Unwritten Rules of Public Land

[kenn1320]

Tips for Public land...EXCELLENT topic!!

- Don't ask me where I intend to hunt from the truck window as you are pulling into the parking lot - I'll lie every time

- Don't ask if I've seen the doe herd every evening - Even if I did I'll lie every time.

- If you see me in my set - avoid me totally - and I'll extent you the same courtesy - every time.

- PLEASE don't scope me - REALLY scares the SH*t out of me -( and my wife and kids when I tell my hunting stories)

- Don't walk under my tree or anywhere near my tree and especially don't try and have a conversation with me when I'm set up.

- Don't litter while afield... the guys with the cig butts and the beer cans really mess things up for guys like me who periodically nock on doors asking for permission to hunt the private farms.

- Close the cattle gates - everytime.

- I'll wait to make my drag till mid morning or after dark - extent all guys on the property the same courtesy.

- Don't touch game cameras or stands left out on public land - ever!

- Don't cut branches, don't cut shooting "lanes" - It ruins things for the other guys on the property.

- Don't place Conibear traps along the main access trails close to the parking lot.

- Use common sense - everytime -

- everytime!

Sorry I have to add a comment about the gate(s). Leave all gates alone. Gates typically have a method of security whether it's a chain, wire, clasp, etc. If you suspect a gate should be closed, ask the farmer, don't assume. I found a gate open one day on the far side of a pasture I always saw cows in. I freaked out and closed it, patting myself on the back. A couple days later I went to hunt that backside and found I had locked the cows out of their main pasture and they couldn't return. They sat there bellowing and when I opened the gate they made a bee-line for the farmers place. I Learned my lesson, gates don't just open themselves.

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[kenn1320]

As for public land do's/don'ts, avoid any hunters. Nothing wrong with striking up conversation back at the parking lot, but don't see somebody in the woods and assume they want to talk. Setting up 80yds away cause your bow hunting is still close, move to where you can't see them before setting up.
My problem is I'm too curtious. If I see more than 3-4 cars, I don't even pull into hunt. If I see a flashlight, I go around, not right past them. Nothing burns me more than somebody walking right past my stand, no reason to think it would be ok for me to do that to others.

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[Bigburner]

You could have my job and bang your head against the wall from now till Feb. Taking care of 14000 acres of public land for the past 15 years has made me loose faith in "hunters" and the publics general treatment of the land and others. My overall perception is that everyone takes and no one gives. I have some stories that would flip your lids. BEtween dealing with persons prohibited to guys keeping 5 gal. buckets next to there deer stands for a toilet and leaving it there, and I don't mean to pee. I'm sure there are a few good eggs but all my encounters are of the negative sort. Yet i still hunt it and never run into anyone else due to years of patterning others. Hunting public is a commitment.
There should be a users guide or something though. I know the hunting regs have failed.

[oldrank]

Dont hunt 20 yrds off a main trail then get mad when guys walk by u all day.

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[justdirtyfun]

Bigburner thanks for the patience dealing with us where you work. I am at a stage where I am ready to carry my share of public ground responsibility. Any one else piching in? Memberships include: RMEF, NRA, NWTF, Blueribbon coalition, Conservation federation of MO.

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[Johnathon]

I know this is an old thread, but it was great to hear!! Shows like "The Hunting Public" have inspired me to look into some public land in WI and I don't want to ruin someone's hunt. In the back of my mind I've wondered, if it is kind of a free for all out there?

The public lands I'm looking into are smaller parcels about 300 acres with several parking lots around it and some others are quite small with one parking lot. So I've really wondered what to do if you pull in and there's a one or a few cars already there? Do you park and go to your spot hoping not to run into someone else or do you try another area? I'm sure it depends on the area and size, but for whatever reason this parking lot scenario has me really intrigued cause again I don't want to ruin someone else's hunt and have them get all mad at me etc. I guess we'll just try it and go from there this September!!


Thanks again for sharing all of your "Unwritten Rules!"

[greenhorndave]

I know this is an old thread, but it was great to hear!! Shows like "The Hunting Public" have inspired me to look into some public land in WI and I don't want to ruin someone's hunt. In the back of my mind I've wondered, if it is kind of a free for all out there?

The public lands I'm looking into are smaller parcels about 300 acres with several parking lots around it and some others are quite small with one parking lot. So I've really wondered what to do if you pull in and there's a one or a few cars already there? Do you park and go to your spot hoping not to run into someone else or do you try another area? I'm sure it depends on the area and size, but for whatever reason this parking lot scenario has me really intrigued cause again I don't want to ruin someone else's hunt and have them get all mad at me etc. I guess we'll just try it and go from there this September!!


Thanks again for sharing all of your "Unwritten Rules!"

