geterdun

hey again,
i am having trouble finding good, or any, hunting land/leases in Md. I dont really like public land but i have no other land to really hunt turkey + deer + whatever. I was wandering how you guys, your friends and families go about finding hunting land - either for lease, hunting clubs, exhanging farm work for hunting privilieges . I really hate public land, i feel like im the one being hunted with all the competetion, it sort of isnt safe. anyways, please post a reply or send an email ([email protected]) and help me out, i would really appreciate it.

geterdun

Rick C.

Finding someone to let you hunt their land istough. Iam alwayslooking for a way to approach land owners about hunting, but haven't had much luck yet. I did get permission to hunt anorchard (along with several dozen other hunters) but that has been it so far.

I have a buddy that worksas a service rep for a car dealership. He is in a good position to get permission from the people he deals with, and has recieved permission to huntseveral privatefarms last year.

Let us know if you find an angle that works, I'm sure most of us would like to find a way to hear 'yes, you can hunt my land'!

-Rick C.

Mr. Longbeard

With far less hunting land and more and more people getting into the sport of turkey hunting... You are going to have a hell of a time getting permission to hunt any decent property!!! Welcome to my world

RMS

Lefty26

When you figure it out let me know man. I have probally knocked on 50+ doors in my area with no luck. Private land in MD is hard to come by. I have turned into a public land junky. Its really not as bad as you think, shotgun season can be sketchy but bow and ML seasons arn't bad at all. I took 11 deer this year in MD and 8 of them were on public land, do your homework and find areas the other guys are missing and you will find deer/turkeys. Plus there are some big boys running around on public land in MD, I see more big bucks on public land thanI do on the couple private patches I have access to.

With all that said if anyone knows of any hunt clubs or leases for Sika deer let me know. I would pay money to chase those little suckers..

smokyghost

well if you have alot of money you might get lucky and find some land, but youll be the under dog and have to find a spot thats not been hunted or being hunted. some leases or clubs also have certain rules that might not work out to your liking or time in the woods, I joined a club one time and after the first day looking for a spot and then hearing all their rulesI was like nah. they had rules like if you aint in the woods by 2:00 in the afternoon then dont come in. same way for morning hunts. around here the action dont usually happen to later in the afternoon and when ya work its hard to get off by 2:00.I was talking to a bud the other day and he was saying that a club went from 12.00 an acre to 18.00 a acre. you get 500 acres your looking at a good chunk. just keep on looking offer your backbone for some hunting time on a farmers land its worked for me. I got lucky and finally after 7 yrs of trying found me a 100 acre farm pretty much all to myself. but before that I hunted state property becuz ol poor boy aint paying to hunt, might work for it but not paying for it. not with all the state land out there..... I WISH YA LUCK!

geterdun

smokeyghost-
thanks, good advice, hey buddy, since you have 100 acres all by your self, and we live in the same state, DO YA NEED A HUNTING PARTNER? lol , i am willing to work as well. I doubt you will want to share (lol), but hey i hadddddd to try. Im a very fun person lol. Well hey, if ya ever need a young, energenic hunting buddy give me a holler. thanks for the advice bud

slicendice

I can suggest 2 things. #1) Always let people know you're a hunter and conduct yourself as a good person and good sportsman, even when not in the field. I've personally gotten permission to hunt places before by simply speaking to a co-worker/friend/ect about how I hunt. Alot of times you'll be surprised that sometimes people you speak to every dayhave land or connections to land (that persons relatives, ect) and woud be willing to let you hunt because they know you and respect you. Also,once allowed to hunt on a persons property, alot of times if you conduct yourself properly, this can help getyou in on neighboring properties.

#2)A couple of times I've had a letter work for me. Ride around and take down the addresses of good looking farms and properties and put together a letter to the owner of the property. This is best done this time of year for farmers because it's not their busy season. Spring isa busy time for farmers, so not the best time for them to have extra time to talk to a hunter. But, in the letter introduce yourself, give him a brief background of who you are, how long you've hunted, ect. Include references of people who's property you've hunted on before if possible. Let him know you're interested in hunting his property and know his time is valuable and would like to know if youcould arrange a meeting with him about the possibility of hunting his property. If you're willing to lease the property, let him know in the letter, but don't go into details of prices inthe letter.If you're willing to work for permission (ie. help around the farm, ect) let him know in this letter.Send this letter out to as manyfarms/land pieces as you can. For every "yes" you get, you'regonna get 10 no responses, but it gives you a little different angle from every other guy who stops by the farmers propertyand asks for permission.

Slice

Lefty26

I would listen to Slice if I were you.....hes the smartest man in Waynesboro!!!!!!!

geterdun

slice-
thanks for the info. it sounds like a great idea. but, only ? is, how do i know who has a farm, good chunk of land, etc. Unless, maybe if i can actually see it the property, but that isnt always the case. I guess a good idea would be to take nice, long drives on a sunny day in order to locate some property. lol, i wish there was a simple section in the newspaper that read "Need hunting land, heres the place" lol, but i know life isnt that easy, anyways, thanks again for your information

slicendice

Yes, it is difficult to figure out who has chunks of land when it comes to mountain land, but it's easy to figure out farms. But, worse case scenario, if you send a letter to someone who doesn't have alot of land, the worse they can do is not respond or say no. But, if you send a letter and it just so happens that they do have land or even know someone that does, then you've gained something. Can't hurt to try, you have nothing to lose.

As far as the newspaper thing, I have seen guys buy ads in the misc. section of classifieds or even in the wanted section of the classifieds and put that they are looking for land to hunt. This would be a good idea, especially if you are looking to work for the farmer/landowner for your right to hunt. I imagine in hay cutting season, a farmer would probably take you up on it. I've never done it, but I would imagine posting something on a board at a live stock auction or feed store might work, also, as it's a place farmers (large land owners) frequent.

The bottom line is there is no wrong answer.

Slice