Future of hunting

[eggshell]

I really don't think social/political correctness (anti hunting sentiment) will sink our boat. The most critical think is access to land and distractions for youth. A few years ago I thought hollywood could severely damage us, but one of the big upside to our sport today is actually TV shows like Swamp People, Mountainmen, Alaska The last Frontier and even Duck Dynasty....to mention a few. They have brought a huge state of understanding to the misinformed public in my opinion. In the last three years I have lost access to almost 1,000 acres I hunted all my life. All the land went either under lease or was purchased by young "stay off my land younger generation". Oh those same people regularly show up riding an ATV on our land or dragging a kayak across our land to the river. They have since learned the lesson, "If I ain't welcome on your land stay the hell off mine"!

[Old Gobbler]

I cant speak for you guys elsewhere ....but all I can say is I hope what has happened in Florida takes a very long time to happen to you .....

We have 22 million people living here mostly in the southern peninsula.....the changes we have seen in the last 40 years has been depressing

The bulldozer (land development)is your enemy, not only does it take away land , it brings highways and strains on resources like water supply ....waterfowl , Turkey and deer have done a nosedive ....

The remaining hunters get more competitive,  prices for leases go up , hunters travel to neighboring states in a quest to find suitable hunting..and that creates competition for resources leases....

...lots of folks have coined the term "Instagram hunters " we are getting a new breed of hunters that shoot take pictures and post them up for instant gratification from thier peer group ..hunt.or fish cause you LIKE TO HUNT AND FISH....if you dont get anything , that's fine , some of the best hunts I've ever been on I didnt get anything , being in the outdoors is the reward ....sit back and think about it adopt a new a fresh attitude,  and your hunting will be more enjoyable

...back to Instagram. Noticed on Fox News ... nothing more fake than these millenial phonies taking fake show off  vacations in rented villas with rented Bugatti cars ...taking stupid pictures on cliff tops , hanging over dangerous obstacles...taking pictures on private jets and yachts that could never been theirs....just so they can take pictures and impress thier fake millenial friends......let us not adopt that attitude towars hunting and fishing , its stupid

If you have too many deer --turkeys-- ducks ....  invite friends  to come and ENJOY EVERY MOMENT OF it while you can , before it goes (Florida ) on you

Shannon

[GobbleNut]

Most of the guys on O.G. live in the eastern part of the country.  I suspect a lot of you are not aware of the increasing problem of access to public lands in the western states and its impact on hunting opportunity.  Roughly twelve million acres of public land, either federal (10 million) or state (2 million) are inaccessible to the public (you and me) that owns it. 

More and more, public lands are being made inaccessible by greedy landowners and corporate entities that are locking up historic public routes to public lands.  We're not talking about private landowners protecting their private property rights, fellers.  We're talking about public roads being locked up that access public lands by unscrupulous private property owners that intentionally look for loopholes in easements and such to find excuses to lock roads and create their own private playgrounds. 

Unfortunately, state and local governments are complicit,...often siding with private entities over the interest of the public.  In addition, public land management agencies,....those that are supposed to represent all of us,...are sitting idly by watching this happen without even raising a finger in protest.

I won't even get into the issue of state's converting PUBLIC hunting permits to hunt PUBLICALLY-OWNED wildlife on PUBLIC lands to private entities.  That is happening, too,...but is a discussion for another time.

Is it any wonder why hunters are quitting and discouraging their kids from taking it up when they see stuff like that happening?

[bonasa]

I have (3) boys that all play sports every season in addition to scouts, church and friends/family visits. Thankfully they are not too busy to run the mink line with me, flush and fire the blank gun over the pointers, bucktail the surf or cut the mushrooms. They have grown up with it and know the importance of throwing hay for farmers or posting boundaries as favors in return for our permissions. They also respect the game and environment while understanding that cheddar jalapeno venison sausage, goose pastrami, pickled ramps or smoked spring suckerfish is more important than tailgate photos or hero shots on "the gram". There are a lot of clubs, groups and workshops out there that do their best exposing kids to hunting, fishing and trapping. However it is up to the guardians to continue to expose them to it.

