Need input on what to do
Contributors to this thread:Whitetail Deer
From: Ackbowhunter
11-Nov-20
So I have private property to hunt in south central Kansas. I have had it for 2 weeks and have put up feeders and cameras. There are deer everywhere. I have pics of a few monsters on camera. So the problem is the neighboring landowner has now seen me hunting and has been running his 4 wheeler up and down the tree row, stopping at my cameras, stopping at pinch points where deer come thru 30 min before sundown. It’s on his property but it’s right on the property line. I have been taking pics of this clown doing this and have tons of proof. I come out here and waste my day sitting here in hopes of getting to see deer and this guy ruins it. What or how do I handle this situation responsibly?
From: JohnMC
11-Nov-20
Is it your property? Doing you lease it? Is someone just letting you hunt? If it yours or your paying to hunt call the game warden. If some just letting you hunt bring it up with the landowner.
From: Ackbowhunter
11-Nov-20
Got permission from the landowner to hunt here
From: IdyllwildArcher
11-Nov-20
Ditch the feeders and hunt a pinch point. Hunt the morning and get in in the dark.
From: Patdel
11-Nov-20
I dont know if Kansas has hunter harassment laws, but I would look into if I were you. You have pictures, keep documenting it. Contact a warden. Maybe they can help.
From: Ackbowhunter
11-Nov-20
I’ve hunted the mornings in the pinch points.. the feeders are just down the line to keep them interested in staying on property. But the mornings are lifeless and nothing moves until afternoon on this property
From: JohnMC
11-Nov-20
How big is the property? Can you get off the property line? I
From: sitO
11-Nov-20
There certainly are Hunter Harassment laws in KS, keep documenting! Do you mind saying which County? Send in PM if you don't want to post here.
From: Ackbowhunter
11-Nov-20
It’s 160 acres but the major majority of deer are right here in the corner of this property.
From: Ackbowhunter
11-Nov-20
This is my first year bow hunting.. plus I’ve never hunted whitetail before. I’m used to mule deer. So this is a very big learning experience for me on what to do and what not to do. But I definitely don’t need extra help from the neighboring landowner.
From: Ackbowhunter
11-Nov-20
The landowner doesn’t care for the neighboring landowner. I only have 1 feeder out and it’s a pvc 6” pipe 5’ tall strapped to a tree 1/3 mile down away from the property line.. and it’s almost impossible to see. He is only a rifle hunter. And he has no feeders or anything out. His permanent blinds are almost 1/4-1/3 mile from the property line I’m hunting on.
From: Glunt@work
11-Nov-20
He may be posting on another forum about his neighbor letting some guy hunt who sets up right on the property line.
Recipe for issues with an unfriendly neighbor. If you shoot a deer it could easily run to his side and he probably won't be excited to be good about permission to recover it.
No game warden is going to ticket a guy who patrols his property line staying on his side.
I hate drama when trying to enjoy a hunt. I would probably move off the line.
From: greg simon
12-Nov-20
I bet the neighbor has seen a big buck he is trying to “save” for gun season. I’ve experienced this type of behavior in Kansas. There is not much you can do except get back from property lines as far as you can. Then ignore the neighbor and enjoy your hunt!
From: APauls
12-Nov-20
How have you not talked to him yet? We are humans and have the capacity to communicate at high levels. Talking to him will help you find out what is driving his behaviour and if the matter can be resolved for a win-win. If he’s a lunatic you’ll know. If he’s a reasonable guy ticked off that you’re hunting his property line you can work it out. Talk to him
From: Pyrannah
12-Nov-20
Apauls for the win!
From: Rackmastr
12-Nov-20
+1 with APauls
From: LINK
12-Nov-20
Sounds to me like he holds the cards. I’m guessing the deer spend most of their time on him but come on to the corner/ edge of your property. It’s his property he can go ride his atv at 6 am if he wants. I would be worried hunting that close to the property line anyways. Sounds like a recipe for a deer you arrowed to end up on his property. Moral of the story lease a property that holds the deer you hunt and allows you to hunt away from the fence line.
From: Jaquomo
12-Nov-20
I had a similar situation and did what APauls suggested. Turns out he HATES bowhunters, gave me a lecture about what jerks bowhunters are, we wound all the game, etc.. I talked to the game warden and he talked to the guy, who told him he was just "checking fence" (he had no cattle and has never fixed fence in his life).
Then the guy started incorporating handgun shooting and yelling into his routine. He also started spreading lies to all the neighboring ranchers about how we were poaching, shooting multiple animals and wounding them, trespassing. Our landowner told us to just deal with it because he didn't want to have bad relations with his neighbor. So we did, but it sucked.
From: Scrappy
12-Nov-20
Been there done that. Hate to be the bearer of bad news but you'll never win if you can't hunt were he won't effect your hunt or have someone drop you off before daylight were he doesn't know your there your only recourse is to find somewhere else to hunt. Sucks but you have no winnable situation currently believe me. My final straw was I realized no matter what everytime I wound up this situation I was never having fun. Enjoying myself is way more important than killing a deer.
From: Bob H in NH
12-Nov-20
Step 1: talk to the guy (as suggested above).
Step 2: can't say until after Step 1
From: ruffedges
12-Nov-20
What goes around comes around...
From: Boone
12-Nov-20
Can you post a Google maps image of the 160 acres you have to hunt? Plenty of guys on here with ton of knowledge maybe they can say try this spot or that instead of the fence line. I know you said it's the only spot with deer but might just need to try somewhere else on that farm
From: Grey Ghost
12-Nov-20
Considering it's Kansas, I'm guessing the a-hole neighbor is the reason the farm hasn't been leased by an outfitter, or private hunting group, and that's why you got permission to hunt it, unfortunately. Try to talk to the neighbor, then find another farm to hunt.
