Hunting property trespassing prob,..advice needed!
OK,...here is the deal. Some 8-9yrs ago, I am sitting in the deerstand and look off to my right and see a guy in a brand new salt treated ladder stand sitting maybe 75yds from me,...ON THE PROPERTY DIVIDING LINE/DRAINAGE DITCH!!! Now,...you and I both know that when he sat his stand to face BOTH his side AND my side,..that he isn't going to be waiting all day long for a nice deer to step across that ditch onto his side!!!! Soooo, we post that ditch for maybe 50yds to either side of his stand, and staple a few to his steps going up the stand,....NUFF SAID Right??? The stand was gone when we came back the next week.
skip fwd a few years, and as I am making a new travel route into the property, I use the small burm along that ditch to get quietly some 250yds deep into the woods. Low and behold,...I come across several small trees cut down and layed across the ditch to be used as a bridge.[:(!] I throw said bridge into the ditch,...only to find it replaced each time traveling the trail to my stand. I finally cut it into peices with the chainsaw.[:D] However, over the next few seasons I have to remove his marking tape from trees across a good 200yds of our property EVERY SEASON. He has now switched to coming across and using a climber stand.
skip to the present,...I am woorking on stands yesterday before it warms up and the ticks and chiggers get too bad. What do I see at the base of a tree on the other side of the ditch[?] his climber stand and this years new marking tape trail onto our property (we rent, don't own it). Soooooo,..I take down all the tape AGAIN,..as well as reflective markers for use in the dark. And as I get more and more pissed off,....I decide a stronger message is needed.
Now I have me a climber stand[}:)][:D] Question is,..what do you guys think?????? should I return his stand and not have a war in the woods??? (I am really not trying to have a whack job all pissed off about his being warned repeatedly through my actions, trying to kill me in the woods) Do I keep it and just see how it goes, or do I throw it back on his side and staple another set of no trespassing signs up,..AGAIN. Plus staple one to the seat of this stand???
how do you think this will go and what advice would you provide from your viewpoint. It just twists my nutz that people can't respect boundaries when we pay to rent this property every year, and spend a lot of time grooming the woods to foster good hunting.
Thanks for the rant.[V]
skip fwd a few years, and as I am making a new travel route into the property, I use the small burm along that ditch to get quietly some 250yds deep into the woods. Low and behold,...I come across several small trees cut down and layed across the ditch to be used as a bridge.[:(!] I throw said bridge into the ditch,...only to find it replaced each time traveling the trail to my stand. I finally cut it into peices with the chainsaw.[:D] However, over the next few seasons I have to remove his marking tape from trees across a good 200yds of our property EVERY SEASON. He has now switched to coming across and using a climber stand.
skip to the present,...I am woorking on stands yesterday before it warms up and the ticks and chiggers get too bad. What do I see at the base of a tree on the other side of the ditch[?] his climber stand and this years new marking tape trail onto our property (we rent, don't own it). Soooooo,..I take down all the tape AGAIN,..as well as reflective markers for use in the dark. And as I get more and more pissed off,....I decide a stronger message is needed.
Now I have me a climber stand[}:)][:D] Question is,..what do you guys think?????? should I return his stand and not have a war in the woods??? (I am really not trying to have a whack job all pissed off about his being warned repeatedly through my actions, trying to kill me in the woods) Do I keep it and just see how it goes, or do I throw it back on his side and staple another set of no trespassing signs up,..AGAIN. Plus staple one to the seat of this stand???
how do you think this will go and what advice would you provide from your viewpoint. It just twists my nutz that people can't respect boundaries when we pay to rent this property every year, and spend a lot of time grooming the woods to foster good hunting.
Thanks for the rant.[V]
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On the tree that was there, leave a note saying you have the stand, and will keep it until he comes to get it KNOWING its your property and isnt allowed there 0 -
I would politely say that by taking the law into your own hands that you somehow forgot the old saying that two wrongs don't make a right... He is a trespasser and now you are a thief... In my book the dude just paid his dues for hunting prevledges in full. In fact his crime isn't a felony but your's is...and you could lose your guns rights, I think I'd put it back or call the game warden and give it to him and let him settle it and live with his decision!!!! 0 -
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I had similar issues with a trespasser on my dads property. He had left his stand (not a climber) 30 feet up in a tree, with a big chain and padlock around it.
