MFL open to public
Wisconsin
Contributors to this thread:
Anyone hunt private property designated as MFl open to public? Do u just go by the maps on website or is it best to contact land owner before hunting the property?
ALWAYS contact the land owner.
Yup! Always contact the landowner.
I have one guy who wants bears shot. I got permission to hunt the non MFL property, a key to his gate and permission to drive through the MFL property.
He likes the idea of having an extra body around to patrol the property.
I always try to contact the landowner, but sometimes for absentee LO's they don't get back to you. Don't let that stop you from hunting what you know is open. Although it's always best to talk to the landowner. It isn't necessary legal wise for mfl open land. Although not often, there are some landowners that want the tax break and still want to keep people out. I have found that the majority of landowners are very appreciative of me asking permission. Many times they will let me hunt their land that isn't open also.
If it is owned by a lumber company just hunt it but follow their rules if posted on the land or their web site. One company that has land around Sawyer and Washburn county allows cars/trucks on some of their roads but not ATV's.
No need to contact the landowner. I have tried many times and have maybe gotten one call back. I hunt a lot of MFL land. I print out the maps for the individual properties from the DNR website and contact the forester if I have questions. I also have the forest crop boundaries shown on my ON X maps on my iphone and GPS although I wouldn't rely on the ON X alone as they aren't very accurate in some cases.
Where can I get maps for gps?
"No need to contact the landowner" You are correct in that statement. It IS a courtesy to make contact with the landowner. The landowner (still does own the thing) may well let you know where you can park (and cannot)and stands that are welcome and which are not. If you sense a reluctance in allowing the hunting perhaps a message that "I'll be hunting the MFL land located XXXXXX and I'd like information as far as parking, stands, using an ATV for retrieval and other info.
I go on the DNR website and find the parcels I'm interested in.
Then I email the Forester, give him the parcel numbers and he emails me PDFs of more accurate maps for the parcels I'm interested in. Works pretty slick.
In Northern Wi. I hunt forest crop (MFL) Exclusively
I never ask but rules are posted by the gate, No Motor vehicles allowed. Plum Creek Land
Cool. Thanks for all the info. I been looking at the maps on the Dnr website. Once I find something that looks good, I'll email the owner for more info
I plan to hunt waushara county as we will be staying in Coloma. I'm already hunting 80 acres of private property but didn't see much buck sign last year. I figure I'd explore some other areas of the county that might be more promising. I saw plenty deer last year but no bucks. I'm gonna look for some thicker areas this year for potential buck beds
I bear hunted an 80 of MFL near Hayward several years ago. I contacted the owner for permission to use the atv for baiting and recovery on their logging road and got it. The thing that was sort of strange is the parcel was a true 80, but only like 65 of it was open. I just guessed that the swampy areas were not included since they would not produce timber. Since we only used those wet areas as features that would help us plan bait sites we didn't really care if they were open or not. Just wondering if a duck hunter might run into a problem if that was the case.
Sometimes a landowner will leave out several acres for future use,House cabin
It use to be that a LO would have interior parcels of his land designated as "open" for the higher property tax reduction. But the parcels surrounding the parcel were either "closed" or not in the managed forrest plan. That way he could keep hunters out of the open areas.
I believe that has changed now and a hunter has to be allowed access to the open area. Is that correct?
PB, yes they HAVE to allow access. They can designate exactly where that access will be, but they have to allow it.
I always call (or stop by) the land owner. I turkey hunt by Coloma. One land owner let me hunt his farm not MFLO.
"I go on the DNR website and find the parcels I'm interested in.
Then I email the Forester, give him the parcel numbers and he emails me PDFs of more accurate maps for the parcels I'm interested in. Works pretty slick. "
You can also download the PDF maps directly from the website. After you click on a parcel, a popup window will come up on the right side of the page. Then click on the "Open Detail Section Map" and you can download or open the PDF.
In regards to the MFL, is there a way to tell on the map where the land owner would want you to park? Lets say there are no posted rules on the property such as no atv access or something, how do you determine what is and is not ok. A lot of the MFL land in my area is corporate owned. Sorry, I'm very new to bow hunting and any advice is appreciated.
The default for all MFL is foot access only. So, unless it is posted that vehicles are allowed you need to contact the owner to get permission for any special requests.