quote:

i asked a simple question. thats all.

Since you are obviously to lazy to look it up yourself I am only too happy to do it for you. Here is it right from the Boone&Crockett Club website.

quote:

IV. Confined by artificial barriers, including escape-proof fenced enclosures;
V. Transplanted for the purpose of commercial shooting;

These are only two of the sections on the entry affidavit. Here is the link for the complete application
http://www.boone-crockett.org/huntingEthics/ethics_affi...p?area=huntingEthics

By the way. Be sure and buy a copy of the next B&C record book coming out soon. You'll get to see my name in it. If you send me your copy I will be happy to autograph it for you for a nominal fee.

That's a fantastic buck. Too bad the thread couldn't have gone forward without the typical K-BS behavior.

The best thing we have seen about KStephens and his idea of hunting, is that it is perfectly okay for him to drive down to Arkansas and fill the tags on other peoples license, and he proudly admits to it.

Since you and Montana Boy have such a hatered for anything doing with Texas, why don't you try this.

Next time a thread is started about a deer killed down here, JUST IGNORE IT!

It would not make any difference to you if it was killed in the middle of the Sam Houston National Forest.

You have a problem with anything said or done in Texas. That is your crowning acheivment in life. You don't like Texas or Texans, so no matter what it is, you are gonna find fault with it.

If the mention of Texas bothers you so bad, Why In Hell, even say anything???

KStephens,

Somewhat off topic, and at the risk of sinking to your level, I'd like to ask you a question publicly and would be happy to take this to private message. However, first, before I pose my question I will volunteer that the fence around my house is 6'. Not to keep my dog in, but to comply with subdivision deed restrictions.
I log onto this forum quite often and have done so for the last five plus years. I lurk much more than I post. I have been impressed by the vast knowledge, experience and experiences of the various posters.
Now for my question to you. Can you point me to a post of yours where you offer some positive insight or some word of praise for a fellow AR member who has in good conscience posted something that he thought would educate, edify or encourage other AR members.
GWB

Well, by virtue of his rabid internet ramblings, he IS personally providing an excellent case study for a number of budding psychologists...

Gidday Guys,

Firstly that is a wonderful trophy, I wish my woman had a rack like that!!

You boys make the Aussie/Kiwi banter look like childs play. Sorry one or two make this look like a badly behaved child throwing a tanty (tantrum).

For the first time on this forum someone has hit my ignore list.

Every American I have met has been extremely polite. I may not have agreed with what they have said but they have always displayed good manner like their Momma taught them. A national trait to be very proud of.

It is therefore with great regret that this combative and rude member has been put on ignore as I come on here not for fighting and stress but to enjoy the company of likeminded souls.

Spirited debate is one thing and I understand sometimes we can get a little hot under the collar but almost every post by this member is insulting and designed to start a fight.

I hope this member enjoys his hunting and the rest of his life without my anger and frustration.

Happy Hunting

Hamish

ok, you guys are right.
what was i thinking. i couldnt possibly ask a question with regardes to a legal definition without demeaning the whole state.
anyway.
enjoy your season.

quote:

Since you and Montana Boy have such a hatered for anything doing with Texas,

CHC - untwist your panties...really. what are you, some kind of fascist? is your position so weak or your confidence in your style of "hunting" so low that you can't stand to hear an opposing view? grow up.

some of my best friends are texans. if it weren't for a damn good texan, i wouldn't have my own forum. texas has one of the richest histories in the nation and some of the most interesting cultures. some of the best music in american history comes from there. i'm proud to have texas as our SECOND best state in the union.

but when it comes to hunting, you guys are fucked up; it's a fact, it's life, get over it.

quote:

Originally posted by tasunkawitko:
[QUOTE] i'm proud to have texas as our SECOND best state in the union.

.

thanks man. from myself and the rest of SC, thanks. that means alot.


January 5, 1861
The Speaker laid before the House on the 24th, a letter signed by Messrs. M'Queen, Bonham, Boyce, and Ashmore, of South Carolina, as follows:
SIR,- We avail ourselves of the earliest opportunity since the official communication of the intelligence, of making known to your honorable body that the people of the State of South Carolina, in their sovereign capacity, have resumed the powers heretofore delegated by them to the Federal Government of the United States, and have thereby dissolved our connection with the House of Representatives. In taking leave of those with whom we have been associated in a common agency, we, as well as the people of our Commonwealth, desire to do so with a feeling of mutual regard and respect for each other- cherishing the hope that, in our future relations, we may better enjoy that peace and harmony essential to the happiness of a free and enlightened people.

JOHN M'QUEEN,

M. L. BONHAM,

W. W. BOYCE,

J. D. ASHMORE.

To the Speaker of the House of Representatives

The only thing about my panties being wadded, is when you and folks like KStephens lump all Texans together.

I guess I have this real simple minded idea that when someone starts making attacks on my home state, I feel like I should get at least a little upset.

Not all of us in Texas are hjappy with things the way they are, and not all of us hunt on high fence properties.

In fact in comparison to Montana or SC, or any other state in the Union, Texas residents are screwed when it comes to having places to hunt at reasonable prices.

The problem I have with your and KStephens diatribes is you lump all Texans together, and that is pure Bull Shit to do that.

Many Texans go out of state every chance they get to.

I really enjoy going to the Nebraska panhandle and having access to 180,000+ acres of Public Land.

Lots of Texans wish there was more Public Land in Texas, but there is not one thing we can do to make it happen, Texas has this thing about Land Owners Rights, that has been in place for a long time.

One other thing that all Texans have to deal with/live with, is the fact that we have been forced into the system we have, because of Private Land Ownership and the greed of HUNTERS, willing to shell out whatever it takes to get a chance at a good buck.

Also, having hunted in other states and in Canada, and having shared hunting camps with all sorts of folks, I have observed some things:

1. Not all people that hunt share the SAME idead on hunting. Lots of folks just like to kill stuff and they really don't give a damn what the circumstances are.

2. Many hunters are willing to pay whatever they have to, to kill something, and, if whatever it is they are paying to kill will give them a shot to the ego and boost their standing in their socio-economic group, you can damn well bet they will do it and not bat an eye.

3. As I mentioned earlier, while sales of hunting license to Texas Residents is declining, sales of Non-Resident hunting licenses are increasing yearly.

4. In any of these arguements, have ANY of us Texans said that our system was PERFECT, I do not remember it. It is the system we grew up in. Don't know how old you or KStephens are, but I am 57 and I saw deer hunting go from where people would let you go on their place and shoot deer because they thought they were pests, to where the damn things are more valuable to the landowner than any cattle he may own.

5. While the Texas system may be the most screwed up one in the country, I have noticed that other states are having no problem adopting such things as the leasing system or the package hunt system and where legal putting in High Fence operations.

I don't know if any of the other Texans on here feel this way, but to me, it seems that you, KStephens, jb, and others immediately start downing Texas and Texans, when you see that a post has been made by one of us.

Does not matter what the post is about, I do not think it would matter to you folks if it was a post about a kid and his/her - Dad/Mom, with a doe deer killed off Public Land in Texas.

Maybe if for one second some of you folks would take the time to realize that not all Texans are 100% happy with system down here, some of the reactions from Texans might be a little less defensive.

If you attack one of us, you have attacked all of us.

What makes it worse, is if you have never actually been down here and seen how things work or in someone else's case, openly admits to doing something illegal, while openly trashing the Texas way of doing things and ALL Texans.

I didnt lump anyone together till i said "high fence" and got jumped on. was it just coincidence that all the jumpers were texans?
i have no problem with tx or texans. i spent some time in San-Tonio during my USMC time.
no, i have a problem with people who sit on a stand someone else built picked and carted them to. then pull the trigger on a bottle fed deer that has been allowed to roam around for 5 years without developing any sence of what a wild deer needs to do to survive. being coddeled and fed like a cow.
then one day when he "scores" high enough someone with a thick bankroll comes in and puts a round in him.
then the servants gather him up cart him away clean him skin him package his head and hide up, ship it all off to a taxi who then ships it to the "hunter" who stands before it and claims its a 165 B&C like he's O'conner himself.
yeah i think thats BS cause he's gonna get lumped with me someday.
I also have a problem with people who think that the size of a deers rack is what makes him a better hunter than someone else. I live in SC. i live in the Northern part of the state . the closest thing we have to agriculture is pine trees. we dont feed or fence or manipulate the genes of our deer. we sure dont dart them and selectivly breed them.
they are wild deer and if you kill one past 4.5 years old you'v found an old buck. I have hunted all my life. hunted hard and put in more hours a year with a rifle in hand than most men will accumulate in a lifetime.
i can find sign, scout, pattern, build natural blinds, build stands, im a hell of a shot on standing and running game, i am versed in anatomy and i can track when most people have given up.
i can read wind and adjust styles at a moments notice.
i can clean and prosses my own animal from hoof to dinner plate.
I am a hunter.
and anyone who thinks that because they were wearing camo when they pulled the trigger counts them as one is a fool.

quote:

I didnt lump anyone together till i said "high fence" and got jumped on.

That is a lie.

quote:

very appropriate picture w/ the deer laid up on sacks of feed.

quote:

i have no doubts that this is just a lucky texas farm box who happened to be huntin out on his family land when this old brusier walked by.
nice Rolex Presidential by the way. Whats that 18K now days?
hes sure lucky someone picked him and his deer up in that Escalade. his old ford probably couldnt handle the weight of that buck.

Just a couple of your initial quotes. But go ahead and toot your own horn about what a great hunter you are. I guess you have to since nobody else will.

quote:

The problem I have with your and KStephens diatribes is you lump all Texans together

who said that? one of your fellow texans here (JTEX) has every bit of my admiration and respect. it was he who led the effort not to make this whole debate a TEXAS THING, and based on his efforts i endeavored to keep it stateneutral.

but whining little bitches such as eland slayer, bobby tomek, m16 and yourself insist on making it about texas, so you girls got your wish. crying foul because you got exactly the reaction you were looking for is beyond pussy. frankly, i expected more from citizens of the 2nd biggest state in the union.

nice try at spin there, but you failed.

quote:

Originally posted by M16:

Just a couple of your initial quotes. But go ahead and toot your own horn about what a great hunter you are. I guess you have to since nobody else will.

like iv said kid, i didnt think i was talking about you, but if your offended then i guess i was.

people usually let you know if your talking about them and if this...
very appropriate picture w/ the deer laid up on sacks of feed.
gets you upset then i guess i am talking about you.
no doubt you are aware that that thread you quoted from relates to the buck killed on El Cazador and probably cost the "hunter" better than $10K when all is said and done.
that the kind of "hunting" you want to support?

KSTEPHENS-You made the very same kind of remarks about a buck killed by an archer on an 11000+ piece of low-fenced property. The buck didn't cost him anything but his time and a couple bucks for an application to hunt on this "public" piece of property.

You don't discriminate; you just attack any and everything about Texas hunting.

quote:

no doubt you are aware that that thread you quoted from relates to the buck killed on El Cazador and probably cost the "hunter" better than $10K when all is said and done.

No it was killed on the Las Raices Ranch. And I don't think it cost the hunter anything being that it is a family ranch.

quote:

but whining little bitches such as eland slayer, bobby tomek, m16 and yourself insist on making it about texas, so you girls got your wish.

Okay, since you feel the way you do about Texas and Texas hunters, why don't you grow either nuts or brains and ignore us when we post something?

As far as trying to put a spin on anything, I was not even attempting that.

Whether I agree with the practices or not, Texas is my home state, and I feel it is my perogative to defend my home state, when any jerk off starts making allegations, many of them groundless, and yes, I feel, as do a few other TEXANS that some of you folks, lump us all together.

It does not matter, what any of us post, and it does not matter how much you or anyone else try to deny it.

There are several folks on the AR that when they see ANYTHING posted about ANYTHING killed in Texas, immediately jump on the "Texas Hunting Sucks" bandwagon.

I am sure that most or all of you folks are highly thought of by your families and friends, well so are we.

You and your fellow Texas Haters, remind me of a pack of dogs chasing something. Once one of you gets started and gets the response you want, the rest start dog piling in for the fun.

Explain to me what good you get out of all the Bull Shit you put out about how bad Texas is, when it would save you and those interested in the thread a lot of time, if you and KStephens and jb and the rest of you fine folks just worked up an emoticon that says "Texas Hunting Sucks", and instead of making some response just to stir the shit, you could just post the emoticon and go on about your business. JMO.

quote:

KSTEPHENS-You made the very same kind of remarks about a buck killed by an archer on an 11000+ piece of low-fenced property. The buck didn't cost him anything but his time and a couple bucks for an application to hunt on this "public" piece of property.

bobby - it's not about the money and the fence - they are only a small part of the problem, and they certainly aren't on;y going on in texas. YOU insist on making it about texas, so YOU can deal with the fact.

if it were happening here, i'd say it was wrong. i can make the distinction. can you?

quote:

no, i have a problem with people who sit on a stand someone else built picked and carted them to. then pull the trigger on a bottle fed deer that has been allowed to roam around for 5 years without developing any sence of what a wild deer needs to do to survive. being coddeled and fed like a cow.
then one day when he "scores" high enough someone with a thick bankroll comes in and puts a round in him.
then the servants gather him up cart him away clean him skin him package his head and hide up, ship it all off to a taxi who then ships it to the "hunter" who stands before it and claims its a 165 B&C like he's O'conner himself.

I am probably wasting my time again but I want to try anyway.


DO YOU ACTUALY KNOW OF ANYBODY ANYWHERE THAT HUNTS THIS WAY? You have brought this up several times and I have never ever seen anyone that hunts like this.

i will just stick my neck out here, but why is it that people with money are considered worse hunters just because they are rich.

when i hunt abroad i pay a guide for his time and then proberly the land or the concession that i hunt on. i dont hunt for the books, i hunt for fun, but i like a nice animal as much as the next guy. so i pay for the hunt, does that make me a lousy hunter ?

i still hunt my ass off as much as possible whenever im out there but when i take an animal i still pay for it, does that make me a lousy hunter ?

i love the idea of private land because the animals act as animals would without everybody chasing them around on quads. im sure that this dont happen on your public land, but i have seen it a few of the places i have hunted.

peter

+1

I have to wonder at some of the quick offense taken by some of these "Texans" whenever high fences or feeders are mentioned. It does have to make one wonder why they do get offended so quickly.

I hunt over feeders most of the time, always have, never even thought about it. Most of the land in Texas is either too small, too crowded or too thick for much still hunting or stalking. So you can get into safety issues or you could wander through an area someone else was trying to hunt and screw them up. I don't want my hunt to screw up anyone elses. That does happen in western public hunting quite frequently, by what I've read at least.

High fences irritate the he** out of me, always have, always will. It does not have anything to do with the fact that B&C or P&Y won't list the animals taken behind them, but it just don't seem fair chase to me is all.
BUT, with me using feeders and baiting, I may be being just a bit hypocritcal. But by feeding I am not restricting the ability of the animals to leave. I am trying to induce them to come out at specific times though. I will say that I have never taken a mature buck at a feeder yet, but I have shot them sneaking around the brush line checking what was at the feeder.

I have no problem admitting that I would rather do all my hunting stalking, or still hunting, free range animals in their undisturbed natural habitat but alas, in Texas, that is hardly ever possible. With a growing population in the U.S. that type of hunting is going to become, sadly, rarer everwhere.


The most important thing to remember is we all call ourselves hunters! We may disagree on legal methods, but I don't give a flip where YOU are from or how YOU hunt I will always stand by your right to do so, and I count on you to stand by me.

JTEX-Apparently you didn't read AND comprehend the other threads.

I for one do not get offended by mention of feeders or fences. But I DO get offended when a smartass spews off continual blanket generalizations (need I list them for you?).

When one insinuates all hunting here is behind high fences, from a tower blind and in front of feeders, I do take offense. Less than 1 percent of the state is under high fence. And many of us do prefer spot and stalk or still hunting.

I resent the blanket generalizations
. And I'll continue to speak up when they are made.

'Nuff said.

quote:

I have to wonder at some of the quick offense taken by some of these "Texans" whenever high fences or feeders are mentioned. It does have to make one wonder why they do get offended so quickly.

I agree with BT's answer on the matter.

Generalizing or "Blanket Shooting" everyone from Texas, because of the fact that the majority of press coming out of Texas is about the big bucks on the high fence operations.

Not all of us hunt that way, but because those are the stories that are available for public consumption, a lot of folks think that is the only way hunting is conducted in Texas. JMO.

Bobby,
I don't think I have any problem whatsoever with reading or reading comprehension. I think I can read just fine AND comprehend what I read. I also pick my battles, and hate to fight unarmed men.

In MY experience REAL Texans ( or read REAL men ) do not "jump the gun" quite as easily as some here do. Why would such a position of ignorance, as taken by some posters here, get people so riled up? It doesn't bother me a bit. There are plenty of high fences outside of Texas, isn't "The Sanctuary" in Michigan or some such? Broadmouth Canyon is a high fence Elk ranch in Utah and there is one in Idaho. There are even several high fenced elk hunting ranches in Canadia.

People that don't know or have never experienced what they rant about yet spout off such crap as some here do, doesn't bother me.
We Texans have been generalized for years, most all of it bad. So what? I personally think it builds character, and we do have a few of those. Do you think I give a flying SH*T? I know the truth.

I also think the Texas high fence crowd would not be so fast to go on the defense if they didn't have some kind of nagging thought that the practice may not be exactly kosher. Same goes with the Bucks for bucks group.

whats amazing is that someone can say "high fence" and all of the sudden certain members here who are from TX start chiming in "why you pickin on TX". when noone says anything about TX.
then to further bolster they want to, instead of defending a position, focus on TX hunting.
I dont care where the fence is. I think its wrong.
I dont care where you may be from, if you want to argue for HF's then ill argue that point without hesitation.

A picture is worth a thousand words. I know that's how I got my first impression of Texas style deer hunting. Inside must be 50 ads for feeders.

Question: CHRUSHER says you bait the deer cause the land is huge. "we hunt land that is not profitable to harvest grain crops on and dont wish to cut down all the trees anyway so we broadcast feed on the ground to atract deer and to feed the deer as we put the feed out whether we are hunting or not it is legal ethical and the traditional way we have always hunted here. f you like to hunt by wandering around on large trackts of land and seeing what you can find thats great but please understand that we are not so fortunate and have huge tracts of public land to roam without the sight of another person for days at time."

JTEX says it's cause "I hunt over feeders most of the time, always have, never even thought about it. Most of the land in Texas is either too small, too crowded or too thick for much still hunting or stalking."

Is this dichotomy caused by the varied terrain or what?

perhaps someone view is obscured by thier colon.

stephens why are you such a prick?

Read that again onefun it says we are not so fortunate as to have huge tracts of land to roam without the sight of another person for days.

jtex and I are saying the same thing. I have to pay by the acre to lease surface rights for hunting on a property, not just wonder out on milions of acres of begged borrowed or govt land.


they spread feed on the ground here sence the early 20s I know for a fact. long before that but I dont know anyone livig who did it . because I am not old enough to know people that old.

it is the TRADITIONAL way they hunt here. the local people never outlawed it even as new tech made the spreading easyer so it is LEGAL and always was. It is ETHICAL here because it is the traditional legal way we hunt and my comunity has decided and I agree it is right for us.

I dont care about your fence or anyones do what you like. just dont try and sell deer they dont belong to you. and as for your record book anyone who wants to can participate I will not.

quote:

Originally posted by JTEX:
I have to wonder at some of the quick offense taken by some of these "Texans" whenever high fences or feeders are mentioned. It does have to make one wonder why they do get offended so quickly.

I hunt over feeders most of the time, always have, never even thought about it. Most of the land in Texas is either too small, too crowded or too thick for much still hunting or stalking. So you can get into safety issues or you could wander through an area someone else was trying to hunt and screw them up. I don't want my hunt to screw up anyone elses. That does happen in western public hunting quite frequently, by what I've read at least.

High fences irritate the he** out of me, always have, always will. It does not have anything to do with the fact that B&C or P&Y won't list the animals taken behind them, but it just don't seem fair chase to me is all.
BUT, with me using feeders and baiting, I may be being just a bit hypocritcal. But by feeding I am not restricting the ability of the animals to leave. I am trying to induce them to come out at specific times though. I will say that I have never taken a mature buck at a feeder yet, but I have shot them sneaking around the brush line checking what was at the feeder.

I have no problem admitting that I would rather do all my hunting stalking, or still hunting, free range animals in their undisturbed natural habitat but alas, in Texas, that is hardly ever possible. With a growing population in the U.S. that type of hunting is going to become, sadly, rarer everwhere.


The most important thing to remember is we all call ourselves hunters! We may disagree on legal methods, but I don't give a flip where YOU are from or how YOU hunt I will always stand by your right to do so, and I count on you to stand by me.

excellent post, jtex. if you ever draw up in montana, i'd be proud to hunt with you.

Thanks Tas, Same for you if you make it to Texas. I would love to hunt in Montana. And after reading some of your recipes over in B.S.B. you would be welcome in any hunting camp I have ever been in. If you were cookin' some of those recipes I'd sure be happy to take care of the dishes, after a nap of course.

Onefunzr2,
Well there is a lot of different terrain types here, most of which you can find in other states but I have never seen anything quite like our S.TX brush country anywhere else, and some of our Hill country land is so cedar choked you can't hardly move through it, to be quite frank I can't understand how deer move through it.. To me it makes sense to set feeders in clearings in this type of country to draw deer out so you can see them.

Trying to stalk or still hunt in this type of country you usually only catch a disappearing flash of a white tail or hear rocks crunching under running hoofs.
On the family type lease that I am on we are only 250 acres per lease member which leaves little room for still hunting with out possibly wandering into another hunters area. It is not open country by any means, leaving only very few openings and clearings to watch. In my mind this could be a safety issue. And it certainly could ruin another hunters chances by spooking game.
I only have so many hunts in my life and I hate it when someone does something to lessen my chances at seeing animals, so I don't want to take a chance and maybe cause anyone else any problems.
Yeah, Texas Trophy Hunter Magazine ( also some Texas trophy hunters themselves ) can be kinda' sickening but you can find some really good stories in there about hunting if you look real hard. Would you have even looked at the magazine if it had a picture of a basket 6 point on the cover? Do some surfin' on the web I believe you will find a deer farm or two in PA.

Oh, yeah, remember I am a Texan don't use big words like "dichotomy" at me. LOL......

quote:

Would you have even looked at the magazine if it had a picture of a basket 6 point on the cover?

I have to avert my eyes every time I pick up that issue. High Roller is a freak of nature. Only thing worse would be if he had two heads with ugly racks that big. I admire the one the topic poster shot with a bow.

I only bought this issue because it had a story, "Spiral Horns of Smoke" about the author hunting southern greater kudu with my PH, Fred Burchell. Otherwise I would have never given it a second glance. Or first glance, for that matter. I have not taken a horned whitetail since 1978. That's when I decided horns just don't taste good no matter how they're prepared.

About the only reason for me to travel to hunt in Texas would possibly be for Nilgai.

Take a poll of Texans, and you will find a lot of them that feel like Texas trophy Hunters Ass., is the reason things are so screwed up down here.

Maybe not the members of this site, but a lot of folks feel that TTHA has done more harm than good and with the help of Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, turned deer hunting in Texas from an enjoyable family sport into a Multi-Million dollar business.

I don't recall which online publication I pulled this from a couple years ago, but it certainly summed up some of my feelings regarding the state of hunting in South Texas.


"Whitetail deer in Texas are more equal than other wildlife when it comes to state law and even to interpretation and enforcement of state law.

Over the past two decades, deer in Texas have been transformed from a simple natural resource into antlered currency. And although the letter of the law says deer, like all wildlife, are a public resource with no owner and can't be bought and sold like steers at an auction, reality is quite different.

Actually, the law reads: "no person may sell, offer for sale, purchase, offer to purchase, or possess after purchase a wild bird, game bird, or game animal, dead or alive, or part of the bird or animal."

It would seem logical that charging a hunter a fee based on the Boone and Crockett Club score of the antlers on a buck the hunter shoots, a common practice in Texas, is no different than offering to sell a field-dressed doe for $1 a pound. But don't expect game wardens to be issuing citations to the operators of the businesses selling deer by the antler inch.

In Texas, WT bucks and many of the people marketing them are, it seems, a little more equal than the rest of us."

I agree totaly they are selling what is not theirs to sell and someone should stop it.

I dont care if they build high fence. I dont care if they feed the deer strawberries and cream or high proteen rocket fuel. It does not matter at all if they hunt from stands.all that is legal

However the practice of selling the animals and not the hunting is complete horseshit and not legal.shame on them for selling them and shame on your ass if you buy one.

