Trespassers on my land & deer stands

[Landowner]

I don't like to share and of my land w/trespassers. The deer come and go as we all know. I like to keep whats mine, mine.

Found a stand on our posted property...very nice ladder stand. i didn't want our stands stolen so I took his down...after I cut his lock....left all the parts at the base of the tree and put on a note to call me if he wanted his rachet straps back...couldn't have him setting it back up the day he found it. It has been in a pile for the last 3 weeks. If the guy was planning on using it for opening morning of gun....boy is he in for a surprise ;D

I guess you don't want to share all those "150" class bucks you see. 

[sits in trees]

I don't like to share and of my land w/trespassers. The deer come and go as we all know. I like to keep whats mine, mine.

Found a stand on our posted property...very nice ladder stand. i didn't want our stands stolen so I took his down...after I cut his lock....left all the parts at the base of the tree and put on a note to call me if he wanted his rachet straps back...couldn't have him setting it back up the day he found it. It has been in a pile for the last 3 weeks. If the guy was planning on using it for opening morning of gun....boy is he in for a surprise ;D

I guess you don't want to share all those "150" class bucks you see. 

dude we get your point....your a mighty land baron.

[sits in trees]

lets get real here, your not going to get the state troopers to arrest someone who happens to come on your land, the most they will do is warn the guy. and second if you pull a handgun on someone who is on your land you will be the one hiring a lawyer and more than likely doing it from behind bars. another thing, be civil remember most tresspassers know where you live, and you know nothing about them, so before you go threatening someone and cutting up thier equipment etc think about what they can do to you or your house.

[Doc]

lets get real here, your not going to get the state troopers to arrest someone who happens to come on your land, the most they will do is warn the guy. and second if you pull a handgun on someone who is on your land you will be the one hiring a lawyer and more than likely doing it from behind bars. another thing, be civil remember most tresspassers know where you live, and you know nothing about them, so before you go threatening someone and cutting up thier equipment etc think about what they can do to you or your house.

As much as it does truly pain me to have to agree with Sits ..... lol .... he actually does have a point that people here really had better think about. There definitely is a disregard for law and order that some of these trespassers have when they knowingly cross that posted line, and we definitely should understand the potential risks involved with dealing with these kinds of individuals. Taking time to size-up the mental stability and make-up of these characters is always a good idea before planning just how to proceed. Keep the situation under control. I generally have a bit of conversation with these people before I confront them with the trespass talk. That all just gives you a chance to size them up a bit and perhaps get a look at their back tag and maybe learn a bit about their ID, and maybe the location of their car and anything else that would help in prosecution.

Also, the hand-gun thing (or any weapon). Unless you are in imminent personal danger or threatened with violence, menacing with a firearm is a situation you likely will never pull off without some serious legal harm. So, think before you act. There may be a lot more at stake than you realize. Also, when weapons become involved, you never really know how the situation might evolve. Pulling a gun could escalate the situation into result that is not at all what you might plan.

I understand the frustration of having people trample all over your rights as a landowner, but there is a right way and a wrong way to respond while safeguarding your physical, legal and financial well-being.

Doc

[SteveB]

My last free pass to a trespasser was given 4 years ago - zero tolerance now - all get charged.

[biggamefish]

lets get real here, your not going to get the state troopers to arrest someone who happens to come on your land, the most they will do is warn the guy. and second if you pull a handgun on someone who is on your land you will be the one hiring a lawyer and more than likely doing it from behind bars. another thing, be civil remember most tresspassers know where you live, and you know nothing about them, so before you go threatening someone and cutting up thier equipment etc think about what they can do to you or your house.

  To bad it isn't up to the police if you want to press charges you press charges.  The cop can't just say well sorry I am not going to write a ticket today. 

[erussell]

I had a guy one time put up a homemade ladder stand made of wood on our property one time. I asked my uncle if it was suppose to be there and he said no and take care of it. So I went up with my machete and chopped it up into little pcs and left it in a pile next to the tree and put a posted sign on the tree for good measure. The guy called my uncle all pissed off wanting to know why we had cut up his stand. My uncle was just like, maybe because you dont have permission to hunt my property. Then the guy went on the whole Ive hunted here for 30 yrs speech and we just told him he didn't anymore.

[noodle one]

KEEP OFF THE KINGS LAND AND STAY OFF

[RangerClay]

You know if we go pulling our .357's on any person we might see on our land, then sooner or later you will get some low-life retaliating by pulling the bolts and pins from our tree stand in hopes that we break our necks.  I don't like trespassers just like everyone else, but there is a way to confront them, especially if it's the first time you see this person and pulling a gun on him is surely NOT the right way in my opinion.

DO NOT PULL A GUN!  This is not Dodge City.  If you pulled a pistol on me, I am certainly going to point a gun back at you.

I don't know how many of you remember this but this is what happens when guns are drawn.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chai_Vang

Get a name and have them arrested.  You draw a gun and you are going to jail.

[steve863]

DO NOT PULL A GUN!  This is not Dodge City. 

