix on October 25, 2021, 06:25:33 PM
:campfire: :coffee: :archer2:
Post by: GCook on October 26, 2021, 09:41:03 AM
Just look at all the complaints you see on here about not seeing deer on public land in midwest and eastern states. I have personally experienced being over run by hunters in Colorado who ignored the rules and drove ATVs all over in the back country. On most days in Colorado (which is mostly national forests and not state owned land) you won't see an elk but will see other archery hunters.
Private land access, either owned or leased, gives you some semblance of control over access and use. I've hunted terrible leases. I've also hunted well managed leases. I'd rather pay more for the well managed ones.
I don't hunt to watch the birds and squirrels and well managed private land has game in good numbers because it is that. Managed.
Look at the thread on EHD in NY. Thousands of dead animals but the wildlife department is still issuing DMPs and I promise you everyone who hunts in that area will have a brown and down attitude just exasperating the issue.
Even where I hunt in Missouri it's the same way. To the point I've only killed one deer in a decade, passing all doe, trying to do something positive forvthe herd yet the Department of Wildlife issues as many doe permits as you can afford.
The WMA bordering my property there use to sound like a shooting range opening weekend. Now very few shots are heard because there are too few deer around.
Puic land is a great idea but in actual practice it is a dismal failure in far too many cases.
Post by: Sam McMichael on October 26, 2021, 09:59:19 AM
Post by: jhg on October 26, 2021, 10:03:51 AM
Unfortunately most public land is over run with hunters. Non hunting users, jack wagons on ATVs/UTVs/4WDs and partyers, tend to have equal access and ruin hunting....
Puic land is a great idea but in actual practice it is a dismal failure in far too many cases.
A dismal failure? I will take that any day over being forced to buy my way onto land so I can ignore the responsibility I have to be involved in the public land management and use process. Democracy is dirty but it fails when people choose to opt out of the process.
I personally am sick of the blame finger. Blame the biologists with their degrees, the politicians with their motives, the jackwagons ignoring rules on their atv's. There is always a reason for walking away.
My biggest gripe is that we obviously have a crappy mentorship system in this country given how many land "users" ignore any kind of ethics or compliance- fire rings as land fills, driving past no vehicle access signs, yeah it drives me nuts so many have no regard for who comes after them or show any degree of accountability. Where did they learn this?
The problem is not land being public it is we are not teaching generations how to treat/use those lands and honor the access granted, through their actions.
Anyway, here is a picture of a 2021 public land harvest. I have a bunch of rifle ones too but here is my best to date archery elk. Public land and access. May it be protected forever.
Post by: GCook on October 26, 2021, 10:23:52 AM
The bottom line is there are too many hunters for the land and game available in too many areas.
And whether the fault of misuse is with poor parenting or just people choosing to be inconsiderate slobs the fact is it happens. Personally I wouldn't mind if Texas decided to purchase tracts of for sale land for public use. But at the rate the costs are rising the average taxpayer might not want to foot that bill.
Post by: Wudstix on October 26, 2021, 03:33:03 PM
I feel your angst, just hiked 74.1 miles on the AT and picked up three i gallon zip lock bags of others peoples trash.
:campfire: :coffee: :archer2: