How do you get permission for bowhunting

[DRH1175]

How does one get permission from farmers for bow hunting. Is there a science as to how to ask. I have been shut down. Is there a trick to it that I should know about? Thanks

[pike_buster]

the best thing i have found is to stop over in the spring to ask. It has worked for me a few times. Once you have permission, the next thing is to keep it. The last private land i got permision for, i spent about 3 or 4 days in June walking the woods and fence lines picking up trash and other junk that had been there for years. The owner saw me and was very thankful. I have also been on my way hunting and seen the owner having problems with his tractor. I didn't hunt that day, i gave him a ride home for tools, and stayed to help fix it. I figured, if he lets me hunt his prime land, i will do anything i can to help. he must have told his neighbors, becuase i have permision for most of the land around his to.

[FL SNIPER]

As far as obtaining hunting land...just keep trying...go door to door to door....be polite and upfront...and if the owner does not permit you to hunt his land ask him if he has any suggestions on who to ask...and then thank him for his time. That's about the best you can do. Keep your ears open as well...perhaps there's a friend of yours or relative or someone closer than you think that has a hunting oppurtunity for you.

I agree with Pike Buster on how to keep hunting land - be Thankful, Thankful, Thankful and always show your appreciation via gifts of labor, time, favors, fish, venison, anything...and make sure you are sincere with your gifts and not just "sucking up". Good luck...if you keep at it...it will happen...might not be the most ideal situation but at least you'll be able to hunt until you find something better or in addition.

[harvey lee]

I have many people approach me to hunt on the land that I oversee in North Dakota.For the people that I have said yes to,they have turned out to be some of my best hunting buddies.

At first,they stopped and introduced themselves and talked for awhile with me.The first year I told them that they could hunt but only could hunt where I told them they could.

Just stop in,introduce yourself and state what you would like.You could also re assure them that it will only be yourself or whoever else is going to be with and make sure you bring no one else along.

As far as gifts,I recieve some from these guys every year and I tell them every year they do not need to do this,but the keep right on,so be it.

[Powerstroke]

I have to agre with Harvey that the best thing to do is be upfront and honest. Its not like used car salesman.

I say hi and introduce myself. I usually say that they have a very nice place and I was wondering if I could BOWHUNT for deer. The big thing is to mention the bow and arrow thing.

A no is a no. DOn't try to convince them to give you a chance. If they say they hunt it themselves, ask if they would allow you to hunt does only. I'm not a trophy hunter yet so I don't mind some meat for the freezer. Also keep in mind late season.

If they want to talk, let them. They are gonna get a feel for you that way. If you're impatient or rude they will notice and say no thanks.

Be ready to answer questions about how you hunt and any scouting you've done on their property by maps or roadsides.

I've gotten 1 yes and too many no's, but you gotta keep trying.

[harvey lee]

Powerstroke,if you stopped and asked and listened like you stated and I was willing to let someone hunt,you would be in.Thats a great way to approach a landowner.

[BLACKJACK]

Be clean, courteous, no beer on your breath, try not to interrupt a farmer in the field, avoid lunch time too. I also like to have a plat book with so once I get permission I can ask about where their property lines are. Emphasize that you are BOW hunting and that it will just be you, not a big group.

I got permission to hunt a new spot this year by offering to bring my chain saw over to trim and cut some trees. I saw lots of piles of cut up small wood but the bigger stuff was still laying there, once I mentioned doing some cutting, his mood brightened considerably! We hopped in my truck and checked out his property, and he even invited me into his house for a few minutes! Turns out he was an old bachelor - wish the plat book told me which ones were old maids and bachelors!!! Bad part was that he'd only let me hunt 'the north 40' the other 120 is being saved for the nieces husband. But its a start.

Another tip: I don't ask for it right away, but after a month or so of hunting, they've seen me a few times and we've talked, I'll ask for permission to hunt their pheasants. Farmers are always more willing to give bow hunting permission but by Nov they may let you hunt pheasants too.

