I have a little chunk of land I own for hunting and I’m going to be buying the plot that butts up to mine. I’m pretty sure the guy on the other side of the piece I’m buying has been hunting the piece I’m buying for a few years. He’s a bit of a hot head and I’m sure he won’t be happy I’m buying it but whatever. We’ve had a decent relationship over the years. My plan was to ask him to walk his side of the line with me to show me where it’s at and that I plan on posting it just to cover my butt. I’m looking for input on ways to answer if he asks if he can hunt it. The obvious answer is no but he lost his lease last year and doesn’t have enough land to hunt at his place so I’m expecting the question. I do have two kids who will be hunting with me this year so I was going to go that angle. Just wondering if anyone has been in a similar spot and has anything they’re glad they did or wish they’d done differently. Thanks!
Help With New Neighbor
- Thread starter Matlax
- Start date
yoderjac
Well-Known Member
"I realize you've lost a place to hunt and that always hurts. But, I saved up and just paid a good chuck of money to buy this property so my family has a place to hunt. I want to make sure my kids don't encroach on your land. I know it can be temptation for my kids, especially if they see game just out of reach. I want to each my kids right. I'd like to walk the property line with you just so I know where the line is. I plan to put up signs so my children have a clear line they can't pass. If one of us shoots a deer that runs on to your place, I'll call you and ask permission before trailing it on your land. I'd ask you do the same. I'm hoping to do some habitat management on it. Hopefully that will result in more and better deer on all our properties in this area."
I had a somewhat different situation. We bought timber company land that had been leased to out of town hunters. The locals poached it all week long when the out of town lease holders at work. It took us 5 years of vigilant trespass reporting to the sheriff's office for each and every trespass along with prosecution any time law enforcement had a case. Eventually the word got out that we were not a soft target and the trespassers went to easier targets. Fortunately, none of the trespassers were direct neighbors.
One more thought. Consider having a discussion with the current owner and have him make it clear to the lease holder that he is selling his land, the lease is terminated and the buyer is a hunter and does not want trespass. Coming from a third party before you buy will give you some feedback from the current owner what to expect. It may keep the other neighbor from asking that awkward question in the first place.
I had a somewhat different situation. We bought timber company land that had been leased to out of town hunters. The locals poached it all week long when the out of town lease holders at work. It took us 5 years of vigilant trespass reporting to the sheriff's office for each and every trespass along with prosecution any time law enforcement had a case. Eventually the word got out that we were not a soft target and the trespassers went to easier targets. Fortunately, none of the trespassers were direct neighbors.
One more thought. Consider having a discussion with the current owner and have him make it clear to the lease holder that he is selling his land, the lease is terminated and the buyer is a hunter and does not want trespass. Coming from a third party before you buy will give you some feedback from the current owner what to expect. It may keep the other neighbor from asking that awkward question in the first place.
pinetag
Well-Known Member
Good advice above!
I had a similar situation when I was out walking my land before I had closed on it. My neighbor's son in law and grandson stopped by to ask if they could turn their coon dogs loose on my property. I think they had been doing it for years because the owner was an older, absentee lady from out of state and my neighbor kind of watched the place for her. It put me on the spot so I didn't have time to prepare a response, but I told them similar to what yoderjac said. "I'm going to be bringing my daughter out here to hunt and I don't want to create a dangerous situation so I'd appreciate if you didn't. I'm not trying to burn any bridges and you're welcome to catch your dogs if they do happen to come on my land, but I'd just ask that you text or call me first."
I haven't had any issues thus far and me and my neighbor communicate back and forth fairly regularly. I've told him about his cows getting out and he and I have exchanged messages a couple of times about possible trespassers.
Good luck!
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I had a similar situation when I was out walking my land before I had closed on it. My neighbor's son in law and grandson stopped by to ask if they could turn their coon dogs loose on my property. I think they had been doing it for years because the owner was an older, absentee lady from out of state and my neighbor kind of watched the place for her. It put me on the spot so I didn't have time to prepare a response, but I told them similar to what yoderjac said. "I'm going to be bringing my daughter out here to hunt and I don't want to create a dangerous situation so I'd appreciate if you didn't. I'm not trying to burn any bridges and you're welcome to catch your dogs if they do happen to come on my land, but I'd just ask that you text or call me first."
