Turkey season 2024

[redwad]

Looking for advice planning out my 2024 turkey season. I am very new to the out of state concept but am wanting to prolong my turkey season. I live in Missouri and feel very confident with hardwoods easterns. Would like to try my hand at a merriams and or hunt another Midwest state. Where do you guys go for information regarding other states? To be more specific where do you find info on public land that's available and where do you find info on tags etc. TIA

[mcw3734]

Your first stop should be the (insert state) Fish and Game Department website. From there, read ALL the rules. Other states can have vastly different turkey hunting regs on shooting hours, carcass transport requirements, shot size, and required licenses, among others. Most of those sites will also have links to public land information, at least state owned or Wildlife Management Area properties.

For federal lands:

Bureau of Land Management - https://www.blm.gov/
US Forest Service - https://www.fs.usda.gov/

[Tom007]

Your first stop should be the (insert state) Fish and Game Department website. From there, read ALL the rules. Other states can have vastly different turkey hunting regs on shooting hours, carcass transport requirements, shot size, and required licenses, among others. Most of those sites will also have links to public land information, at least state owned or Wildlife Management Area properties.

For federal lands:

Bureau of Land Management - https://www.blm.gov/
US Forest Service - https://www.fs.usda.gov/

Solid advice right here for sure.....good luck

[joey46]

And don't wait too long.  If you have been following the latest nationwide trends many states are going out of their way to restrict, or price out, out of state hunters.  Seeing this mostly in the southeast but as more residents continue to whine to their game commissions about "their" public lands (even National Forest) being overcrowded with non-residents it will probably spread to many more.  Look to Mississippi as a prime example.  The resident can hunt the Nation Forest starting March 15th.  A non-res not until April 1st.  Unless drawn for a special quota hunt a non-resident can not hunt any MS public until April 1st.   

[trad bow]

I pay federal income taxes each year and have for fifty years. I don't travel to hunt anymore because of physical restraints but I still feel that federal lands should be open to all legal citizens. A nation wide hunting license for small game
But then we get into issues like who manages these lands , who sets the limits on the harvest of animals and who would be in charge of hunter numbers. Seems like the process is already in place for that for managing big game. States shouldn't charge non-resident hunters exorbitant fees for a license. States should charge nonresident hunters at the same price that those nonresident hunters reside in

[mcw3734]

I pay federal income taxes each year and have for fifty years. I don't travel to hunt anymore because of physical restraints but I still feel that federal lands should be open to all legal citizens....

Forest Service and BLM lands are open to all to visit and recreate on. The North American model of wildlife management that we follow is that the feds manage the land (habitat), while the States manage the wildlife (with nuances for migratory waterfowl).

I'm not saying the idea of equal tag prices for resident and nonresident hunters is flawed, but with some state fish and game agency budgets being based largely on license income I can see why state wildlife commissions gravitate towards a 'what the market will bear' approach to non-resident license fees.

I was at an Idaho Fish and Game office yesterday to comment on some proposed turkey hunting regulations. I noticed a handful of people sitting in a line as I walked in, next to a F&G sign saying "No Camping". Turns out that is the beginning of the line for people wanting to buy 2024 non-resident deer and elk tags going on sale Dec. 1 (Friday). There are people lining up 2 days in advance to buy a non-resident hunting license for $185, which is required before you can purchase a $651 elk tag and/or $351 deer tag. That is, if you're lucky enough to buy one before they sell out by lunchtime.

[joey46]

BLM lands aren't open to all since the federal government didn't establish easements in many places so unless you skydive in you are effectively locked out by bordering landowners.  One of the biggest problems for any public land hunter in the western states.  Google "corner crossings" and see what a circus this can become.  A western rancher can own and have title to a thousand acres but control, and keep you off,  thousands more acres of BLM land his land borders.  The use of OnX and similar GPS devices make this obvious.  There are pending court cases and appeals on corner crossings and several YouTube videos on this subject.
Add - took the time to watch a few Youtubes on this subject.  One group hired a helicopter to access BLM land.  Pretty extreme.  Another video showed body cam footage from a sheriff where the complainers trying to have corner crossers arrested asked the sheriff if he realized how much money the bordering ranch owner had.  That said it all.   

