So where i hunt the most, about 3 or 4 people all own it together, and i have permission from one of them who lives about 2 hours away to hunt there during bow season. Last year i had problems with a guy who was mad i was hunting there during shotgun season. So i decided i wouldn't hunt there for the rest of shotgun season, and just wait till this archery season...well the other night im sitting in my blind and the guy walks by my blind waves and smiles and keeps walking. He was muzzelloader hunting since that just opened up for about a week here in Iowa. So I go out this morning, and my blind is gone. He stole it. There is a chain with a padlock to block vehicles going in at the entrance. I had a padlock on me that i use for my trail camera, and i am pretty mad about this situation, so i put my padlock on the chain so now he can't drive back there....ughhhhhhh i just needed to vent a little
Is he one of the partial owners? If he is, get his name, number, etc and first off i'd contact him and if he doesn't want to play nice then contact the authorities.
How are you certain he stole it? Seems pretty dumb for him to steal your blind the same night you saw him, and he acknowledged he saw you. What would the authorities do? If he is one of the owners, he took something that was left on his property. Unethical, yes...illegal, I don't believe so.
yes i believe he is an owner, and vito he is the only other person who has been out there, and the only other person who hunts there. Im gonna talk to who i have permission from today and try and get a hold of this guy. I know this is the wrong thing to do, but if he is gonna steal my blind i know where 3 of his stands are, and i could take my pick. but i will try to settle this the right way first.
Yes, talk to him first and found out what happened. It may be a misunderstanding. A little advice though...if you are going to commit a crime, do not put in on the internet.
In response to those thinking the guy wasn't in the wrong since he owns the land too....correction he owns a percentage or interest in the land, not 100%. Which means technically he cannot decide what is on the property legally and what isn't without consulting the other land owners. Still seems fishy and a little on sh**** side of things if he did this. I'd also recommend calling the guy you have permission from and asking for the contact info of other land owners so you can get an open line of communication with the other landowners. Good luck...land is hard to find anymore....actually nearly impossible hold on to what you got. Ain't worth losing a spot over losing your cool
It is very possible that the person who gave you permission did not notify the other owners that he had done so. Don't escalate a situation until the owners discuss it first.
He probably took it because he didn't think you (or the blind) was supposed to be there. Call him first - may be a misunderstanding. If I was a landowner and saw a blind/stand that was not mine or that I didn't know about I would take it down right away and leave a note to see me if they wanted it back. Just my 2 cents
Wait, so now you locked one of the owners out of his property? This is not gonna turn out good for you.
Agreed to all the above. Trust me; I know from personal experience that you don't want to piss off a partial owner of the property. For about 15 years with my 3 brothers and my dad we had permission to hunt over 500 acres across the street from our house. Then one year my dad pisses off the son N law of the owner and the next thing we know there are 20 + guys hunting there on opening day of shot gun season. These people were everywhere in our stands even. We kicked them out of our stands and they just walked about 100 yards and sat down. It was a disaster, all because my dad pissed off the son N law. He was a real-estate agent and my dad didn't give him his house to sell. Needless to say we never hunted there again. The moral of the story is if this guy gets mad enough he may start letting everyone he knows bowhunt out there to ruin your hunting.
I agree with what others are saying. Do not over react. Go about this in a calm, orderly manner first. You might find that its a big misunderstanding and the other guy made an honest mistake. Get in touch with him personally and try settling it first. If in fact he is being an ass, then get the other owners involved and get help sorting it out. No need to make a bad situation worse by flying off the handle.
I had a guy come in on the property behind my house...he put up a ladder stand cut shooting lanes and poured corn in them (illegal in my county) I called the Game Warden showed him the situation....told him I was going to take the stand...he said I could not because that was theft. I said he's on my land...he said it is theft. Ended up busting the guy for baiting and tresspassing....I didn't prosecute cause the guy had permission from my cousin whose land was 1/2 mile away..... Check with your pal. SB
I say pull down that padlock of yours before this whole thing blows up! Then contact your buddy who allows you to hunt and find out what this dudes deal is and get his phone # and give him a buzz. He may have stole your stuff but when you call his HOME he may consider giving it back or he might find some otherway of returning it to you.
Locking out one of the owners was a huge mistake in my opinion. You probably just got yourself booted off the ground for good. I understand that you were very upset, and rightfully so. But, actually you just locked out ALL of the owners from their own property. If I was an owner, I would make sure you were never given the opportunity to enjoy my land again. You really need to get that lock removed ASAP and open up the communications. Good luck to you, hope it all works out.
