Tell me...what's the difference in walking 16 sections of leased land in 13* F in the West Texas mountains during the rut in December vs. a person walking "public Land"?
I don't have to pay thousands a year to do it, and I'm not confined to where I have to hunt...and I'm far from a broke dick and unsuccessful. Your arrogance is glaring and imbecilic. Is that a Texas thing? I don't think so. Some of my best friends here are Texans and have Class.
luv 2safari makes a valid point here, the difference is money, not everyone has enough disposable income to pay lease fees as some have described here.
For example:
Hard working young man, wife, 2 kids, stay at home mom, kids in public school, lives in good sized city in TX/LA/other low % public land state. Grew up hunting, wants to continue. Has decent paying job. (Well, I think $20 an hour is decent, for a young person in many places )
$40000 ($20/hr job x 50 weeks a year paid x 40hrs/week) -10000 (taxes) $30000 -12000 (rent, you TX fellows correct me if $1k a month is a reasonable rate in a good size city in TX ) $18000 -7800 (food/supplies @ $150/wk, dude has two kids, remember) $10200 -5400 (Health insurance at about same rate my wife pays for us) $4800 -1560 (gas for commuting at $30/wk) $3240 -500 (car insurance, 1 vehicle/yr) $2740 -500 (ave car repairs/tires/oil changes/etc) $2240 -720 ( $ 60 month electricity, they live frugally, no A/C) $1520 remaining if lucky (and I didn't even add in clothes/shoes for him and family)
Hard to imagine this young man who desires to hunt will be able to do much, given his circumstances. And according to many reports, the hunting population is aging and there is a need to recruit younger folks.
If he lived in an area with ample public land and was frugal and saved his pennies, he might be able to afford a license/tag and be able to get out in the woods for a bit. It's either that or put the wife to work, get another job & spend less time with his kids, and continue to live in a mostly lease your hunting area State.
You guys back "East" are blessed with liberal bag limits on whitetail, long seasons for various weapons, hogs, somewhat milder weather in cases, but are saddled with having to find a way to afford a place to hunt. And cursed with crowds, such as they are, on what public land is available. When I hunted the Allegheny NF in PA I was amazed at the gunfire on opening day. I had been warned if I hunted to get my back up against a BIG tree, not move, and hope I didn't catch a round from the front. Friends there didn't hunt on opening day.
We folks out here in States with lots of public land have to put up with low tag numbers, deer that can be in one spot today and 10 miles away tomorrow if the migration has started, having to cover miles of land to spot an animal, either by glassing or moving and looking, in some cases wondering if something will come along and eat us or our kill, or both. But we have the benefit, at times, of not seeing another hunter if we're willing to get away from a road. And we don't have to pay what seems to us exorbitant fees to lease someone else's land.
I'm not sure what I'd do if I was stuck having to live in one of those States with little parcels of public land. I grew up out here and have always enjoyed the freedom to take a hike for miles and miles and miles should I choose. The only fences at times are grazing allotment fences, the only roads an old logging road or even a wagon road.
Good luck to you folks who have lost your leases recently. I guess be grateful you have the financial resources to look for another situation. I'd hate to be in your shoes, no matter how much game you get to harvest. I'm not lucky that way, in harvesting lots of animals, but if I can walk around the wilds of the west for a day and not see much in the way of human influence, I'm a very happy hunter.
Geno
The desert is a true treasure for him who seeks refuge from men and the evil of men. In it is contentment In it is death and all you seek (Quoted from "The Bleeding of the Stone" Ibrahim Al-Koni)
