bhunter50

I am posting this just to see what people think, I have lost numerous properties that myself and my family have hunted for years, and now we can't even hunt as a family anymore. I have lost 4 farms in the last 3 years and it is getting rediculous. I like to hunt for big deer as well, but I know there is a need to shoot does to manage the herd, the whole reason hunting and permit system began. All of these leased properties are full of people who will not shoot does and only huntthreeweeksand the deer flog into these unhunted regions the rest of the year. Many times these outfitters don't know what an Illinois trophy is and shoot 100", 110", 120" deer frequently that are only 2 and a half or three years old. I just think that something needs to be done to regulate outfitting, so that the locals can havea place to hunt and that the quality of IL whitetails remains.

npaden

I don't think things have gotten so out of hand that working folks can't afford to hunt anymore. The climate has just changed to where they have to pay to hunt land that previously they were allowed to hunt for free. Back east they have created hunting clubs to help with this and I'm sure that's what is going to have to start happening in the midwest. I don't fault the farmer for leasing his land for additional money for hunting vs. allowing people to hunt it for free. It's an additional source of income for them and they deserve it.

One thing that some of the western states are doing is the block management programs. The state uses license money to lease sections of private land for public use. This is probably also something that will start showing up in the midwest.

There is no doubt that hunting is no longer a cheap way to put meat on the table, but it can still be affordable. There may be a need for people to shoot does to keep things in balance and some of these outfits may allow doe only hunts for pretty cheap or even free to keep populations in line.

My 2 cents.

mauser06

thats life. you dont own the land...you just had permission to hunt it from the previous owners. i cant tell you how many spots ive lost because of development mainly. lossed one my grandfather grew up hunting...they bought the whole mountain and its a lease.

atleast around here the leases arent toooo expensive. 50$ a year or so from most guys i talked to. they are spreading rapidly...but NOTHING needs done. its America. the government should never be able to tell ANYONE what they can do to their land. within laws and regulations...but if someone has the money to buy 1000 acres and wants to post it thats their decision and right...sucks for the average joes like us...but thats THEIR land they paid for. noone would want to own land if they had to let anyone and everyone hunt it.

BigBuck28

Thank god this leasing stuff hasnt hit MA real hard yet..

il coyote

You cant expect to keep a good deer herd and not have people from the outside want in on it. That and since it is now 'cool' to be seen in camo in public, and people are openly promoting closing off hunting ground to anyone but yourself, what is happening right now in IL is inevitable.

It's happened to me,and yeah,it really sucks the giant banana.

WKP Todd

All I can say is that it could be worse, you could have been born in Michigan where you don't have to worry about seeing a 110" or 120" buck. Yeah, it sucks loosing ground, and I'm having a very difficult time finding good property in Illinois under $50.00/acre. It sucks! What do you do? That's just part of the deal, and at some point you will either lease, hunt public ground, or find something else to do!

JohnnyLonghorns

Get a group of men an buy your own ground then you can manage your deer and not have to worry about the government regulating more businesses. It's disappointing that people can't hunt for free, but hunting has become a big business and it doesn't look like "the good ol' days" are gonna be coming back any time soon. Either accept the changes or try to purchase some ground before prices go up even more. I know of a couple of different groups of men that have started forming hunt clubs so they can find hunting ground. I just don't think it is the governments responsibility to provide hunting ground for everyone...it's the hunters responsibility IMO. If you google IL Deer Hunting clubs I bet you could find one around your area...hope this helps!

sjsfire

What county or counties do you hunt now? Is there no public land available? I drive about500 miles round triptwice for first and second seasonsto hunt Southern Illinois. Where I live there is little to no place to hunt even ifit was offered it's not great deer habitat. Sure you have some river frontage but thats about it. And thats elbow to a-holes loaded with other hunters already. Part of my biggest enjoyment every year is travelling South to meet 6-8 special friends and spend the weekends hunting and hanging out with them. Private landowners are reeling in some bigcash these days catering to the big shots that want to pay the price. At least you got time to look right now.A guy I work with had his hunting land jerked out from underneath him 3 weeks before the first season last year. And the worst part is it was his inlaws who sold out to the outfitters. I think we all feel your pain, just get out there and find more land or try public land. I can go out on public where I hunt and not see another human all day long.

Lanse couche couche

Well, if you are like me, you can reflect back on the times when you spent money for stuff that you didn't really need when decent hunting woods was $600 an acre. Deer hunting has become big money now and one way or another you are gonna have to pay to play. I do, however, think that every effort should be made to increase the amount of public lands available for hunting in Illinois. Its either that, or hope for a disease that wipes out 90 percent of the deer herd so that things can get back to normal.[:'(]

mauser06

WKP Todd...land in Illinois is 50$ an acre??? and you wanna find it cheaper!!????? maybe that was a typo....but 50$ an acre?? that seems dirt cheap to me...