In the earlier discussion about the Big Time Texas Hunts drawing program, I voiced my opinion about one aspect I would not mind seeing changed concerning the program, actually both programs. The Big Time Hunt packages and the old Type I program. While I still have my reservations on some aspects of both programs, but I still participate annually.

While I have never been drawn for any of the Big Time Hunts, I have been drawn several times for the regular/old Type I hunts.

It has been a few years since I have been drawn, the last time being for Javelina at the James Daughtrey WMA down by Choke Canyon Reservoir. Lora and I didn't get anything, but had a really good time on the hunt.

We still have a couple of applications to send in for this years hunt, but we got word today that we have been drawn for an Either Sex Cull Mule deer hunt being done for the first time on a Private Ranch in Pecos county. Hunt is for a Cull Mule Deer Buck with less than 8 antler points or an antlerless. I have never killed a Mule Deer of any kind in Texas and Lora has never hunted Mule deer. It is a 4 Day Hunt in mid-October, and I will be tickled if we can both take a doe. It would be great if either of us got a buck, but just getting drawn is worth the effort of participating in the programs.

Over the years since the Type I program started I have been fortunate enough to have been drawn for a few hunts.

They are always fun, not necessarily always successful.

The part I like most about the hunts, is that they are conducted by TP&W personnel, and actual managements goals for the areas being hunted are the major focus of the hunts.

Some folks think these hunts are a sure thing, but on the old Type I's, depending on the rules/regulations for any particular hunt, success rates sometimes aren't all that great.

Hope you have a fun hunt. I went 0 for several this year (as last year). Since the new system was implemented odds have gone down drastically.

Enjoy the experience as that is what it is about in my book. Take some pictures to share with your story. Knock 'em dead!

Is Texas 94% privately owned?

Do most private landowner allow the general public to hunt without a fee?

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Is Texas 94% privately owned?

The actual number varies. I have seen it listed from of a low of 90% to a high of 97%.

Either way, the majority of land in Texas is privately owned, and the actual amount of Public Land where a person can go and do a rifle hunt for deer or feral hogs is limited and can get really crowded.

Hunting is big business in Texas and it has gotten more difficult over the past 30 years or so to find any land owner that does not charge some form of fee for accessing their property, hunting or fishing.

I love my home state and have never really wanted to live anywhere else, but for the hunter here, it is pretty much all Pay To Play.

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Originally posted by Crazyhorseconsulting:

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Is Texas 94% privately owned?

The actual number varies. I have seen it listed from of a low of 90% to a high of 97%.

Either way, the majority of land in Texas is privately owned, and the actual amount of Public Land where a person can go and do a rifle hunt for deer or feral hogs is limited and can get really crowded.

Hunting is big business in Texas and it has gotten more difficult over the past 30 years or so to find any land owner that does not charge some form of fee for accessing their property, hunting or fishing.

I love my home state and have never really wanted to live anywhere else, but for the hunter here, it is pretty much all Pay To Play.

Everyone knows someone that has a hunting lease or their own ranch. I bring friends out all the time to kills hogs/deer and especially to let their kids hunt. Only charge is helping out with cooking, cleaning, and work on the lease.

Find some new friends!

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Find some new friends!

Not to derail the subject, but from experience, landowners that have land with hunting and fishing available, collect "Friends" like dogs collect fleas.

On top of that, at least in this part of the state, the majority of the leases are year round, and land owners don't like running the risk of losing good groups.

Things have changed so much since I was a kid and my Dad had permission to fish in practically every piece of property in the county and I had access to all sorts of places to dove/quail and duck hunt. There were few if any deer in the area and no one really hunted them.

After the big increase in deer numbers and interest in hunting them, that all changed, and ranchers/farmers realized quickly that they could make good money off of a commodity they really had no money tied up in.

For a Non-Resident to come into Texas and go around knocking on doors hoping to find a "New Friend" without already having an "In" of some sort is going to prove to be frustrating at the least.

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Originally posted by Norseman:
Is Texas 94% privately owned?

Do most private landowner allow the general public to hunt without a fee?

The number generally used is 95% plus is privately owned.

No. Rarely if ever if you're referring to deer or hogs. IF, and that's a big "IF", you have a friend who can vouch for you and who is a good friend of the landowner, you MIGHT be allowed to hunt hogs. Never say never, but asking around to hunt deer is nearly a real mission impossible.

From long and often bitter experiences, land owners find allowing unknown individuals on their land often creates far more problems than it solves and ranchers, in particular, have enough problems as it is.