I haven't had any issues thus far and me and my neighbor communicate back and forth fairly regularly. I've told him about his cows getting out and he and I have exchanged messages a couple of times about possible trespassers.
Good luck!
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I just bought an 80 that attaches to mine and there were a couple guys hunting it prior to me buying.They were nice enough but I didn't buy it to lease out so I had to tell them that I wasn't allowing them to hunt and they could come get their stands.I am unlocking gate tomorrow morning and for next 2 weekends if they want their stands
There are a couple threads out there in hunting forum land that are the exact opposite of this.
Being someone who just bought an 80 that was basically the town park for the last 60or so years I want to give you the other side.
Have one neighbor with horses that has over an acre of my ground fenced it. Blatant notch on an otherwise straight property line due to a steep hollow. Gave me the “ I don’t know what you’re talking about” treatment- which instantly ended our ability to get along. Another has posted signs and stands facing in- blocked deer travel through, increased my travel and added a bunch of signs ribbons and reasons the spot won’t be worth a damn, lastly another gave me all sorts of intel was super cordial and we chatted for quite a while. He said the other neighbors shat on his hunts often and he ended up finding a better spot for deer. I offered him Turkey access if he would just call or text with trespasser or game intel. Said “maybe” but he’d be happy to with eyes and ears just for the gesture.
Land is stupid expensive and a hot as magma commodity. Buy whatever you can and recognize the bully approach doesn’t work and a neighbors mean more to deer hunting than anything other than access.
Wishing you the best.
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Being someone who just bought an 80 that was basically the town park for the last 60or so years I want to give you the other side.
Have one neighbor with horses that has over an acre of my ground fenced it. Blatant notch on an otherwise straight property line due to a steep hollow. Gave me the “ I don’t know what you’re talking about” treatment- which instantly ended our ability to get along. Another has posted signs and stands facing in- blocked deer travel through, increased my travel and added a bunch of signs ribbons and reasons the spot won’t be worth a damn, lastly another gave me all sorts of intel was super cordial and we chatted for quite a while. He said the other neighbors shat on his hunts often and he ended up finding a better spot for deer. I offered him Turkey access if he would just call or text with trespasser or game intel. Said “maybe” but he’d be happy to with eyes and ears just for the gesture.
Land is stupid expensive and a hot as magma commodity. Buy whatever you can and recognize the bully approach doesn’t work and a neighbors mean more to deer hunting than anything other than access.
Wishing you the best.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Mennoniteman
Well-Known Member
My policy is to be polite but firm, and I feel that it's very important to be firm right from the start, because you can always relax your no hunting policy, but after you allow anyone hunting privileges it's almost impossible to go back, and unfortunately when it comes to hunting privileges there's a lot of people who take your whole hand if you give them your little finger. One area that I feel strongly about is the importance of getting along well with my neighbors, and I will go to extreme lengths to do so, up to the point of it costing me hundreds of dollars to be friends, because neighbors who get along well with me are a valuable asset for hunting land. But I strictly draw the line at hunting privileges, I put sweat equity into my hunting spots for the benefit of family and friends, not people that I barely know. So, yes, I'm very interested in cooperating with land joiners and other neighbors, but when they try to manipulate me in demanding hunting rights in exchange for good relationships (which has happened in the past) things have gone to far. But in these instances I will still try to be polite, because I never know when the tide turns and I might need these people. In the course of being a building contractor I often see instances of people dissing and upsetting their neighbors, then later paying very dearly for that mistake.
Drycreek
Well-Known Member
I have a neighbor to the west of me that owns a fairly large parcel, 400 some acres if I’m not mistaken. He and my son got into it several years ago over the neighbor being nosey. We have a 13” spread minimum on bucks in E Texas and my son killed a buck one morning next to the neighbor’s place, so the neighbor wants to play junior warden even though the buck is fifty yards from the fence. He asked my son if it was legal and of course pissed my son off. Ain’t been good relations there ever since. 