Expect to get a few no's for every yes, most spots are already hunted by friends or relatives. Thats just the way it is, expect it and don't let it get you down. My goal is to get a couple of extra spots to hunt with different wind directions and so I'm not hunting the same deer all the time around home. And a spot thats not very hot this year might change next year when the crops change. And a farmer or spot that doesn't look very good may lead to another spot - 'Oh, you have another 160 acres two miles to the south of here'. Be still my heart!

[bigbucks]

All good responses guys. If possible I always try to find out some type of connection to the landowner, somebody I know who knows them, whatever. I usually go after work in my work clothes, business casual is what I'm always wearing, so they can tell you most likely have a job, which at least gives the impression of a responsible person. I just checked on a property a couple of nights ago that I've been meaning to ask about for a few years. I figured this place was going to be a no, as I knew he had kids & figured they hunted, but you never know. I think expecting no is good, because you're not disappointed when you get one & if you get a yes, you're excitement is very genuine & generally makes the landowner feel good that they made your day.

I drove in, asked if he was (the name of who I heard was the landowner), he said yes. I introduced myself, told him where I lived & then said I was interested in bowhunting. (They know you're there because you want something from them, so why wait?) The answer was no as he had family who hunts deer, but we still wound up talking for nearly half an hour while my kids played with his dog. You never know, I might see his field full of geese someday & ask again about that & he says sure we don't hunt them. Either way, I got to meet another nice guy. Who knows maybe he'll have a friend complain that the deer are eating their crops & he wished he knew a bowhunter who could do some damage... He may have forgotten my name, but remember I'm the guy that lives over on the such & such place.

[DRH1175]

Thanks, I was just wondering if I was the only one that always seems to get turned down. It is glad that we all go through the same thing. I will keep trying...

[bigbucks]

I've got to say most of my permission for bowhunting has been from people I already knew somehow.

[tjm]

Growing up my father always sent me to the door to ask.So after all those thousands of times asking i find myself knowing what to say to each person as soon as they open the door just by the look on there face

1 thing i see and hear hunters do wrong is not knowing what there try'n to say.Know what your going to ask before you knock on that door

I have had hunting friends see a big buck in a field.They go ask the farmer and he says no.I'll go back to that same person by myself and ask in a whole different way cause i know when they had asked they probly paused several times try'n to think of a line to say to the farmer.I'll come back with a yes more times then a no

Several years back i had asked this farmer to hunt.Answer was always a no.Well 1 day i was out scouting and saw this farmer picking corn and the grain kart was just sitting there.Well i drove around a couple hours went back by and it was still just sitting

So i stopped when the farmer was unloading did some small talk and he stated he cant find anyone to work more then a day or so.This is what i kinda figured was going on.So i said you know i have asked and asked to hunt your property with the answer always being a no.I tell ya what,i'll run this grain kart until your crops are picked if you give me the ok to deer hunt.He looks at me and asked if i was nuts.Nope i said i just wanna deer hunt your land that bad.

He asked if i had any idea how to run 1 i said well kinda but give me a fast run down.At the end of the day he said well what about the rest of the season i said yup i told ya the deal.So every morning i got to hunt until 8 or 9 am for 3 weeks.Once the crops were picked i hunted when ever i wanted to.

Over the next couple months we talked went out to eat just got to know 1 another.Farmer had told several neighbors about me working for free just to shoot deer.They all think i'm nuts to this day.This is the 5th year of me being able to hunt his land the 5th year i'll help him out and let the guys i hunt with shoot deer while i work 5th year i stop and ask him who owns this land over here and how well do ya know him can you get me in theres a big buck over on the fence line 5th year of a new found friend and the 5th year of shooting big bucks

I try to do something each season for each farmer.It might be picking rocks in the spring or just dropping off some deer meat or a turkey for thanksgiving.Small things go along ways with most farmers so keep that in mind.Do something for them to remember you by.Winter months stop in and talk a few times ask him a few ?'s about how the crop season was or if you have something for me to do some time on a sunday i have those days off i would like to help ya out heres my phone number give me a call

Reading what everyone else has posted is all great but if you cant ask those things without a pause here and there the answer will probly be a no.I go up to every land owner thinking the answer will be a yes.This gives me more strength in my voice and words i use.Thinking the land owner will say no and scream at ya for just asking tends to give people a soft voice and a loss for words

[Deitz Dittrich]

Very well written TJM...I'm a teacher and speak for a living... have given fishing seminars in front of 100's of people..But I still get nervous as all get out about asking permission to hunt someones land...and to this day, pretty much, gave up. I only ask people I know now.

[bigbucks]

tjm,

I'm not bashing your response, I can see how that could work well, but lets be realistic who has the kind of time that they can pull grain wagons for 3 weeks in the fall?

Are you a vendor for 11 days at the state fair & then a fishing guide the rest of the time or what? I had to ask man, you know the rest of the readers were wondering the same thing.

Do you have a family?

[tjm]

You dont have to pull a grain kart for 3 weeks.I'm just telling you and everyone else what it took for me to get on this land.Sometimes i do very little to get on or keep the land i wish to hunt.I'm saying try and do what ya can to help out a farmer or land owner it will go along ways

Nope not a vendor.Some say i have my life backwards i say i have it just right.I hunt when i wanna hunt and i fish to pass away the closed hunting season.I dont drive new trucks nor do i have a spendy life style outside of hunting/fishing.I have 3 pair of jeans i wear 7 days a week about 3-4 years old.2 pair of shoes.I use what i have and buy what i need not what i want.

Now my hunting clothes is what i want not what i need.I have a small cabelas store in my closets

When i'm out spending a 100 bucks a weekend on gas my hunting friends do a little extra around here to help me out being they cant get away.Couple guys that hunt alot with me will fill my gas tank up so i can do more scouting even if they dont come along.I'm not rich,a matter of fact come jan 1st i'm about broke as broke gets.I just love being out in the field wether i'm hunting or just watching a big buck from 2 miles away sitting in the truck

I just got back from a weekend of scouting.I slept in my truck ate very little spent plenty on gas and i now need a new pair of boots

I'm single as single gets come sept 15th every year until late Jan

Some days i'll work 2 hours in the morning 3 hours in the afternoon then the next day i'll work 15 hours straight.I know how much i'll need by sept 15th and i limit my cash so it will atleast get me to jan 1st

By the way i'm not here looking for anything but to try and help other people.I read and learn from others in here as much as i can.Maybe someday i will run across something i read in here to help me out If someone would have told me many things i have said in here a long time ago it would have helped me long ago and i prolly would have more cash to buy new pants.

Hunting big bucks is what i love to do.It dont matter to me to set a friend up on a 160" buck 1 bit.Matter of fact i actualy get more outa that then me killing it myself.The last 3-4 years everyone that has hunted with me got number 1 choice on what stand to take.If i know something they dont i will say hey i would proly sit this stand tonight.Some guys i took last season never shot at a buck over 115 inches.All 4 of those guys got chance after chance only 1 did not fill his own tag on a 130 class buck or bigger.Some weekends i'll just scout while everyone else hunts.To let ya know the land i hunt is not as great as it sounds.I hunt a 100 mile area but i do my homework on each buck i am able to hunt before i put up a stand

To me setting a stand up 1 on 1 with a buck i got to know by spending time with and you shooting that buck is almost the same as me shooting it.I out smarted 1 of the hardest animals to get in the midwest.Sure once in a blue moon we will get a shooter buck to walk past a stand set up for another buck but sooner or later that stand will produce the buck we were after.

I'm taking a couple guys from this site on opener.Never hunted with either 1 of them.Had a chance to spend a day with 1 of the 2 guys this past winter.We talk on the phone more then most people talk to there wife.What do i get outa it.Well a new friend hunting buddy and more then likely a good hunting trip if we shoot a deer or not.Everything else is a plus.