It would not bother me if they sold hunts for the opertunity of shooting deer in the 150 or 160 class for x number of dollars but the shoot him and let us measure him and we will let you know how much he costs is the same as buying does by the pound.

I've just been lurking and reading through all this last month's posting on various threads, but I am from Texas and I do have an opinion, so here it is.

Hunting methods are mostly determined by situation and location. If I lived in Montana I would hunt like tasunkawitko, in Minnesota like jb and in South Carolina like KS Stevens. If my situation financially was as good as FMC's then I would certainly pursue game in far away places like him. If I were in South Carolina with not a lot of money then I would hunt like KS Stevens.

I have hunted a Central Texas small lease where the largest deer killed in 5 years was the 10 point on my wall so he is a trophy to me even though he only scores 125.

I have hunted on a fairly expensive low fenced lease of about 3400 acres in South Texas for 5 years and not shot a buck because I never saw one over 130 and older than 4 1/2 years old. Probably saw a thousand deer though and had a good time. During that time I had a standing invitation to go sit in a stand on a friend's lease of 1500 acre high fence and watch book deer with ear tags. I refused to go cause I was afraid that it would ruin deer hunting for me. Some of my friend's did go though.

I have recently gone to a friend's 10,000 acre lease with high fence on 2 sides to shoot a cull buck. It takes something away when you watch 150 to 160 class deer walk around and know you can't shoot what you want but must shoot a deer below 140, less than 10 points and older than 4 1/2 years old. Of course, I don't pay the $6,750.00 a year that he does so I don't begrudge the hunters who do pay.

I have 2 stands and 2 feeders on a 1600 acre low fence river bottom land of a friends and would rather go there and know that if something big comes along I can shoot it, even though a 140 would be a big deer there. Only rule is "you shoot it, you put it on the wall".

I go to Colorado every year and hunt Elk, Mule Deer or Antelope. The most enjoyable hunting I have ever done is West Texas desert Mule Deer hunting which of course is large areas of unfenced land. The last time I went 3 of us had 60,000 acres close to El Paso where we hunted for a week. It is definitely tough hunting.

I once had a friend who had 1200 acres in South Texas with a lot of exotics. We were having lunch one day and he told me I could tell him what I wanted to shoot and he would have it delivered and let loose and we could hunt it till we killed it. He asked me what I would want to hunt and I told him a "Black Angus" and he got pissed off. Would I go sit in a stand and shoot a trophy animal in a small high fenced enclosure? Maybe, but I wouldn't consider it a trophy.

Do I think that high fences and deer genetic management is "ruining" hunting, absolutely not. Those deer that have been posted and the rich hunters who shoot them are in the extreme minority and hunting is alive and well here in Texas.

Would I rather live and hunt in Montana? Maybe, but I would miss wade fishing for Trout and Redfish all summer.

quote:

Originally posted by FOsteology:
I don't recall which online publication I pulled this from a couple years ago, but it certainly summed up some of my feelings regarding the state of hunting in South Texas.


"Whitetail deer in Texas are more equal than other wildlife when it comes to state law and even to interpretation and enforcement of state law.

Over the past two decades, deer in Texas have been transformed from a simple natural resource into antlered currency. And although the letter of the law says deer, like all wildlife, are a public resource with no owner and can't be bought and sold like steers at an auction, reality is quite different.

Actually, the law reads: "no person may sell, offer for sale, purchase, offer to purchase, or possess after purchase a wild bird, game bird, or game animal, dead or alive, or part of the bird or animal."

It would seem logical that charging a hunter a fee based on the Boone and Crockett Club score of the antlers on a buck the hunter shoots, a common practice in Texas, is no different than offering to sell a field-dressed doe for $1 a pound. But don't expect game wardens to be issuing citations to the operators of the businesses selling deer by the antler inch.

In Texas, WT bucks and many of the people marketing them are, it seems, a little more equal than the rest of us."

the people making the laws dont work for free.
im sure some have very nice heads on thier walls.

quote:

Take a poll of Texans, and you will find a lot of them that feel like Texas trophy Hunters Ass., is the reason things are so screwed up down here.

Maybe not the members of this site, but a lot of folks feel that TTHA has done more harm than good and with the help of Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, turned deer hunting in Texas from an enjoyable family sport into a Multi-Million dollar business.

I agree wholeheartedly!!!!!