Hey everyone ,today I come looking for advice on how to go about finding private land to hunt on and then the best way to get permission from the owner to hunt there land .I am going to be getting my drivers license soon and will finally be able to go out on my own and hunt In some different woods .But I have no idea how to get permission to hunt on someones land ,any advice is appreciated .
Try contacting your local Farm Bureau....if your state has one. They'll no lots of farmers and ranchers that might have land to hunt and/or lease.
I don't think anyone has the ultimate secret to getting private land. All you can really do is just start nocking on doors and asking. Look presentable and be polite. Offer to help on the farm or give them some meat from anything you harvest on the land or just willing to do basic chores around the place. Be prepared to get ton's of no's but if you stay positive eventually you will find someone that is willing to let you hunt.
Over the years all of my access to private land has been through friends and family. Anytime you are in a social setting there is opportunity to establish contacts and network. A favorite place of mine was gained through my sister's mother-in-law's friend.
most land is leased thru land management companies now days like hunting lease network, you can sign up on there page and see whats available in your area.
I got lucky and just posted on a local buy/sell/trade page on facebook and found a nice small cheap lease.
I would make some friends at a local archery shop and try and tag along with them, 90 percent of the ground I have started out by asking for bow hunting only after the rifle season as more people would be out of the woods and you will not effect there hunting so after a few years they can see how you treat them and there ground and work up from there. Follow there rules to the letter and good things happen.
First ask family if they know anyone who has land. You'd be surprised. Next, ask friends, parent's of your friends... Now we have that out of the way... Check google earth and find some good looking places. Next, do a search for "county, state GIS". That will give you the name of the owner of the property. Like stated above, you're going to get a lot of no's. As a matter of fact, I've never gotten a yes. I have a lot of private land but I'm always looking for more.
Beacon Home This government GIS site has helped me a lot. Problem is, only 12 states participate in this site, and many of those barely do so. But if you hunt Indiana, Iowa or Minnesota, they're well represented. You can search for properties by name or go to the map, click on any land and they tell you name/address of owner. It's actually kinda sick how much info these government GIS sites are allowed to divulge.
I've used the GIS site quite a bit in finding land to hunt. Most of the private property I hunt on is through people I know or mutual friends. This season I attempted to get more private land to hunt and got shot down 10 consecutive times by asking face to face. Before I could even lend my assistance around the property, share meat, or strike up a conversation, I got the "No" right off the bat. I'm a pretty clean cut guy, I can look professional and presentable when needed, and even then, I got the no. I decided to change tactics. I made sure I was physically presentable, I bought a few copies of the CT hunting and trapping guide and highlighted every single page that was relevant to bowhunting and what was necessary for a land owner to know and understand (just in case they didnt know anything about it) and gave it to them. I made copies of my bow hunter safety certificate, as well as my firearms certificate to show that I was more than qualified to hunt, and on those copies I put my phone number and email. I told them my background, my college education, my home town, etc. I made sure the land owner understood that hunting was how I provided myself and family with red meat for the season, and that their land is not a place of reckless recreation, but a place to harvest a natural resource. I made sure they knew that safety and developing a mutual respect between myself and the landowners was most important. I basically felt like a salesman trying to sell myself, but it worked. After being shot down 10 straight times, I got 2 new properties to hunt this season. Sorry for the lengthy post. It may sound like over-kill, but selling yourself speaks volumes to land owners that dont know anything about hunting or aren't quick to trust someone on their land.
Get to know the farmers in your area. Help them out whenever you can whether it be baling or milking or something else. Most will be more than happy to let you hunt their land.
