I recently noticed shooting lanes cut at least 40 yds. onto my land. How would you address this with the neighbor ?
First Make sure it is who you think it is before accusing. Sent from my iPhone using Bowhunting.com Forums
Has this neighbor done anything like this in the past? Could the property have been sold or leased and the new tenants not know the true boundary? Could this have been a young hunter who didn't know any better? Not trying to make excuses for anyone but when neighbors don't get along it can lead to years of problems and issues... my advise is talk to him and maybe show him the area in question. But use tact. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
First thing I'd do is make sure I was FULLY away of where my property lines REALLY were. For several years everyone on my uncles land thought an old trail was the property line because it was close to where the markers were supposed to be, only to find out they owned roughly 50 yards further into the "neighbors" property after the neighbor had it surveyed because he thought he owned more of my uncles land... He literally burnt himself on that one lol. My Uncle gained a 50 yard section of land the entire length of his property out of that deal. Once you know for sure where the boundaries are, post it if it isn't already. If you know who it is, then go have a chat with them about it. They may not know where the lines are, or assuming they are actually on their own land. In the age of technology where we all have OnX and other mapping programs at our fingertips to know the boundaries, I can think of several people who still don't even own a computer or smart phone. If after all of that nothing changes, then get the law involved. polite first until it's no longer an option.
If it were me and I knew for a fact where the property line was I would hang a no trespassing sign right in the middle of the lane and a trail camera at the end of the lane and wait and see. You can also hang a stand there.
Measure twice. Land I hunt, there is no line of sight from corner marker to corner marker, so where the actual line runs was in question for a long time. Make sure you know for certain the boundary line before doing anything else. Then it depends on how well you know the neighbor land owner. If you know them, politely go and talk, if you don't know them a letter with pictures. I would also probably put up a stake and sign in the shooting lane marking the boundry and leave contact information on it so they can get ahold of you if they want.
Meh.......Not a big deal. You always need to be willing to put up with a little more when it is a contiguous neighbor. In the future you might want to retrieve a deer you wounded and who knows what kind of situation your family or friends could get you in? If you want to remedy the situation, I would probably hang a stand. Most serious hunters will perceive that as pressure and move away some. I would be prepared to show someone a survey, property line pins or an electronic map like: https://www.huntinggpsmaps.com/overview?gclid=CIPE1KuT6NMCFQKnaQod81QMKA All mow lines, hearsay, tree lines, fence rows in the end are worthless claims, you need to have something in writing to prove what you own or it is just he said she said crap. Make someone dispute a legal document, not what you are saying.
Agree with all the previous advise on keeping it friendly. Few other questions / comments: - You just noticed the lanes. I know very few hunters who cut lanes for the first time ever, this time of year. So, when were they cut? Last season, two seasons ago? Why are you just noticing it now? - Maybe they do not know you or anyone else hunts it and were simply extending their range 40 yards. - What about it bothers you; someone physically making changes to your land or someone hunting so close to the border line? Best of luck with the situation.
Most likely I would try and find who is hunting that spot. I would talk with them and find out if they are even aware they are hunting on your property. I wouldn't make a big deal about it unless they blow you off or start to give you troubles. If they are that type, I'd possibly consider hinge cutting my entire property line and blocking any trails. This would be a last resort, but I have a friend who has done this. A guy with permission on the neighbor hunts his fence line and has shot deer on both sides of the fence. Good deer mind you, two of which went over 170". My friend caught the hunter red handed on one occasion and gave him hell for shooting a deer on his side of the fence, but that hasn't stopped him from fence hunting. My friend hinge cut that entire fence line which is 3/8 of a mile. He cut everything down and blocked every possible trail trough it. He's fortunate enough to own the timber so he can control the travel of the deer. Not an ideal situation, and hopefully nothing you have to do.
If you can't find out who is hunting that spot, you can always place a No Hunting/No Trespassing sign right next to his tree on the fence.