You would think hunters of all people would understand this, but I guess some just can't.  I don't know why this is, but some hunters, even the ones who think are the ones doing things ethically and the proper way have a tendency to not think straight.

[First-light]

It's called rage! You never know what the hell the other person is going through and what will set them off. Take care of yourself and let the police do their thing.

[ny_deer_hunter]

Hey everyone. Just curious how you react to people actually asking for permission? I understand the tresspassing argument, but what about the folks that ask. Do you let them hunt or tell them to beat feet? I myself as a land owner, grant permission as long as they check in at the cabin in the morning. We have a log book that needs to be signed and a map where they put a push pin on where they are hunting. All we ask for in return is one weekend of work to maintain the property. Win win situation on both ends.

[SteveB]

I say no since the properties are at max for conditions.

[noodle one]

I say no since the properties are at max for conditions.

SteveB, What do you consider "max for conditions" How many acres and how many hunters?

[Landowner]

Here is my take on this issue.

I live in 3M I only own 50 acres. I pay the taxes. If they want to hunt, go hunt state land. I work very hard to keep my property clean. I also do food plots and shell oot lots of $$$. I had a hunting camp that used it to hunt Phesant, I let a few of these guys hunt deer, one day I'm out on my tour of the land I see one of them standing over 1 dead doe and 1 dead fawn. Guess what he and his friend were now off my property for good. One other guy, back in the day when I was feeding the deer. We had a pieball button buck on our land all summer. Another person thought it was a very great looking deer and he had to take it. Gone.

I let friends and family hunt no strangers.

[Landowner]

I went out to the stand this morning. No one their. I put a note on the stand with my phone number. I will give him a week if the stand is still their I will then dissasemble it, and keep the ratchet strap. Is this ok?

[biggamefish]

I think you are being more than fair. I would have disassembled it and left a note with a phone number and first name when I first found it. If he calls you get to meet him when he comes to pick up the ladder stand and know who he is. If you know his face and name I would think he would be less likely to ruin anything on your property. 

[SteveB]

I say no since the properties are at max for conditions.

SteveB, What do you consider "max for conditions" How many acres and how many hunters?

1st - 290 acres - 2 to 3 hunters

2nd - 60 acres - 4 to 5

3rd - 95 acres - 5

[erussell]

I had a friend who hunted some new land he bought. He set up a stand about 20 yrds from the border of his property. Well the neighbor was a rabid anti and called the game warden and told him the land was his and the warden didn't even check into it he just came and took the stand and left a note saying that if he wanted it he needed to call the warden. So after a whole bunch of hullabaloo he proved the stand was on his property and got the stand back. Then he went and built 6 permanent stands along the boarder of his property to tick the anti off. So if you find a stand on the property and you want to send them a message have the game warden remove it.

[fasteddie]

The game wardens are spread so thin , I would think it would be very difficult to get one to show up to remove a stand .

[outdoorstom]

lets get real here, your not going to get the state troopers to arrest someone who happens to come on your land, the most they will do is warn the guy. and second if you pull a handgun on someone who is on your land you will be the one hiring a lawyer and more than likely doing it from behind bars. another thing, be civil remember most tresspassers know where you live, and you know nothing about them, so before you go threatening someone and cutting up thier equipment etc think about what they can do to you or your house.

I agree you run a risk of retaliation, but are you going to just roll over and let people hunt your property because of fear? The state police will prosecute trespassers every time if you press charges. What upsets them and CO's, is when someone calls them over, but then doesn't press charges.

[wztirem]

Retaliation is a real fear for the property owner, especially if he is not a year round resident. A guy I know had his house burned down several years ago after confronting trespasser's and having to call the police.

[fasteddie]

That's a good point . My son's property is 60 miles from his home and backs up to over 1800 acres of state land . He has to be careful !

[wztirem]

I own  with my siblings property upstate which is used only in the summer and is closed up for the rest of the year. No hunting is permitted( family issue which I accept) but locals tresspass with impunity because of the fear of retribution by my siblings who have the power of attorney over the estate. It is what it is, and it is a viable concern on our part.

The problem is that when our parents bought the property the former owners family and friends who hunted the land with impunity thought they stilled retained the right to hunt the land. Early attempts at regulating access to hunting the property never did work out and my siblings were reluctant and intimated to enforce the trespassing laws. In any event, the land will ultimately be sold and i will receive my share.

[Spook]

On 10/29/2010 at 9:55 PM, ny_deer_hunter said:

Hey everyone. Just curious how you react to people actually asking for permission? I understand the tresspassing argument, but what about the folks that ask. Do you let them hunt or tell them to beat feet? I myself as a land owner, grant permission as long as they check in at the cabin in the morning. We have a log book that needs to be signed and a map where they put a push pin on where they are hunting. All we ask for in return is one weekend of work to maintain the property. Win win situation on both ends.

I am also a land owner and I want to say cudos to you sir. I wish there were more people like you. At some point this whole state will be posted except for state land which will be over ran. Land owners who are willing to share available private property should all patted on the back.