[mcw3734]

Joey46 brings up a very good point that traveling hunters should be aware of. BLM and Forest Service lands are in fact open to all, but isolated parcels in a jumble of private can have access issues.

Pertinent to this thread:  if anybody doing their homework sees a juicy piece of public surrounded by private, you need to follow up to make sure it is publicly accessible. Look for public/county roads cutting through it. If unsure, call the appropriate county highway department. For many rural counties road maintenance is a major expense and they keep very good records of what is, and is not, public. You can also call the local BLM or Forest Service office.

'Back in the day', the Forest Service was more assertive in establishing road easements because they were needed for log trucks to come off the forest and across private. The BLM, generally, didn't have those concerns so they tend to have less easements, if any. To have a public road easement, you need the cooperation of the landowner. The possible exception being if the road is covered under RS 2477 (Google it, not going to dive into that here).

If hunting on or near a National Forest, become familiar with their Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM). These maps are legal documents showing roads and trails open to motorized use, along with any seasonal date restrictions. Besides paper, they can be downloaded and viewed with the Avanza app so you can track yourself with the little blue dot, like other mapping apps. If you're going to hunt National Forests, you must know their MVUMs. It'll help you stay out of trouble and offer clues to quieter stretches of the forest. It will also show what roads have public access. I was a Forest Service mapmaker for years. If you have questions about this, PM me, happy to help anybody with it.


Now to divert a bit based on Joey's last message...

The Corner Crossing issue is real in many places. To learn about it, click the following link (and the links within that page): https://www.backcountryhunters.org/sportsmen_s_corner_crossing_pledge

For years it was just accepted that the public could not cross those corners to adjacent public land. In 2021, four Missouri hunters challenged it in Wyoming and, essentially... kinda... won. Though it will be a long time before laws are changed. Yes, it has now become a 'circus', but in a good way and to our benefit. The issue is being discussed and could lead to thousands of accessible acres once off limits to the public land hunter and angler.

The Backcountry Hunters and Anglers are big on this issue, I would encourage anybody with an interest to support them in this fight.

[joey46]

In many western states BLM land is nothing more than welfare for the wealthy.  From memory I'm recalling an old post (or YouTube) on this subject where a piece of western land was advertised as FOR SALE.  It's description was 18,000 acres but had a disclaimer that only 2,000 was deeded.  This means this property owner was locking the public out of 16,000 acres of BLM land that he paid no taxes on.   I'm betting that at some point SCOTUS will have to rule on some of these cases and appeals.  We will see how that goes.   

[YoungGobbler]

Wow, those 'public' but secluded by private land are something special... Here it's either all public or all private...  We have 0 places like you're talking about...

[NCL]

Here is an article on the corner cross  https://wyofile.com/montana-group-fights-wyoming-corner-crossing-ruling-claiming-broad-precedent/

[joey46]

It's destined for the SCOTUS since so much money is involved on many levels.   I hope the common man isn't screwed.   Public land with no access is worthless.

[OJR]

Here is part of a recent listing for the Pitchfork Ranch that is for sale in Wyoming....

The ranch, at $67 million and 96,000 acres, is the most expensive listing in the state right now, Anson said, and the historic property has already attracted interested buyers.

The acreage includes 13,886 deeded acres on the ranch, which are dispersed with state and BLM leased acreage. The land also connects to two Forest Service permits that amount to 44,984 acres. State land makes up 31,600 acres, and BLM ground is the remaining 5,645 acres.

Of the 96,000 acres, 82,114 is public land that the public can't access.

[joey46]

A national disgrace. 

[Ryanmc]

Just pick a state and start doing homework. Since you live close, go to Iowa or Illinois. Both are easy draw states with plenty of public land. Enjoy the new adventures.