CalNewbie

The time is fast approaching for me to get out of Southern California. Too many people, too much traffic, etc. One of the areas I'm considering moving to is San Antonio Texas. Through reading various posts over the last couple of years I've gotten the impression that public land in Texas isn't as available as other states, that you're more likely going to want to do a hunting lease.

For those familiar with the area, what has been your experience?

Thanks in advance. I'm sure I'll have some similar questions about a few of the other areas I'm looking at.

Moose_Maximus

Public hunting land here in Texas is an iffy proposition. Where it's available it can get overcrowded quickly; I've heard some pretty scary stories of people being shot at on public land.

You might get some good info here: http://texashoovesandhorns.com/6/ubb.x

One thing about San Antonio--there are a lot of hunting lodges around that offer hog or exotic hunts. Sometimes you can get a pretty good deal on a management hunt.

Good luck, and I offer my best wishes to anyone who wants to escape California!

lhook7

There is not much public land. You would probably want to look for a hunting lease. They can range from $700 per year to more money than I Spend on my house, pickup, and Harley per year.

Georgetownboys

Good for you. . .I also felt it was time to move my boys to a better location to raise a family, so 3 years ago I moved to a small Austin suberb. LA was home for me but it's not what it used to be. Unlike the west almost every inch of this state is owned by someone. It won't take you long to find access, a Deer lease, in your area. The white tail and pig hunting around San Antonio is great. Plan to spend a couple K bucks a year. I got a great deal through a friend, 300 acres in hill country for $1500 I also get to bring both my boys and fill as many tags as we can. He only asks us to use some common sense and let the little ones grow a bit. Good luck . . . .

TXhighrack

CalNewbie:

There is actually over 1 million acres of public land in Texas, most of it being in the western and the eastern part of the state. The problem with public land in Texas is that the WMA are normally ran like private ranches. If you want to hunt public land in Texas then you must order an application booklet from the TP&W Department and fill out the applications. The deadline for deer archery is normally in Sept and deer rifle is due around the same time. If you do get drawn, then your hunt will normally be 3-5 days long. You can only apply for 1 WMA per catagory. The best units for whitetails are probably the Chappareal unit and the James Daughtrey unit, both are in the heart of deep south Texas.

Most people in Texas either own there own ranch, or they have a deer lease. The price of deer leases can very greatly, but like all things in life, you get what you pay for. A lease on a good, large, well managed south Texas ranch will cost in the $5,000 per hunter range. Altough you can find good leases for alot cheaper then that on occasion, just look around.

San Antonio Texas is in Central Texas, not South Texas, which is even better for you. WHY? Well because deer leases in Central Texas are generally alot cheaper then deer leases in South Texas. Plus alot of central Texas has free roaming exotics, like axis deer and rams, which is an added bonus if you can find a lease that has these animals on it.

Good luck, if you need any more help or have any more questions just ask. I'm glad that your moving from CA, just make sure that you dont bring any of the CA liberals with you.

CalNewbie

Thanks for the info folks! I'm kicking around a few places. Texas, I spent the better part of a year there working a project and liked it and the people; Denver, because I like the mountains, skiing, etc.; and Raleigh NC, I think that area is nice, and it gets me closer to my family, which is spread all over the east. All have good hunting/outdoor activities as well as decent economies, so its turning out to be a tough decision.

Regarding the CA liberals - too bad there's not a season for those. They're way over-populated! And none too smart, being in favor of having mountain lions in the parks surrounding their houses.

stuckinthereeds

From what I understand 90 - 95% of land in Texas is private, so when public land does open up is filled to the brim with hunters.

TXhighrack

stuckinthereeds:


Actually I think 98% of Texas is private. But public land in Texas is different then other states. The WMA in Tx are ran like private ranches. Most of the time you have apply for a drawing, if your name is drawn then you get to hunt the area that you applied for. Most of the time these areas are several thousand acres, but they normally only allow 5-100 deer hunters out there each year. They allow very few people to hunt on the WMA. Most public land in Texas will not allow you to just walk on and hunt like you can do in other states. You have to check in and out of the main gate each day. And even if you do get drawn to hunt, you can normally only hunt from 3-5 days. So to answer you question, no the public land in Texas is not overly crowded, except for a few places which are all in East Texas.

Charley

Damn, all this time I thought I lived in South Texas! A place to hunt can be found around here with no real problems, just make connections and talk to people. Many land owners are happy to trade deer and hogs for some type of work or service.
As far as San Antonio, I wouldn't live anywhere else. Decent weather, although sometimes a bit warm, great food, friendly people. Drop me a email if I can give you any more information.

jasonthehunted

theres should be plenty of leases available withing a couple of hours driving any direction from San Antonio. Your right in the Hill country area. You shouldnt have much trouble finding a lease in several different price ranges, or day hunting too for that matter. There is public land in several areas, some of it type 2 land, that you only have to purchase a permit and license. And there are draw hunts at the Wildlife management areas. The public land is usually pretty crowded the first couple of weekends only and then it dies down considerably.

by the way, thanks for the plug moose