I climbed the tree (using the screw in cleats he also left in) picked the lock, removed the stand, and replaced the lock and chain.
On the way down, I unscrewed the cleats and took them as well. I always wondered what he thought when he went back, and there was nothing but his chain and lock 30 feet up in a tree [:D]0 -
quote:Originally posted by tobefree
I would politely say that by taking the law into your own hands that you somehow forgot the old saying that two wrongs don't make a right... He is a trespasser and now you are a thief... In my book the dude just paid his dues for hunting prevledges in full. In fact his crime isn't a felony but your's is...and you could lose your guns rights, I think I'd put it back or call the game warden and give it to him and let him settle it and live with his decision!!!!
The only problem with that logic is that he was trespassing! I am not sure where this took place, but here in GA if I were to put a stand up on land I did not have permission to hunt, it would become the property of the landowner, to do with what he wanted.
That being said, we had the same problem on our lease. The gentleman that owned the property adjacent to our lease like to hunt on our lease instead of his own land. He started putting stands up along the border of the property (on our side). We got permission from the landowner and did some select cutting of firewood. We did not remove his stands before felling the trees. We have not had a problem with him since.0 -
I put stands up on fence rows all the time. I always get or have permission from both owners. Usually its is one of my dads farm ground, getting permission is not a big deal for me.
I think what you did was good. I would have left a note with phone #. If he didn't get the hint, I would then call the game warden and have him set up a cam to catch him.0 -
OK,..Let me set the record straight,..to my disadvantage[V], NO the stand was not on my property,..so YES I did STEAL his stand off of his property[B)] What else can I say about that. NOW,...the pink tape was clearly leading to the tree he had it on,...and then leading directly across that ditch (4-5' of water,..not really like you can miss it) and across my property for a good 200yds of prime thick woods. I left the stand for say,....2 months, and yesterday just had had enough, and finally snatched it. It is clearly his property,( both the stand and the land that I have no rights to), BUT the evidence is there that it is the same yo-yo that has been doing this for years.
Now,..being as we have a nice thick peice of woods (great bedding area), we have some prime bucks. Our rules are that you have to be done everything you want done, before bow season opens (sept 15). Therefor, the only activity on our peice of land, is hunting. You can only run your corn back on the quad on sunday,...and can not take it into the woods unless you are dragging out a deer. Everything else is done on foot,...to keep the area active.
So for all our work,..I get the "richard skull" that feels the need to work over on my side[:(!] Now,..ifin I bring in the DNR guys to lay in wait,..they also screw up my hunting as they set up on the trail for a few days until the guy is confronted. Screwed either way[:(!]
So it seems the concensus is to return his rig,...I may have to take this into consideration.[V]0 -
just to clarify,..the stand was on another property, across a drainage dithch through the woods (20-30yrs old) with a seperation of maybe 15' across. THAT is the property line,..period. He stuck his stand on the other side to "appear" to be doing nothing wrong,..but he left his tape trail right onto my side of the property we rent.
The owner is older,....and rents us the land for the price of his land taxes,...so no need at all in bugging him and possibly losing the land.0 -
Chain his stand to the tree he left it at, use hardened chain and a good lock. Either track him down or in some way get face to face with him and settle things before they realy get out of hand.
You go carrying off my climbing stand and I'd probably get pretty upset with you.0 -
Since you took the stand from his land, I would return it and leave it there. He trespassed on your land and you trespassed on his.
Just because he sets up his stand on the border does not imply he is hunting your land unless you catch him in the act. If he shoots a deer while it is on your property, you can refuse to allow him to retrieve it, since shooting into your land to harvest an animal there is a trespass in itself. Call the police when it happens.
Do not take the deer yourself unless you have called the police or game warden first. Taking and/or tagging a deer you did not kill is a violation in most states. The police or game warden will usually give the deer away to someone who is not involved or may even offer it to you.
I dealt with these issues many times in my career. Like I said in an earlier post and others have also, start at the lowest level first. Try talking, then get the law involved. I have literaly seen 2 neighbors and their constant fighting escalate until one of them killed the other. Now neither lives there. One is 6 feet under and the other and his wife both live in prison.