Since that incident they like to push the envelope on hunter harassment but never go far enough to be cited for it. I don’t let it bother me as much as my son does. He’s quick tempered and I’ve grown out of that !
Since that incident they like to push the envelope on hunter harassment but never go far enough to be cited for it. I don’t let it bother me as much as my son does. He’s quick tempered and I’ve grown out of that !
Mennoniteman
Well-Known Member
Is that 13" inside or outside?I have a neighbor to the west of me that owns a fairly large parcel, 400 some acres if I’m not mistaken. He and my son got into it several years ago over the neighbor being nosey. We have a 13” spread minimum on bucks in E Texas and my son killed a buck one morning next to the neighbor’s place, so the neighbor wants to play junior warden even though the buck is fifty yards from the fence. He asked my son if it was legal and of course pissed my son off. Ain’t been good relations there ever since.
Since that incident they like to push the envelope on hunter harassment but never go far enough to be cited for it. I don’t let it bother me as much as my son does. He’s quick tempered and I’ve grown out of that !
Drycreek
Well-Known Member
Inside. It has helped in a general way to mature our buck population somewhat. The only thing I have against it is that some narrow genetics exist in E Texas and some bucks, even though mature, will never be legal. I had one on my former property like that. He was an old buck but wasn’t legal. I guess it didn’t really make any difference though since nobody ever saw him in deer season.
He was one of a few bucks that visited my clover during spring and summer but roamed somewhere else during the season.
yoderjac
Well-Known Member
Seems like a very strange rule. Many bucks here are 1 1/2 year olds above 13 inches. Maybe things are different in TX. Here 16 would protect most 1 1/2 year old deer. The problem with spread limits is that field judging inches can be difficult under some conditions. It can make outlaws out of hunters. While I find point limits much less effective than spread, they are much easier for hunters to identify in the field.Inside. It has helped in a general way to mature our buck population somewhat. The only thing I have against it is that some narrow genetics exist in E Texas and some bucks, even though mature, will never be legal. I had one on my former property like that. He was an old buck but wasn’t legal. I guess it didn’t really make any difference though since nobody ever saw him in deer season.
He was one of a few bucks that visited my clover during spring and summer but roamed somewhere else during the season.
Drycreek
Well-Known Member
The rule was established to protect the 2.5 and under, but it doesn’t protect them all. I believe it does protect most of them but people do break that rule frequently. I agree that I can’t judge them that well, so it makes me, and I have to think many others, err on the legal side. My criteria on the small properties I hunt is a 3.5 year old buck or older. I’m not a trophy hunter and have no ego when it comes to antlers. I’m fine with killing a nice buck, but to me they are venison, not trophies. That said, I have quite a few euro mounts and a few shoulder mounts, but that’s in the way of remembering what I love to do. I love to hunt them, and I love to eat them.
yoderjac
Well-Known Member
3.5 is the target on our property as well. 3.5 and older comprise about the top 10% of our bucks. While I love to harvest a mature buck, I'm just as happy to shoot does and my focus now is more on introducing new folks to the sport. We let our novice hunters shoot any legal deer, but we ask our experienced hunters to target 3.5 and older. It is hard to field judge a 3 1/2+ at our place. The rack difference from a larger 2.5 is mostly mass. We make mistakes from time to time and harvest larger 2.5s, but we are getting better at that.
Thanks,
Jack
Drycreek
Well-Known Member
Historically, on the lease I’m on we haven’t had lots of does, so most of the five members don’t shoot does. I have nothing against it if there are plenty of them. Since I’ve been a member our doe population has grown. I think it’s the food plots, they had no way to plant or the experience to do so.
On my home place, only eighty acres, we might take a doe every other year. I took one this year in muzzleloader season. We have does that actually “live” on our place now since I cut quite a bit of timber a few years ago. That opened up the understory and allowed the short growth to get much thicker and I actually have bedding areas now as well as more browse. The deer used to keep my WW mowed down almost into summer but now they don’t eat near as much after spring green up. That tells me they have more preferred browse.
We have lots of bucks in the fall of course and I manage to take one almost every year either at home or on the lease. I didn’t this year, but that was mostly my fault. One of those shoulda, woulda, coulda things !
