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One of the biggest problems any hunter will face is gaining access to hunting properties. Getting access to property that I have permission to hunt on has been one of the biggest hurdles that I have encountered as a hunter. They are out there though and people will let you onto their property to hunt if you show you are a responsible person. I figured that in this article I would tell you about how I’ve gained access to properties and what not to do. To me there are three main ways to gain access to property. I’ll order them in effectiveness: 1) Word of Mouth – This comes in a couple of forms. Either a property owner that already allows you to have access on their property tell their neighbours about you and you get access to new property like that. This is quite common. Another way I find can be useful is to keep your ear to the ground when you hear friends and family talking about so & so’s farm and ask them to put a good word in for you. The more you talk about hunting and how you are trying to find some property the more you are going to jog peoples memory and get them thinking about it if they are not anti’s. 2) Letter box drops – I have found this fairly effective with about one in every twenty properties giving me a call back. Seems like slim odds I know but if you managed to get 40 pamphlets in a day there’s a good chance you will get one or two call backs. In saying this you have to word your pamphlet the right way. For instance you want to appear to be offering a free service rather than asking for permission. You also want to tailor the pamphlet for the area. If you know there is a rabbit problem in the area chances are people are sick of seeing rabbits and want them gone. Same goes for fox or pest birds. Make your pamphlet short and sweet: Free Pest Control Specialising in the humane control of Rabbits, Foxes & Other Feral Pests Expert in controlling pests on small properties around livestock Insured & Safe Call or email: blah blah That is something very similar that I leave. You can also ask the local produce to put them somewhere too. It works because you get the people who perceive that they have a problem with pest animals and your leaflet is a call to action. They think “Wow, I was just thinking about the fact that there a lot of rabbits or foxes about”. One time I got a callback from one of these saying that they just had 24 chickens killed by a fox and they want it gone. It was 1000 acres and I still hunt that property to this day. It is also only 20 minutes drive from my house. 3) Door Knocking – I’ve never been a big fan of this, not because it doesn’t work but because I’ve never liked people knocking on my door asking for this or that. In saying that a lot of people say it is one of the most successful ways they have gained access to hunting property. I can understand why too, it is very easy to ignore a leaflet in the mail or to even say no over the phone. It becomes a hell of a lot harder to say no to a well presented, seemingly responsible looking person. With door knocking though, don’t ever go out in your hunting gear. Dress nicely and maybe bring along one of your kids or your mrs this is a way for them to see you are just a normal person. Never expect to hunt on that day if they say yes. If you get a yes thank them and arrange a time to come out for a shot. If you come with your hunting clothes on and guns in the back it can be viewed as overconfident, rude or over zealous. Of course there are other ways to get private property access but the above three to me seem the most effective. You could just try getting numbers of farms and ringing and asking or finding out their email addresses. Whilst this is easy it is not the most effective ways in my book. Here are some things you should and shouldn’t do when looking for a property, some I may have covered already but they are worth covering again: If you got a call back from a letterbox drop. Offer to go out and meet them first to discuss it at length. Don’t bring your hunting gear if its close, but if you want to make sure you ask if its ok if you went for a hunt at the same time. Don’t assume anything, people are usually quietly wary and want to meet you face to face first. Don’t blow it here. Another thing you don’t want to do is appear rude or abrupt. You want to be polite and courteous at all times. These people are essentially letting a stranger onto their property with guns you want them to feel safe and comfortable around you. Not awkward. Ask for a tour of the property, say you want to see the place so you can be as safe as possible whilst on their property. Get insurance by becoming a member of the SSAA, Game Council, AHNi or another hunting club that offers public liability insurance. Once you get this tell the property owner you have this at some stage before you go out so their mind is at ease. If they are worried about you hurting yourself whilst on the property, offer to put it in writing that if you are injured by your own fault that you will not pursue legal action and that you take responsibility for your own actions. 4) Get the Appropriate Permit or License to Hunt on Public Land – One thing I am yet to do but am keen to do it is to hunt on public land. The Game Council in NSW allows hunters to do this even if they are from interstate. I also believe this is possible in Victoria with one of their state departments. Visit the Game Council website for more information. So there you have it, that’s my take to gaining access to property. Best of luck and I hope this article helps you get more property to hunt on. Be safe and respect other peoples property. http://huntandshoot.com.au/artic ... hunting-properties/ |