Technically you could be charged with larceny and could once you took the stand down and moved it while it was on his property. Not so if it was on property that you control.0 -
quote: OK,...here is the deal. Some 8-9yrs ago, I am sitting in the deerstand and look off to my right and see a guy in a brand new salt treated ladder stand sitting maybe 75yds from me,...ON THE PROPERTY DIVIDING LINE/DRAINAGE DITCH!!! Now,...you and I both know that when he sat his stand to face BOTH his side AND my side,..that he isn't going to be waiting all day long for a nice deer to step across that ditch onto his side!!!!Really you can read minds. Why would you shoot over onto another mans lease? Why do you think he would? Soooo, we post that ditch for maybe 50yds to either side of his stand, and staple a few to his steps going up the stand,....NUFF SAID Right??? The stand was gone when we came back the next week.
quote:skip to the present,...I am woorking on stands yesterday before it warms up and the ticks and chiggers get too bad. What do I see at the base of a tree on the other side of the ditch his climber stand and this years new marking tape trail onto our property (we rent, don't own it). Soooooo,..I take down all the tape AGAIN,..as well as reflective markers for use in the dark. And as I get more and more pissed off,....I decide a stronger message is needed.The key thing to remember when you saw this tree stand it was on the other side of the property line. That means it was not on your rented land so basically this means you stole his property. You crossed onto someone elses lease and removed his property. You are screaming about him tresspassing but you did the same and agravated it by stealing. So you think you are in the right no you are just a whinny thief It does not matter if he carried it across your lease when you found it it was not on your land.
A lot of times you set on the edge of a property because the way the land lays. You cover a natural trail or feeding area or watering hole. Maybe there is a reason he uses that area maybe it is easier to get into than the rest of his property. Your rights cutt off at the property line. You do not have the right to tell him to not use a tree that is not on your lease. So grow up if you tell him to not cross your property fine but to take his stand from his property is theft pure and simple. If it were me I would contact the registered land owner and the cops and have your butt in a sling. The way you are going about it is a good way for you to lose the lease when the owners neighbor complains about you.0 -
What state are you in? Laws regarding access, property rights, etc differ from locality to locality. Your first inquiry should have been to your local game warden. Stealing (and that's what you did, you've admitted as much)the guy's tree stand could cost you.
And, why haven't you called your game warden?0 -
OK,..I'll admit to taking his stand. However,..I followed his trail across my land to a tree that I would put a stand on. He clearly is putting his climber back on his side, when he leaves, so as not to be seen as having his rig on our land. This is the same as as me taking his stand. I ahve payed for the hunting rights,..and therefore, whatever he takes from here is stealing from me,..so I figure we are square. And,...to all the armchair quaterbacks,..I wouldn't have asked on the "net" ifin I wasn't planning on some sort of "agreement".
I think we got a bit too many lazy old boys to understand what it takes to groom a good property properly,..and how a leech can affect your outlook on boundaries.
put as much work as I do into your land,..then let me walk all over it and hunt whatever I want without permission,...I bet your outlook changes[;)]0 -
Exactly why I asked about your local laws and contacting the landowner and game warden. 0 -
JustC,
We have had this problem for years on my uncles property unfortunately there is no easy solution what ever you choose to do just remember that unless your stands are permanent they can be taken just as easily I had 2 nice ladder stands stolen in 2005 and not much you can do about it and the feeling you get when you go hunting and your stand is gone sucks
As far as his climber goes give back to him and make it very clear to him that if you catch him on your side you will have him arrested about all you can do But if it was me I would only give the stand directly to him0 -
take his stand apart into a million pieces, dont' damage it, just take it apart... then throw the whole darn shooting match onto his side of the property line... he's gonna deny trespassing anyway, so do the same.... 0 -
i'd never touch another mans stand as far as taking it .... but i have poop in Quite a few[:D][:D][:D][:D][:D] 0 -
If you're paying the property owner for exclusive rights (that's a contract) and you're not getting exclusive rights to the land shouldn't he be advised?
Could the trespasser be the neighboring property owner or someone renting from him?
Maybe the culprit's a trespasser on both properties.
I'd be inclined to contact both property owners about their understanding of your exclusive rights before taking matters into your own hands. There may be an agreement you're not aware of.