By the way i wear grey boxer briefs and white tube sox if i missed anything let me know i'll send an e-mail. J/K

Now you know whats 1st in my life.I cant spend a million dollars when i'm in the grave but i can spend a million while i'm alive going deer hunting

[EXTREME]

Your right TJM. I am the lucky guy who is going to hunt with you...hopefully. We do seem to talk more on the phone than I do with my wife. Oh well, the conversation is better. Hoping to have a good time...if we shoot a big buck...so be it. See ya friday!!

[bigbucks]

tjm,

Your hunting dedication's impressive, this is great info for all the rest of us, so when are wives tell us we're addicted to hunting we can say, "No I'm not, there's this guy that... now he's addicted." I love to hunt, but honestly I don't know if I can say I'm jealous of that schedule. I guess it just boils down to me being a lot more of a meat hunter then a trophy hunter. Also I'd rather spend more time in the field hunting then all the time & money in gas scouting. That's one of the best things about hunting, especially bowhunting, everybody can find the parts they especially enjoy about it & spend a lot of time doing it.

I can understand perfectly where it's about as satisfying to get someone else a shot at that big buck, knowing your setup, your plan, is what made it happen. I've felt similar satisfaction when I've helped a less experienced hunter get a good shot opportunity at any deer.

Seriously what's your occupation that allows all that flexibility in your schedule?

[tjm]

bigbucks

The reason i scout so much is not that i need to if i hunted alone.My season would probly be short.I would pick a buck out and spend what ever amount of time i needed to wait for the right wind/weather.Late season i would shoot my doe or 2 and be done.

I hunt with several guys that work 7 days a week weather permiting all summer.Come October-nov they have 4-5 days a week to hunt until Dec 31st.So i put stands out for them.I'll sit that stand with a bow just incase something big walks by.Once i know i'm in the right place i now have a stand set for someone.

As the crops dwindle down the hunting gets more intense.Were always on the move just like those deer going from 1 field to the next as they get picked.I dont get to excited when the beans turn like they have now cause the deer change patterns.Couple weeks they will change again once the farmers start picking beans.For my style of hunting this is the worst weather we could of had for opener but oh well

1 thing i see and hear in here and out in the field are hunters wanting to shoot a nice buck but not getting a chance.Scouting is the key unless you have an area where there are plenty of big deer.I dont have those options.There are plenty of big deer where i mainly hunt but not enough to shoot year after year.So instead of thinking if i sit more in my stand hunting i'll have a better chance of shooting a buck.NOT the case if you have'nt done your home work.Do more scouting you'll shoot more big bucks

So by hunting a bigger area we can expect to find a few nice bucks for years to come

This goes back to getting to know many farmers each season.Some places i might need to ask a half dozen farmers just for 1 deer.I might not ever go hunt that land again either if we happen to get the deer we were after but i try to drop off some deer meat,turkey or what ever to most of the land owners

I get invited to hunt with a couple guys every year on there land during the muzzy season.I already know i'm not shooting a buck.(1)i only hunt 2 days a year(2)i never scout this land(3)it probly only holds 1 or 2 bucks i would care to shoot(4)I go to spend time with guys i grew up with and talk about old times.So i can say this brings me back to my early years of hunting.Go plop a stand up in a woods knowing there are deer and hope for the best.After 4 years of this i have yet to even see a buck in range over 120 inches.Shot 2 does in 4 years.Now if i could walk around the woods and do some scouting maybe it might be different.I cant say 1 way or another cause i dont know whats out there

[bigbucks]

Good post, very informative. I believe that there are not very many truly big bucks in any one area & that to score consistently you would have to find them & figure them out, unless you happen to find a large tract of underhunted, really prime private land. Like you said, there aren't very many of those & if they're there they aren't available for someone to knock on a door & discover. I would believe your best bet is to discover that big boy flying under the radar on marginal land that's very hard to hunt.