[GobbleNut]

Speaking of getting new hunters involved, what are everyone's thoughts on hunter education requirements?  In NM, after someone reaches 18, they are no longer required to have hunter education.  Any Yahoo can go buy a license and go hunting.  They may not have a clue about respect for wildlife, wildlife management, ethics, or gun safety,...but they can just go huntin' if they decide they want to. 

A big part of our hunter image problem is letting people that "don't have a clue" buy a hunting license, then head to the woods to "shoot somethin'".  Personally, I don't want those types out there,...I don't care if they are adding to the total number of hunters so we can "count" them as hunters.  Most times, I think they are the ones throwing beer cans out the car window, shooting road signs, shooting at animals on private property, shooting at whatever moves,...and so on.

For me, if somebody wants to go hunting, they should have to "jump through some hoops" to get that privilege.  I am okay with mentoring programs for youth when supervised, but at some point, anybody that is allowed to hunt must go through, and pass, some sort of "official" training program that exposes them to the idea of responsible hunting and game management theory.

[idgobble]

Tired of losing places to hunt?  Are you aware of the Republican Party stance on transferring federally owned lands (national forests, BLM) to the states?  Are you aware of your state's Republican Party stance on selling state owned land?  I don't like posting anything about politics and maybe it's not even allowed here, but you should be aware of the biggest threat to the public lands you can hunt on.  Where are you going to hunt if federal land is transferred to the states and the states sell that land to private owners? My state has sold over half the land it owns in the last 100 years. If you like access to public lands you might be voting for your worst enemy. Try reading this: https://www.outsideonline.com/2100586/fact-checking-gops-plan-steal-your-public-land

[RutnNStrutn]

In FLA, between the overdevelopment of land, overpopulation of the state, competition for land with wealthy businessmen where the Average Joe always loses, outfitters gobbling up every bit of land they can for ridiculously priced Osceola hunts, poor deer hunting and chronic mismanagement of the resources and land by FWC, hunting is definitely on a downhill slide in FLA.
Unless you are wealthy, if you can find affordable land to hunt, the hunting on most places that an Average Joe can afford will suck. So you either know a friend with decent hunting land, or you hunt crappy public hunts.
Personally, I cannot wait to move out of Florida.

[FL-Boss]

Most of the rest of the south will catch up with Florida in the next 30 Years. The bottom line is all these issues are because we have too many damn people in this world.  it's that simple.

2.5 million people added in this country each year. Over 2 million acres of land lost to development each year. Do some simple math, and it's pretty easy to see what the future holds.

Like stated above, you're going to need some big bucks $$ if you want to hunt in peace. Osceola hunts will cost as much as an elk hunt in the next 10 years. Otherwise you'll be stuck on public land with countless of other Hunters right on top of you. Most will quit hunting.

Personally, I think that hunting and meat consumption in general will be a thing of the past in 50-75 years.




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[Sir-diealot]

Speaking of getting new hunters involved, what are everyone's thoughts on hunter education requirements?  In NM, after someone reaches 18, they are no longer required to have hunter education.  Any Yahoo can go buy a license and go hunting.  They may not have a clue about respect for wildlife, wildlife management, ethics, or gun safety,...but they can just go huntin' if they decide they want to. 

A big part of our hunter image problem is letting people that "don't have a clue" buy a hunting license, then head to the woods to "shoot somethin'".  Personally, I don't want those types out there,...I don't care if they are adding to the total number of hunters so we can "count" them as hunters.  Most times, I think they are the ones throwing beer cans out the car window, shooting road signs, shooting at animals on private property, shooting at whatever moves,...and so on.

For me, if somebody wants to go hunting, they should have to "jump through some hoops" to get that privilege.  I am okay with mentoring programs for youth when supervised, but at some point, anybody that is allowed to hunt must go through, and pass, some sort of "official" training program that exposes them to the idea of responsible hunting and game management theory.

I know I will not be liked for this but I completely agree with you. I think hunter education/hunter safety courses should be mandatory, I thought they were in every state but found out when I got my trappers course last year that they are not. They do not charge for them so I see no reason to object to them. Stats show that it is the older hunters that are involved in hunting "incidents" that may not have ever had to take a course or that have and have just become complacent. For this reason I often sit in on courses when I take my friends kids to courses to reinforce what I have already learned and to update myself on anything new that may have changed.

[Sir-diealot]

Most of the rest of the south will catch up with Florida in the next 30 Years. The bottom line is all these issues are because we have too many damn people in this world.  it's that simple.