AFA the "bring friends to your lease", many leases prohibit or greatly restrict the number of guests. Obviously some don't.

While Gato and I don't get along, I have seen him make some really generous offers to fellow AR members on hog hunts on his properties.

I can't/don't blame land owners for, A, wanting to make extra income, and B, wanting to protect themselves and their property.

In our modern world, you may have the best intentions in the world by allowing some stranger on your property to hunt hogs or fish in your ponds, but that may not/will not stop that person from suing you if they get hurt while on your property, even if it is their fault.

In many ways looking over my time on this Earth it is a sad commentary in many ways as to how much people have changed.

It's gotten quite expensive to run a lease. My friends and I have been doing one for about 10 years.

It's 5,300 acres, all low fence, with a 2 bed house (1,200 ft2) and 4 bed modular building - and we've had to pay for all the improvements ourselves and bring the modular building in (16x76). And we just dried in an off-grid 16x12 cabin in a remote area on the ranch that's hard to get to (going run off generator, batteries -will have ac/heat, hot/cold water for shower, and toilet - we even built a poor man's septic system - 55 gallon drum with holes in the side buried in the ground). We also have a good, covered cleaning station and a walk-in commercial cooler (paid for that ourselves as well). And bunches of shipping containers for UTV and corn storage. Now it's nice - Wifi, Satellite TV, commercial stove, ac/heat. etc.

We have 20 feeders on the property most with bow and rifle blind (we've been upgrading the bow blinds to raised wood blinds). And we pay the landowner to fill the feeders (his ranch hands do it). We provide the corn and pay for everything else.

So net, for 16 members, it was $6K each this each due to special $1,000 assessment for a bunch of upgrades we are doing (bow blinds and remote cabin). Probably will be $5,150 next year. The actual $$$ to the land owner is $10/acre plus $$$ for filling the feeders. We reimburse him for all the electricity (not cheap - $300-400/month).

Good news - it's year around. Liberal guest policy (we actually set the policy and actually clamped down this year a bit) and we set all of the animal quotas ourselves except for the whitetail. We have a good number of exotics (axis, sika, and aoudad are most commonly taken; also have a growing population of fallow, red deer, and elk - but only have taken one 6x5 elk); we shot all the spanish goats and merino off years ago - no value. Lots of hogs (too many), lots of turkey, and the white tail are finally recovering from the 2011 drought - big die-off.

Sounds like a pretty nice place, and not at an unreasonable cost given the opportunities and amenities.

You have a great set up AH, but even you admit to "Cutting Back" on the guests.

The majority of leases I am familiar with in this area are set up pretty much like yours is, hence my comments about making friends and finding places to go hunting have pretty well dried up, especially for deer, more especially for bucks.

Hunting in Texas has, for good or bad became big business on both sides, so opening a place up to whoever, even if they are known whoever's to the landowner has gotten to be a rare occurrence.

I was lucky enough to have a friend who's wife inherited family property near Cross Plains. I gave him a windmill (in good shape) I had rescued from the junk man, his wife said with that I could hunt the ranch forever. I hunt"for free" but I always bring a gift, last year it was wine and 600 lbs. of deer corn. Not to be served together.

I ask everyone I see who looks like they many have huntable land, my wife cringes. We were at Disney World and there was a guy waiting for a bus wearing a Gander Mountian hat and a South Dakota shirt, was a farmer, feed lot, but no antelope, too east or deer, blue tongue.
But asking enough people I have places I have not hunted but available in Michigan Indiana, and Pennsivania. I have asked thousands of people.

Mark

Great for you R.

Maybe I can get up your way for a late season deer or hog or both. I will bring safari pictures and you bring mule deer pictures.

I am going to send in a few tries on the Texas Hunts myself. Yeah I have never been drawn either.

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Originally posted by Crazyhorseconsulting:

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Find some new friends!

After the big increase in deer numbers and interest in hunting them, that all changed, and ranchers/farmers realized quickly that they could make good money off of a commodity they really had no money tied up in.

Landowners DO have money 'tied-up' in wildlife that eat their grass all year - even more so if they have no public land to move to.

Sorry, but you are wrong, at least here in Texas.

Do not know how much knowledge you have with White tail deer physiology, but deer do not compete with cattle.

Deer are browsers, cattle are grazers, if numbers of both are kept to reasonable levels, the compliment each other, they do not compete with each other.

Deer and goats can not co-exist, because both eat and depend on the exact same type food plants, White tail deer do not depend upon grass, in fact White tails will starve to death if grass is all they have available.