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Post by riggs on Dec 12, 2017 21:59:35 GMT -6
Selling off state land gets into a very touchy subject with the hunting community as a whole. Look into land transfer issues and the organizations fighting against it. They are a whole lot smarter than me with these issues but losing public hunting opportunities to private entities is a red line that many will not stand for. Many are looking at this from a state perspective and they are not happy with how the state manages the land, I get that. If you think all the land should be private in this state and opportunity only belongs to those who can afford it then I don’t have much good to say.
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Post by coop on Dec 12, 2017 22:12:32 GMT -6
Its interesting where this conversation landed.... We started with the Nature Conservancy buying land with public money.
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Post by batman on Dec 12, 2017 22:16:05 GMT -6
Public land supporters seem a little butt hurt/defensive. Just looking for some conversation on the topic.
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Post by benmnwi on Dec 12, 2017 22:24:44 GMT -6
It's good to get everyone fired up once in a while. Not much else to do this time of year when it is dark 2/3 of the day.
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Post by Bwoods11 on Dec 12, 2017 22:25:09 GMT -6
I would like to see some of public land managed for Whitetail deer in our area. More sanctuaries/refuges would help.
The public ground in my area, is open Grassy/slough mix with no food. A few pheasants, occasionally a deer. Just not very good stuff. Pheasants Forever has purchased some nice ground, and done some habitat work.
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Post by coop on Dec 12, 2017 22:39:13 GMT -6
I would like to see some of public land managed for Whitetail deer in our area. More sanctuaries/refuges would help. The public ground in my area, is open Grassy/slough mix with no food. A few pheasants, occasionally a deer. Just not very good stuff. Pheasants Forever has purchased some nice ground, and done some habitat work. You’ve touched on an alternative to the state buying up more land. How about we use the money that is currently being spent on land acquisitions to enhance what we have? And/or enforce our current regulations? And/or remove invasives? And/or protect the resources we currently share?
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Post by sd51555 on Dec 12, 2017 22:40:11 GMT -6
We all have clearly come from different experiences. I completely understand where you guys are coming from. My interactions with public access to resources as a kid were almost all horrendously negative, mostly related to fishing, but also observed some hunting.
The lake where I grew up was 300 acres. It had on any given day a boat or two on it, and maybe a person fishing from the public dock. I'll never forget when word got out the crappies were biting on the north shore. It was cars, bumper to bumper the entire north shore, had to be over a hundred. People left with limits and kept coming back until it was over.
I've watched and been part of the swat style deer drives where every deer must die. I've seen those fawns turned into swiss cheese and left for coyotes.
I've been the first fish house on the lake and caught fish, mistakenly told my dad, who then told a few guys at work. Two days later I couldn't find my fish house in the sea of line sitters around me.
Maybe it was just my community? I grew to feel like I was the only person on earth that gave a shit about doing something for tomorrow. That life experience shaped who I am today. And would I privatize every body of water in MN? With the swift stroke of a pen if I were in charge (makes you second guess consolidating all the land under one corruptible entity, yeah?). A modest user fee and a local caretaker would go a long way for each body of water in MN. Boat launch and road fees would drop like a rock if there were viable alternatives to Red and LOTW in the winter.
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Post by Satchmo on Dec 12, 2017 22:54:46 GMT -6
Public land supporters seem a little butt hurt/defensive. Just looking for some conversation on the topic. No butt hurting, just conversation. Seems to me that some anti public land folks have had limited experience with public ground and apparently all negative. There are still good lands for outdoorsmen to enjoy, but just like private land, they are not created equal. I've hunted public land my whole life in this state and still do. I can still have high quality grouse hunting on paper co land, I still know great duck hunting ponds on timber land, shot a couple bull moose in the BWCA, and prior to owning my property, hunted deer for over a decade on state land with very good success compared to a lot of private land hunters. In fact, this year we saw far more deer on the adjacent county land clearcuts than on our own food plots. This issue should be looked at as a "big picture" issue, not just a "how does this affect me" thing.
