Since I've owned the farm I've let neighbor's just hunt on it (about 700 acres of woods teeming with deer). This year I was made an offer I couldn't refuse at $3 per acre per year for hunting rights. Pays property taxes and increase in my farm liability insurance.

If you would like a copy of the lease we are using please e-mail me at scharabo@aol.com.

The guy is leasing it to run commercial hunts. Guys from the city will pay up to $300 per weekend if lodging and meals are include, $150 if not. Fortunately I am only two miles from a town with a motel and several restaurants. A rule of thumb is it takes 100 acres to support one hunter, so he might have as many as seven hunters on weekends. He is required to carry $1 million liability insurance and I have another $1 million on top of that.

On paper it look good for him. He only needs 14 hunter weekends to pay the lease cost and another four to pay his insurance.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), October 26, 2000

Answers

Ken, let me know how it works out for you. My family owns 1200 acres in N. Mississippi. The farmer who lease some of the land wants to lease it all and start a hunting club. Unfortunately there are local families that have hunted the land since my Grandfather died, about 20 years.

One family has hunted that long without permission. Nobody lives on the property anymore, but I have a Uncle about 1 hour away, so they really haven't been able to stop them.

They pretty much think they own the property and have threated people who have tried to stop them. They also tear down or steal any deer stand they find of hunters who have asked for permission. This is in an area where someone shot and killed a Game Warden back in the early 70's. My Uncle's have cautioned the farmer who wants to start the club because he will be take a lot of the risk, but there still is a farm house on the property and we are afraid in will be burned down. It is probaly not worth the risk for all of us here.

-- CURT (SARAH0724@EXCITE.COM), October 26, 2000.

Go ahead and lease it to the farmer. Sounds like you need some law enforcement action in this area. Let him deal with it and the hunters that will come in. It just might help you out.

-- Nick (wildheart@ekyol.com), October 26, 2000.

Curt - suggest to the farmer that he offer special rates to law enforcement personnel. Might make the scofflaws think twice, maybe even three times!

-- Polly (tigger@moultrie.com), October 26, 2000.