You don't need bullets whistling around your ears especially if you hunt alone.0 -
If the stand is on his side of the property theres not much to do about it, except....To prevent him from harvesting an animal on your side, eat plenty of sauerkraut the night before and lay out a poopy line on your side of the property. Betcha he won't get much action![}:)] 0 -
quote:Originally posted by JustC
OK,..Let me set the record straight,..to my disadvantage[V], NO the stand was not on my property,..so YES I did STEAL his stand off of his property[B)] What else can I say about that. NOW,...the pink tape was clearly leading to the tree he had it on,...and then leading directly across that ditch (4-5' of water,..not really like you can miss it) and across my property for a good 200yds of prime thick woods. I left the stand for say,....2 months, and yesterday just had had enough, and finally snatched it. It is clearly his property,( both the stand and the land that I have no rights to), BUT the evidence is there that it is the same yo-yo that has been doing this for years.
Now,..being as we have a nice thick peice of woods (great bedding area), we have some prime bucks. Our rules are that you have to be done everything you want done, before bow season opens (sept 15). Therefor, the only activity on our peice of land, is hunting. You can only run your corn back on the quad on sunday,...and can not take it into the woods unless you are dragging out a deer. Everything else is done on foot,...to keep the area active.
So for all our work,..I get the "richard skull" that feels the need to work over on my side[:(!] Now,..ifin I bring in the DNR guys to lay in wait,..they also screw up my hunting as they set up on the trail for a few days until the guy is confronted. Screwed either way[:(!]
So it seems the concensus is to return his rig,...I may have to take this into consideration.[V]
Set up a game camera on his trail in and out. You get a picture you know who he is. You call the Game warden and present the evidennce to them. or you sit in the woods and give him the 3 S's treatment. Or just booby trap the trail (nothing lethal a face full of whipping branches) Or just cut down his tree0 -
quote:Originally posted by wipala
quote:Originally posted by JustC
OK,..Let me set the record straight,..to my disadvantage[V], NO the stand was not on my property,..so YES I did STEAL his stand off of his property[B)] What else can I say about that. NOW,...the pink tape was clearly leading to the tree he had it on,...and then leading directly across that ditch (4-5' of water,..not really like you can miss it) and across my property for a good 200yds of prime thick woods. I left the stand for say,....2 months, and yesterday just had had enough, and finally snatched it. It is clearly his property,( both the stand and the land that I have no rights to), BUT the evidence is there that it is the same yo-yo that has been doing this for years.
Now,..being as we have a nice thick peice of woods (great bedding area), we have some prime bucks. Our rules are that you have to be done everything you want done, before bow season opens (sept 15). Therefor, the only activity on our peice of land, is hunting. You can only run your corn back on the quad on sunday,...and can not take it into the woods unless you are dragging out a deer. Everything else is done on foot,...to keep the area active.
So for all our work,..I get the "richard skull" that feels the need to work over on my side[:(!] Now,..ifin I bring in the DNR guys to lay in wait,..they also screw up my hunting as they set up on the trail for a few days until the guy is confronted. Screwed either way[:(!]
So it seems the concensus is to return his rig,...I may have to take this into consideration.[V]
Set up a game camera on his trail in and out. You get a picture you know who he is. You call the Game warden and present the evidennce to them. or you sit in the woods and give him the 3 S's treatment. Or just booby trap the trail (nothing lethal a face full of whipping branches) Or just cut down his tree
Exactly what I recommended, you can pickup a cheep trail camera for like 50 bucks it won't give you the best picture but good enough to identify someone.
I would never ever go onto someone else's property and take there deer stand and what if it was a trap. He may already have your picture....
As you admitted this has been going on for years.... Doesn't seem like its bothered you that much in the past now you may be losing your gun rights because of it, not the brightest idea.0 -
I'd set up a game camera to catch him trespassing and have him prosecuted... 0 -
quote:Originally posted by dcinffxva
I had similar issues with a trespasser on my dads property. He had left his stand (not a climber) 30 feet up in a tree, with a big chain and padlock around it.
I climbed the tree (using the screw in cleats he also left in) picked the lock, removed the stand, and replaced the lock and chain.
