Conference vmsnet::hunting$note:hunting

    Seeing as how I grew up in Texas, I can probably answer some of your
    questions.  Especially concerning deer hunting.  As for pheasants,
    there are private reserves/clubs/etc. in different parts of the
    state which hold birds.  I remember reading about some place around
    Houston where a guy was pheasant hunting.
    
    The deer hunting is just the best in the world.  That is if you
    can afford it and don't mind small bodied deer.  For a mere 4 or
    5 thousand (that's right, thousand!) dollars, you can get a shot
    at a trophy South Texas whitetail.  Other areas, such as the Hill
    Country and the Edwards Plateau have abundant deer populations.
    Last time I looked, a decent lease would set you back about $500
    a gun.  These areas hold lots of deer, they just aren't very big
    (body wise, that is.  I've seen 20 inch racks come out of these
    areas).
    
    If you're still serious about hunting there, now is the time to
    start checking it out.  A subscription to the Dallas/Houston/San
    Antonio newspapers might help you locate a place to hunt.  Also,
    letters to the chambers of commerce in the different towns might
    help.  Just ask them if they can provide you information concerning
    deer (or whatever) leases.  Oh yeah, I think that a non-resident
    tag will set you back about $200.
    
    If you would like, send me mail off-line and I can give you more
    information.  For example, there is a healthy herd of Desert Mule
    Deer in the western part of the state.
    
    Good luck,
    
    Jerry
    
    P.S.  I just moved to the Springs.  How about some advice?
    

    Mark, give me a call...We can discuss Texas and Dogs..
    
    
    Jeff
    
    Ext:7614

    
    
    Note 651.1 Reinforce's how fortunate we are in New England.
    
    Rick

    Rep 651.3----Ditto; Same here for being in Colorado....If I pay
    $5000.00 to hunt; that'll be a trophy Deer and Elk hunt, in a camp
    where all I have too do is show up..
    

    
    I don't know where Jerry lived or hunted or how long he was here, but
    I hate to hear people say things like that. I was born and raised in
    south Texas about 100 miles due south of San Antonio. I have paid for a 
    deer lease to hunt only one in my life (over 40) and that was $283.00
    for both deer and feral hogs.
    With a TYPE II hunting license ($35.00 for residents) you can walk onto
    and hunt any of the state owned/leased land that allows hunting. For
    $2.00/day you can bowhunt any of the national wildlife management
    areas that allow hunting.
    If you want you can DAY LEASE for hunting deer. I know several ranchers
    that do this for $30.00 to $80.00/day depending on length of stay and
    game to be hunted. ESCONDIDO bowhunting ranch costs $50.00/day for deer
    and hog hunting and this includes lodging and meals for a minimum of 4
    days hunting.
    But best of all is that many farmers and small ranchers who may only
    own a couple of hundred acres and can't/won't lease it will allow
    hunting in exchange for some "help around the place."
    
    It isn't as expensive as Jerry made it sound.
    
    
    Harvey_who_paid_around_$500.00_total_for_about_40_years_hunting.
    

    Well, I guess I need to offer some kind of reply to Harvey's note.
    I already had one in and the system crashed.  Maybe I'll get this
    one in.
    
    In retrospect, I probably did paint a little more dismal picture of
    the hunting situation in Texas than it really is.  I still maintain,
    however, that it's an expensive place to hunt.  I was born and
    raised in Texas, and I'm still looking for one of those small
    landowners who will let you "take it out in trade".  I suspect
    that is partly because I grew up in West Texas, where there aren't
    any small landowners.  A small ranch out there is 20 or 30 square
    miles.
    
    In my opinion, the key to hunting cheap in Texas is to know the
    right people and live, or better yet, grow up, in the right place.
    When I was a kid, I hunted free all of the time.  Then my Grandfather
    retired and sold his farm.  It ain't been the same since.  I paid
    $550 to hunt the last year I lived in Texas, and I wasn't alone.
    
    While I won't dispute Harvey that there is some good, cheap (or free)
    hunting to be had in the state, I will add the condition that it can
    be damned hard to find.  And if you do find it, you better hang on
    to it.  A good deer lease in the hill country or the south Texas
    brush country is a cherished possession.
    
    As for public hunting, there is some.  There are several (2 or 3)
    national forests in east Texas, and you can hunt there free.  The
    hunting there is probably a whole lot more like what the New
    Englanders are used to.  As for the TYPE II hunting, the only
    article which I have read about this stated that the hunter
    success rate was very low (way under 10%, if I remember correctly).
    There is also some state game management areas which offer
    excellent hunting.  However, you have to draw for these, and it
    is my understanding that the competition is pretty stiff.
    
    I guess that's about it.  There are some large private ranches
    that charge you tremendous amount to hunt, but your chances
    of success are astronomical.  Hunting is big business in some
    parts of the state, and that's just the way it is.  I still
    maintain that Texas has just about the best hunting in the
    world, and if you're fortunate enough to know the right people,
    you can still do it cheap.  But for the average guy who is not
    intimately familiar with a particular area or it's people, it
    can be expensive.
    
    Jerry

    Jerry,
    
    I'll have to agree with some of what you said in .6 and I a am sorry
    if I came on a little strong in my initial reply. Hunting is big
    business here and expensive if you hunt the big big places, but I feel
    that is the price you must be willing to pay to get the "astronomical"
    success rate you spoke of.
    
    Maybe I was lucky to have grown up in the middle of the south Texas
    brush country. But I still maintain that if you put in the time to find
    an inexpensive place to hunt you will get what you are looking for.
    I'll also agree with you that there are not many small places in west
    Texas. The place I hunted mule deer on last year was in Big Bend area
    and was 270 square miles or a little over 172,000 acres. My family
    ranch in George West is only 200 acres, which is typical for that area.
    I would however disagree with the 10% usage of type II license. The
    numbers I got from TP&W was that about 10-15% of all licenses sold were
    TYPE II. But of that number some 90% used the land designated as type
    II hunting land.
    
    Anyway enough of my ramblings. Again I'm sorry if I came on too strong
    in my first reply, but hunting is deer to my heart and I love hunting
    Texas.
    
    Harvey_who_is_slightly_calmer_now.
    

    Harvey,
    
    I think that we both came on a little too strong.  I also agree
    that I overstated the situation.  I certainly didn't want to start
    a round of Texas-bashing.
    
    The reference I made to the type-II hunting was to hunter success.
    That is, the percentage of those who hunt type II land that actually
    get a deer.  Also, the only source I have is one newspaper article.
    It may have been wrong.
    
    As an aside, I used to know some brothers who grew up on a ranch in
    the Big Bend country.  Their place was 32 sections (1 section =
    640 acres = 1 square mile).  It was bordered on three sides by the
    same ranch.  That ranch was somewhere between 400 and 600 sections.
    That's a big spread.
    
    Jerry