Real small places, like under 50 acres with limited options due to terrain, I’ll just move on if someone is there in a really small lot. Anything bigger, I say go for it. You might walk in on someone, might not. Be polite and move on if someone else is where you want to go.

[ThePreBanMan]

I can deal with just about anything out in the public deer woods,,,,,,,, except garbage and litter... God, I hate finding that crap. That includes abandoned hunting gear like rusted out stands, etc. When the Tinks bottle is empty, the forest floor is not your waste disposal repository. The woods are not a place for you to dispose of old tires, appliances, etc.... Some people man.... I do not get the mindset.... that they can trample onto the most beautiful of natural resources and just eff it up...

[Johnathon]

Makes all the sense in the world Greenhorndave about moving on if it's a real small piece of land and thanks for the encouragement! Trying to balance being a young dad, work, and still find some time in the woods. So hoping these Public places can be a place to get in a tree or a ghillie suit.

And I hear ya about trash getting under your skin ThePreBanMan! Started taking a backpack to pick up shell casings, wrappers, and cans that I've noticed while scouting. Gotta leave the area better than you found it!

[greenhorndave]

That grinds my gears too PreBan. I try to pick up as much as I can, but I wish others had the same respect for others, the land itself and the critters. I always try to leave it better than I found it.

[Boogieman1]

1st rule of anything public is there aren't any rules. If it's legal it seems to be a screw u mentality. On the littering and other things mentioned I could not agree more, we need to do a better job taking care of and policing the limited lands we do have access to.

But public land courtesy isn't only a prob on hunting grounds. Spend sometime one a public lake. You got guys driving there boat around with a spotter with binos looking for guys catching fish to move in on. I had way more idiots pull right ontop of me than ask if I mind if they fish. If they ask I'm always your more than welcomed. For the others I give em a piece of my mind and move. Sometimes I arrive at a spot I walked a mile through the woods to get to and see a boat there. I ask if they mind if I fish behind them, I don't dipsy doo 10 yards infront of them and cut em off. But that's just me and how I would prefer to be treated.

[Grizzlyadam]

Aside from written rules, seems most is a free for all, and if that's what you have grown to expect you won't be so disappointed. I've seen some really inconsiderate stuff as far as people "claiming" spots or setting up near others, etc. Surprisingly enough the vast majority of inconsiderate and illegal stuff I've seen has been on private lands. It seems like people think they can do whatever they want and are held to different rules.

One truly unwritten rule I have seen discrepancy on is in the rare occasion when someone shoots a deer and it runs into someone else who shoots it again. Who gets the deer? I have always been under the belief that whoever made the lethal killing shot gets it. To my knowledge there is no concrete rules written to deal with that scenario.

[john1984]

Public land is not JUST for deer hunting. What if your deer hunting is messing up my small game hunting???

If I notice you in a tree ill try to avoid you the best I can.

When I hunted rabbits and birds I did NOT sit quietly in ONE spot. I busted through the brush with my dog.

If I wanna bust through brush 45 minutes before sunset on public land , I'm going too.

[justdirtyfun]

Public land is not JUST for deer hunting. What if your deer hunting is messing up my small game hunting???

If I notice you in a tree ill try to avoid you the best I can.

When I hunted rabbits and birds I did NOT sit quietly in ONE spot. I busted through the brush with my dog.

If I wanna bust through brush 45 minutes before sunset on public land , I'm going too.

This is true. And reasonable. My hunting is just deer but with a 3 MONTH long season expecting company now and then is fair. Some instances hurt a little more than others but everyone gets access.
I'm thankful that most people I have encountered were decent.

[Dpierce72]

Aside from written rules, seems most is a free for all, and if that's what you have grown to expect you won't be so disappointed. I've seen some really inconsiderate stuff as far as people "claiming" spots or setting up near others, etc. Surprisingly enough the vast majority of inconsiderate and illegal stuff I've seen has been on private lands. It seems like people think they can do whatever they want and are held to different rules.

One truly unwritten rule I have seen discrepancy on is in the rare occasion when someone shoots a deer and it runs into someone else who shoots it again. Who gets the deer? I have always been under the belief that whoever made the lethal killing shot gets it. To my knowledge there is no concrete rules written to deal with that scenario.

I just had to complete the International Bowhunter Education Program to be eligible for the September 1, 2019 AR Urban Hunt. They quote a law to support this topic - The Law of First Blood. Technically, the first person to shoot and draw blood gets the deer. I'm not saying I agree 100% that a person who could draw blood from a non vital shot would get the deer over a second shooter who does make a vital shot, but it's what the International Bowhunter Education Program teaches. Also, this clearly is not it's an actual "law", but more of an "unwritten law / code of ethics" which establishes fairness ...but requires sportsmanship on the part of both hunters.

Not that anyone will be interested, but if you go to their website, there are courses for most states.