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Post by biglakebass on Dec 12, 2017 22:57:54 GMT -6
I think this is very interesting. Saying there is too much public land sounds so strange to me I still think you guys still might be joking. It is honestly as odd as if someone said their boss pays them too much money or their wife wants too much sex. I'll agree completely that the habitat could be improved, but at least there's something we can hunt. I think if you guys spent a week hunting public land it wouldn't be as bad as you think and you could see the value even though the hunting isn't perfect. It is far better than not hunting at all which would be the alternative for guys that don't own their own land. I will NEVER deer hunt public land with any weapon. Especially gun. Deathwish. And very little interest in any public land hunting beyond that. I have had 2 public land experiences that I gaurantee none of you have had. 1. Duck hunting Carlos Avery. Some assholes parked about 75 yds away AFTER I was set up. Typical BS. They proceeded to spend the morning shooting at non game birds that flew by them off an on, and I got a full pattern in the back of my head as some tweety bird passed between us. Drew blood from my ear. If I had been facing that fucking asshole, I probably wouldnt be typing on any keyboard today. 2. Duck hunting Sherburne Natl Wildlife refuge. We hear a gun shot, and a split second later a splash and a whir...... Another shot. Splash and whir..... Some fucking shore hunter sent 2 slugs through our decoys thinking they were real ducks and hoping they would get up and fly over him. If I didnt have private land to hunt, I would hang up the cleats. Way too many assholes that have no clue how to hunt, how to shoot guns, how to respect others, etc...... You can have all the public land you want. I wont be bothering you.
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Post by Satchmo on Dec 12, 2017 23:05:55 GMT -6
BLB, Carlos Avery is nearly in my back yard. Grew up duck hunting there. Haven't hunted it in decades. Used to be awesome late season shooting. It's best left to the citiots now!
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Post by sd51555 on Dec 12, 2017 23:10:21 GMT -6
It's good to get everyone fired up once in a while. Not much else to do this time of year when it is dark 2/3 of the day. I agree. This is a conversation the whole state should really have. If we took a step back and analyzed outcomes, has this system delivered? What have we really provided for those who cannot buy land or drive 300+ miles to catch and keep 12" walleye at a trip cost of $50-$100/fish? How public is that? Who stands up for the average guy who just quit in frustration and went home to drink in his basement? What if we charged $5 to launch a boat each day, but you actually had a shot at a limit of walleye in your home county? What if we charged $1 to fish from shore, but there were actually decent bass or crappie in the lake in your home county? What if we limited issue of deer tags by zone but your odds of getting a deer went from 25% chance of a fawn to 75% chance at an adult deer? The fact that tens of thousands of people drive all the way to the Canadian border and pay hundreds of dollars per person to catch toothpick walleyes and sauger should command the immediate firing of the commissioner of the DNR. Little lakes collapsed leave only the wealthy with their larger safer boats to fish the larger more dangerous waters that still have fish.
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Post by biglakebass on Dec 12, 2017 23:15:49 GMT -6
thats my 2 dangerous public land situations.
Plenty of frustrating days to add to the list. We used to hunt ducks a ton(when there were ducks). Way too many days of utter frustration with skybusters taking one shot at ducks 100 yds from them, as they are decoying into us. Get set up early on "the spot" and some fuckers show up and set up within distance of our decoys. Guys with the dog that is nuts and they spend the whole morning hollering at the dog.
BLB is done with public land for most everything unless its out in the Dakotas where there is a chance you might not meet some loser wanting to screw up your day. MN public hunting is a disaster. I have had enough bad experiences in the metro and in OTC. (most bad experiences are in the metro 50 mile radius). I just cant take it any more. I need piece of mind that I have a spot to go, and nobody will be there. My decoys are already set up. Blinds built. Show up and relax. Thats the BLB way.
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Post by biglakebass on Dec 12, 2017 23:17:06 GMT -6
Shit. We derailed this topic.
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Post by Sandbur on Dec 13, 2017 4:13:51 GMT -6
Good replies by Riggs and satchmo. I enjoy hunting public lands in the northern parts of the state. The difference seems to be those who have tried to hunt public lands in populated areas versus in more remote regions.
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Post by Sandbur on Dec 13, 2017 4:19:29 GMT -6
There is nearly a one section wildlife area that is 1/4 mile from where I live. A local sportsmen’s club that I belong to bought much of it with matches from state programs. The management by the state is poor. But I can walk it and jump a partridge or two. Some kill a pheasant. Woodcock are there. I don’t hunt Deer there as I have better ground on my place.
Those of you that want all these lands to be private can look at adjacent sections of irrigated crop land. Which is better for our lifestyle? I’ll take Some of these parcels of private land.
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