On the way down, I unscrewed the cleats and took them as well. I always wondered what he thought when he went back, and there was nothing but his chain and lock 30 feet up in a tree [:D]
I took one down this year. It was up for two years. The tree died last year. Took the lag screws and stand. Gave them to my father in law. Nephew can practice shooting arrows from a tree. Don't know whose it was , but all other tree stand were accounted for.0 -
as far as me getting into any hot water,..well lets just say the infractions of mine would somehow be null processed. Got to love the good ole boy network,...unless you aint in it[:D]
next, if he has a game camera,...I'll find it soon enough, as I will be working in the property a lot before the weather warms up too much. We aim to have all work done 6months before bow season this year so as to keep the area "stabilized"
I know a lot of responses will come for doing the right thing,...but this guy has been warned through my actions continuosly over the years. I figured he had finally learned,..until I was getting a new route set up, and found that he had simply moved around my current trails so as not to be seen. I HEARD a climber going up opening morning,..but in the woods in the dark,..it is quite often hard to tell where the sound is coming from, and I had to blow it off as sound that carried to me from a neighboring property. THEN,..later I find this climber,..neatly positioned juussst on the other side of the ditch/property line, with this years marking tape going right across that ditch and a good 200yds onto my property,..with reflective tacks and the whole nine yards. The tape stops right at a few large pines which,....wouldn't you know it, are right along a heavy travel path with a good rub line[:(!] There is no doubt he is hunting on my land,...there is no IF here,..so those who think he mayyyyyy not be doing it,..your wrong, sorry.[;)]
I will ask a buddie's son (DNR cadet and soon to be officer,..another ace in the hole[;)]) and see what he suggests as far as placing the stand back where it was, and attaching a warning from the "official" source. I don't want his stand,..it isn't about the stand,..it is about friggin RESPECT!!!!!!!! I don't hunt on you, so don't hunt on me.
needless to say, I have decided from the vast majority of comments that throwing his stand back across the ditch with a warning note, and showing the DNR officer where they can most likely find him travelling is the best bet for now. I hate to screw up my hunting on this farm for the next season,...but I guess if they trap this packerhead once and for all,..I will be better off in the future.0 -
Keep the stands.
My dad has many, many brand spankin new tree stands because Jerseyite's illegally hunt on our family's land. They ask no permission, wear no orange, and have no State hunting license.
Who they gonna call and tell someone took their stand?[}:)]
This "hunting club" bought this little concrete block shack with 5 acres of un-huntable land and go onto our land to hunt.....Year after year. I almost lost my temper on several occasions but held my composure and left the woods in disgust.
They have this nice little pile of wood next to their shack. I took a cordless drill with a 2" hole saw bit and reamed a nice hole in a piece of wood.....filled it with FF powder and hammered a plug into it. Threw it back on their woodpile.
Start carrying a side arm with you hunting.0 -
I really like the idea of "accidently" cutting his tree down.
Wish it had been mine!
D.0 -
quote:
The only problem with that logic is that he was trespassing! I am not sure where this took place, but here in GA if I were to put a stand up on land I did not have permission to hunt, it would become the property of the landowner, to do with what he wanted.
That being said, we had the same problem on our lease. The gentleman that owned the property adjacent to our lease like to hunt on our lease instead of his own land. He started putting stands up along the border of the property (on our side). We got permission from the landowner and did some select cutting of firewood. We did not remove his stands before felling the trees. We have not had a problem with him since.
The only problem with that is that it is your word against his as to where it was at, once you remove it and instead of having the game warden do it and verify... it is in your garage and and now you are absolutety the one who has to prove his innocence should he find out you have it... Use your head for heavens sake... Heck he could tell the police that it came up missing out of the back of his pick up..... if he has a sure way to id.. hidden SS or something your but is in the pokey pronto. Heck he may have even baited you like a fish to a worm...0 -
quote:Originally posted by lorne47
i'd never touch another mans stand as far as taking it .... but i have poop in Quite a few[:D][:D][:D][:D][:D]
Dad. The ONE thing i didnt want to know.0 -
Land mines! 0 -
Grandpa bought this place during the depression. On the back side of our pasture there is the railroad tracks. Our's ends at the railroad tracks. There's another quarter miles of pasture and woods owned by someone else between the railroad tracks and the Fox River.
There used to be a cabin back there behind the track but it was way before my time. The easiest way to reach it was cutting through our pasture. The guy that owned the cabin would occasionally take a lamb from the pasture on his way back there. Good eating at the cabin I guess.
Grandpa didn't know how the sheep disappeared until years after the cabin was gone. Alway guessed coyotes took 'em.
Now we have the sandpit owning the land to the north. The skydive airport borders us to the south, and the Dam owns the land between the railroad tracks and the river. None of them want hunters.0
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