Rack Attack

Great pictures, I can't wait for my first trip to Africa. I booked this winter for the summer of 2020, and it can't get here soon enough.

Correct, it's a Kudu

So obviously you have never been out west and gone to any of our national parks, cause you have to pay to enter all of them... People getting the resources for free doesn't sustain the resources. We as hunters have been paying forever for conservation, now it's time for the rest of the users to pay their share.

Nope, Every place I have ever been to that had a conservation stamp it was part of the hunting license purchase. Once you have a hunting license you are exempt from having to pay any more. The whole point of it is to get those that are using resources to pay for them like the hunters do.

I was more referring to the trail systems I see more in the central NY area. But even as you stated, they are still dropping off materials and such that all costs money. I belong to several snowmobile clubs and we would love for the state to drop off free materials for us volunteers to build the trails. that are making them money. My point is, that they are getting access to these land for only "potentially" paying state taxes, while hunters are paying extra fees to use the same lands on top of "potentially" paying state taxes. The bottom line, is that everyone that is using the system, needs to pay their share one way or the other.

As far as our state goes, I feel that you should be required to by a conservation license (land use stamp) like is done in many other states. This would help subsidize the conservation fund due to lesser funds from hunting licenses. I have always felt that the hunters have gotten the shaft in regard to ROI with state land use. The hunters buy all kinds of licenses and pay all kinds of fees and the state seems to invest that money into building cross country skiing trails or hiking trails for the folks that don't pay anything for them.

We go and do this almost every year, and it's a blast. The one thing that is hurting these trips is cod season is closed for recreational fishing and that has hurt most of the fishing charters.

No I haven't, but I'd love to give it a try!

That's one of my favorites!

Grizz, I just booked a hunt in an area very close to where you describe. What was the outfitter you went with if you don't mind me asking?

100% for sure a fisher and not a coyote.

Nope, not all talk at all. Read my other post in this thread, what makes you think it is ok to drive like an idiot on back dirt roads? I notice you have children, you don't have concerns for their safety? Like stated before I live on the corner where they must STOP, and they need to slide the tire on dry road to attempt to stop does that seem reasonable? If you think so then you belong in the other thread about no common sense and you are the poster child...

It's because of tax credits. You don't have to pay one dollar into the system to be eligible for tax credits that are a direct "refund". There should be absolutely NO tax credits, only deductions, that way you could never get back more money than you paid in.

Well, if they crash there they won't have far to go cause I live on the corner and they currently have to slide the tires to try and stop at the T intersection. If it has to come down to them or my family, well what can I say it sucks to be them...

Rocks tend to fall from trees around my house for people that feel the need to drive down and 800 foot long dirt road at 60 mph, that's what that means...

Did I state anywhere that I thought brake checking someone was the right thing to do? I am really commenting regarding that you think it's no ones business how you drive, when I totally disagree. What about he requirements to wear seat belts? How does that effect anyone else, but its still a law? Drive by my house on the back dirt road at 55-60 and see what happens to your windshield...

People driving like idiots is everyone's business. They could rearend you killing you or your family. The speeder could lose control on the next curve and again kill you or your family. I don't know why people feel the need to drive like a maniac. The single biggest killer on the road is speed, ask any leo.

This is all assuming that there is the same number of total hunters. The whole point of the conversation is that hunter numbers are going down. What I'm saying is that I don't think you will see much if any change in hunter density on public land due tot he reduced number of hunters. If you go back through many posts throughout the season you will see many people talk about the lack of vehicles/hunters so I don't really think over crowding of public land will be much of an issue. Heck, many of the public land areas around me have lower hunter densities than the private land do.

Well, based on the previous context of the conversation the earlier posters where insinuating that people would be giving up hunting (voluntarily) due to lack of ambition, lack of available private land (which isn't a prerequisite to hunt) or lack of mentoring. That is what I was framing my half the hunters lost comment around. Like I have already said, I'm not seeing a legitimate situation where people would stop hunting where it was forced as you are insinuating. If it was truly a situation where the hunters where forced out of the field then yes I would care about them. If it is a situation where they chose not to hunt, lacked the foresight, ambition, drive or thought that they where owed the "right" to hunt and then where unable to hunt due to that then no I really don't care about them. To be frank, I very sick and tired of our society feeling bad for people that choose not to take care of or try to help themselves. I hope that clears up my position for you.

I guess I'm not seeing the circumstance that would cause the person the loss of ability to hunt that was outside of their control? I guess the only circumstance that would fit that bill that I can think of is if the state some how closed all hunting seasons, or raised the license fee to a point that they could no longer afford a license? In that case, I would think that it is still within their control as they could have purchased a lifetime license, which would have eliminated the rise in cost option as well as given them and MANY other hunter legal recourse against the state.

I think the posters and articles are referring to private land, which that may be true. However, I really don't see public land access being reduced in the foreseeable future.

Wouldn't it actually be the other way around? If there are less hunters wouldn't there be more available public land for them to use per hunter?

I'm not convinced that's it, as the hunter densities are total number of hunters that would include out of state sales.

I've stated this before and I will again, we still have one of the highest hunter densities in the nation. I would bet, even if we lost half of the hunters we would still be on the high side of hunter density. Everyone talks about concern for funding conservation due to loss of license sales. How do these other states with much lower hunter densities pay for conservation? What are they doing different? To me it's not much different than our taxes, we pay the highest taxes in the nation and get no more services than any place else, why is that? One word, waste. With the high hunter density, it means we are paying more per hunter to get the same or worse service from our DEC. Personally, I'm not overly concerned with hunter numbers, we already have two to three times more hunters per square mile than most other states so I don't really see it as an issue.

Whatever the thought process was, it's not included as a "right" therefore it's a privilege.