2.5 million people added in this country each year. Over 2 million acres of land lost to development each year. Do some simple math, and it's pretty easy to see what the future holds.

Like stated above, you're going to need some big bucks $$ if you want to hunt in peace. Osceola hunts will cost as much as an elk hunt in the next 10 years. Otherwise you'll be stuck on public land with countless of other Hunters right on top of you. Most will quit hunting.

Personally, I think that hunting and meat consumption in general will be a thing of the past in 50-75 years.




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I agree in part but not in whole, to much development yes, but only because nobody is redeveloping buildings and such that are no longer in use, get more of that going on and we will not lose as much.

[larry9988]

 I live in southwest Georgia and we are the land of the lease. It's almost impossible to get a place to hunt on private land with out paying. Due to some of the reasons posted earlier, we have a huge influx of Florida hunters that are willing to pay to hunt, so unless you are a local willing to pay, you are out. I really can't blame a landowner for taking in more income, if for no other reason than to help with property taxes. I saw this trend coming several years ago and decided I would buy my own small place to hunt. Instead of buying fancy new trucks, big boats, paying expensive outfitters or leases fees, I decided to put this money toward land of my own. I have worked a part time second job for the last 20 years to make my land payment. My place is small, 155 acres.
It is in no way the greatest place to hunt in our area, but it's mine. ( I say mine, but it's really just a blessing I pay to enjoy.) I have really enjoyed making the habitat better and seeing the wildlife populations increase. We also live on the property so it is super convenient to maintain and enjoy. I don't own any stocks or bonds. Land has been my major investment. We live here, hunt on it, ride the golf cart on it, shoot skeet, camp, trap, fish and just overall enjoy the place. It's been a great place to raise my kids. It's been hard at times to pay for, but I have always managed to get by some how. ( There again the blessing.) Do we kill a bunch of huge deer and a lot of turkeys? No, but it's much better than having no where to enjoy. My advice to  people that enjoy the outdoors that are able to make it work, is buy land. I started off with 15 acres, then bought 42, then 78, then 20. I did it a little at a time over 20 years. I started with zero acres. I know everyone is not able or willing to do this, but some may be. Hopefully this may inspire someone to do the same if they possibly can. I at least have a place to hunt until I die, as long as health and interest is there, or until  hunting is a thing of the past. I know this is not the solution for every one that has posted on this subject but it might be something to think about. It worked here in Georgia where land prices are not as high as they are in other states. That also is a very big factor, land prices and availability. Hope this helps somebody. Larry

[Turkeyman]

This is my second post on this thread and, although none of us want to be on the wrong side of the turf, I'm glad I'm 74 and not 4. I grew up through the best era of this country being born post WWII. I feel for my grandchildren and beyond. It doesn't bode well...and not just from the hunting aspect.

[larry9988]

I hate to say it , but I agree with you Turkeyman. I am 55 and am scared for my 20 and 17 year old children.

[Greg Massey]

Hunting is all about passing on a heritage to the next generation. As a kid hunting was adventure and exciting with mostly all family members , you owned the land , and new your neighbors on the next farm and NO one had a NO hunting sign on there property. As far as i'm concerned, the golden days of hunting are gone. Back in the golden years you could buy 500 ac. farm for couple thousand. That 500 ac now will cost you 200,000 - 400, 000 back in the golden days owning land was just as much heritage as hunting was to us young kids. We made a living off the farm. It's all now about a shifting society and the reality that hunting is really changing with less people owning land and less people taking kids hunting. Agree it's a lot harder now finding land to hunting. As hunters that still have places available to hunt, i think it's a good idea to get kids involved in the sport of hunting. We still have a future in hunting, we just have to make the best of the times. So let's Keep on hunting and get people involved with the sport. Take a neighbor's kid hunting, take them to hunting expo , take them fishing , take them to the NWTF convention in Nashville , it's all about involvement in the sport, the future is our's in helping the future of hunting...

[Happy]

Skinny Jean's and manbuns are taking over. Between that, tweeter, Facebook instaglam and metube it doesn't bode well for hunting. Far more detrimental than helpful as a general rule. Really wish we where stuck in the 70's and 80's as far as communicational technology is concerned.