Back Tines
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What are hunters paying for day trespass/hunting fees to hunt deer and turkeys in the Dakotas?
Day Trespass fees for turkeys and deer
- Thread starter Back Tines
- Start date
SD_Prairie_Goat
Well-known member
Never actually met anyone that hunts that way so no clue.
I've always been able to locate on public, but with that being said I imagine the cost is directly related to the quality of hunting ground meaning it's not a one size fits all approach
I've always been able to locate on public, but with that being said I imagine the cost is directly related to the quality of hunting ground meaning it's not a one size fits all approach
Rack Daniels
Well-known member
The answer is don’t. I repeat, do NOT pay for access, as this perpetuates itself and creates less access for others that cannot “pay to play”. The other issue is it puts a dollar amount on the PUBLIC’S wildlife and leads the landowner to believe it’s HIS wildlife he can charge for.
I suggest knocking on doors or cold calling and trying to find some access, or hunt public land. If and when you find a landowner that is willing to allow access, be sure to AT LEAST give them a sincere thank you, if not a card or small gift. Good luck.
I suggest knocking on doors or cold calling and trying to find some access, or hunt public land. If and when you find a landowner that is willing to allow access, be sure to AT LEAST give them a sincere thank you, if not a card or small gift. Good luck.
Nick87
Well-known member
I see ads all the time now for doing it this way. Not a real good outlook for the future. Things sure have changed in 20 years. Can't imagine another 20.
As a South Dakota resident, I kinda kindly ask you to please don’t. Not asking for myself, but on behalf of my almost 5 year old and 2 year old. Still success to be had in these parts gaining permission with honest, direct, and most of all respectful conversation. Gets ruined quick when folks start writing checks and stuffing envelopes full of cash.
Nick87
Well-known member
Nailed it.
Guys offering to pay trespass fees is a drop in the bucket vs outfitters going door to door offering leasing right $. My guess is that outfitters have royally screwed things up across the Midwest and West vs a few average joes asking permission and offering small trespass fees.
That’s your guess.
My reality is different. There are folks that will pay good amounts to lease a 40 acre winter wheat field in hopes a buck walks through it. These aren’t outfitters. They’re folks who have more money than sense and don’t understand the market they’re setting. A couple of my turkey ranches I hunt run 10+ hunters deep for deer on 2500 acres. Not much for big game outfitters.
Nick87
Well-known member
Yup. We see those 40 acre field guys all the time here. The problem is once they do figure out what they've done (if they figure it out) there's a list of guys behind them willing to do the same thing. I think a lot of that is because someone else was paying for the access so they figure it must hold some value. More money than sense is an understatement.
jpc01101
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I'll just say those property taxes ain't cheap... No shame in a hunter offering or a landowner accepting a trespass fee. For my siblings and I to keep our family "farm" here in Eastern KY together for future generations to enjoy we will almost certainly have to lease it either to an outfitter or, more than likely, do some type of semi-guided hunts. I figure it's better than cutting it up and having 10-15 more houses where the only structures were a couple barns and a farmhouse.
Nick87
Well-known member
You mean for the future generations to hunt on it?
jpc01101
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Hunt, camp, swim and fish in the ponds, ride side by sides, cut firewood, play in the dirt, pick up a garder snake and put it in their pocket. yeah, farm stuff. I guess my point is that if my siblings and I can have it mostly pay for itself by having folks pay to hunt on half of it while our families can hunt the other half and still use the entire thing whenever we want, that feels like a fair use of the place.
Nick87
Well-known member
Well if your doing all that on the side the guy wants to lease I think it might be a hard sell. If you've got that many family members involved I think you could probably get everyone to chip in for property taxes especially in Eastern Kentucky, But I realize everyone's situation is different.
SAJ-99
Well-known member
Are we adding “asking about trespass/hunting fees” to the list of things not allowed to be discussed on HuntTalk?
Nick87
Well-known member
I enjoy talking about it. It's an important topic that is ruining a lot of access for people in the long run whether they realize it or not.
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NY_BLUES
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The eastern US is now covered up in leases. Back 20 to 25 years ago, you could knock on a door and get permission to hunt. Then the ability to stay afloat milking cows and farming crops became a real loosing proposition. Farmers started saying no to those asking permission, and instead started leasing ground to hunters. This helped pay the taxes, and let the milk check pay other bills. A sad state of affairs. I lost over 1000 acres of hunting ground because of leasing.
Fast forward to today, and land owners are having to create income one way or another. While we all would like to see the old days of knocking and getting permission come back, I'm convinced that's long gone.
Fortunately in the west there are vast amounts of public, not so much east of the Mississippi. If you need to pay fees or lease ground, that's the cost of doing business. It will suck for access for young hunters. If you can't find your game on public, paying a land owner is the other option.
Fast forward to today, and land owners are having to create income one way or another. While we all would like to see the old days of knocking and getting permission come back, I'm convinced that's long gone.
Fortunately in the west there are vast amounts of public, not so much east of the Mississippi. If you need to pay fees or lease ground, that's the cost of doing business. It will suck for access for young hunters. If you can't find your game on public, paying a land owner is the other option.
Nick87
Well-known member
People started offering lease money to have the ground to themselves when the qdm craze started. That's what started the spiral at least around here. Farmers didn't induce it, other hunters did.
NY_BLUES
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That's a possibility. We don't have the quality of deer you do in Illinois, but we have high numbers. Here QDM is not really a thing. Those of us own a chunk, and can convince a number of neighbors to let the little ones go, try to harvest mature deer. 99% of the state isn't practicing QDM, but the land owners are leasing. Much more money driven here to keep the small family farm from being split up.
Nick87
Well-known member
That's interesting. I remember reading about qdm being quite popular in upstate NY.
SAJ-99
Well-known member
The trend has been going on for decades. The OP isn’t to blame and he isn’t going to make it better or worse for his choice. Wanting to be able to hunt by asking for permission is noble but idealistic I’m sorry to say.
On a positive note, when I was a kid there was no turkey hunting in IL. Reintroduction was done with a lot of landowner help, particularly in the northern zone. Now these landowners take advantage of the work of previous generations. You see similar actions in SD where strips of food plots are left uncut. Sure, these farmers lease hunting rights, but without it there would be less game. Same with ND and potholes. Do we want them drained and plowed or is it better for the farmer to leave them and lease to duck hunters? Money drives actions in all things these days.