Matt
From: hardcore247
12-Nov-20
Can you have someone drop you off so he doesn’t know you are hunting?
From: JohnMC
12-Nov-20
Put your blind on the other end of property where he can see it. Then hang a tree stand where your blind is but so that you and stand can't be seen from his side of fence. Maybe he will start harassing your new blind location. If it a square 160 acres and you are in corner of it that would put almost a 1/2 mile in between.
From: WV Mountaineer
12-Nov-20
How does he know where you are? If you are driving to the stands, stop. Or park at one location and walk to another.
This is only something I’d do after asking him what’s up personally. If he had a smart guy reply basically telling me it was my problem, I’d simply make it his problem.
From: Ackbowhunter
12-Nov-20
Trying to locate the landowner today but have not caught up with him yet. I guess I can just sit in the blind and let him come to me. I’m just so depressed over this. Thought it was gonna be a badass place to hunt and maybe get my first whitetail ever, but I shall see how this all plays out when I can talk to him
From: LINK
12-Nov-20
How big a boy are you? Seriously though meet him at the fence line and politely but forcefully ask him what his deal is. If he won’t reason, whoop him or move your stand. Seams as that’s about your options.
From: altitude sick
12-Nov-20
Next year plant Egyptian wheat all along the boundary well inside your land. So he can’t get at it. If he can’t see into your side it will drive him nuts. And he won’t know where you are.
From: Patdel
12-Nov-20
Just my opinion, but I think the suggestions you get into a physical altercation with this guy is the worst advice I've ever heard. Lots of ways for that to go really bad. It just wouldn't be very bright. Things have a way of escalating when it gets to that point. Keep your cool.
From: Wild Bill
12-Nov-20
I like the decoy idea blind/stand idea. Put a manikin up the tree on the side he can't see clearly.
From: LINK
12-Nov-20
I wasn’t suggesting he get in a fight. I’ve all ready stated his stand is too close to the fence. That said I’d make him wonder how tough he is and I’m not a fighter. If he thinks you’re going to sit in your stand and watch him ruin hunt after hunt that’s exactly what he’ll do.
From: Aspen Ghost
12-Nov-20
You gotta put yourself in his shoes. You said there are "deer everywhere" on this quarter section and yet you set up your blind and cameras right on the fence line with his property. And put up feeders to pull the deer off his place. If you were in his shoes you'd be irritated too. Learn from this.
If you talk to him, it would be a huge mistake to be confrontational. I'd suggest that you redeploy your cameras and blinds away from the fence lines. You've got 1/2 mile by 1/2 mile to work with.
Having a blind right on a property line is a really bad idea anyway. Odds are high that a deer you shoot is going to die on property you cannot legally recover it from without permission of the owner. By placing your blind there you are basically flipping off the neighbor by signalling that you are intentionally planning to use his land as part of your hunt. Ticking someone off is generally not the best way to get access to their land for deer recovery. If your blind were set back where you could reasonably assume that you would likely recover deer without leaving the property then the neighbor is going to be far more likely to allow recovery should one go further than expected.
From: altitude sick
12-Nov-20
^^^That’s very good advise.
It will be hard. but go talk to him and tell him you have never shot a whitetail and need help. Offer to move everything off the property line. He may turn into an ally and offer to help you out.
If not Then back to the battle lines
From: Bentstick54
12-Nov-20
Maybe if you talk to him there is 1 particular monster buck he has been watching and is trying to keep it alive for himself come rifle season. If that’s the case , assure him that you will respect that and won’t shoot it, and see if that gets you anywhere.
From: LBshooter
12-Nov-20
First, there is no hunter harassment, he is using his land how he sees fit. If he was riding his ATF on your property, different story. Try to talk to him,if that doesn't work, invite as many bowhunters as you can and line them up on the property line and watch the guy flip out.lol as suggested, the feeder gives you away, so take it down or move it away from his view.seed the ground by hand . And when you shoot a monster, take pics, make posters and hang them up facing his property lol.
From: greenmountain
13-Nov-20
I have been reading this with interest. I would not start a war without more facts. From my perspective you mad a big mistake by being visible. I hunt a small parcel where it is open to everyone. I met two other hunters this fall a father and a son. I got too close to the father's stand one morning. We had a polite talk. He told me to stay put and he possibly would put a deer to me. I told him the areas I would stick to . As he was leaving he told me I could save a lot of steps if I parked in his yard. The son came out the next morning and told me where he was set up. We hunted for almost a month never seeing each other. Communication and respect are key.
From: LINK
13-Nov-20
LINK's Link
I still think you ought to open up a can or whoopass on that ole boy.
From: MichaelArnette
13-Nov-20
What A pauls said, back that baby off the fence
From: MichaelArnette
13-Nov-20
Or what big dog said lol
From: Shawn
13-Nov-20
First talk to the guy, you will learn a lot. He may not be a bad guy. He may be a rotten bastard. I find most folks are decent and if you build a bit of a repoire with them things can work out. Also deer in Kansas respond readily to calling and decoying. You can set up quite a ways off his line and call deer to you. I just killed a buck in Iowa on a piece of land locked public except for a 30 ft wide access point. I rattled and grunted in a nice buck that was walking acrossed private 500 yds away. Shawn
From: Ackbowhunter
13-Nov-20
All is well... talked to the guy and the situation is diffused and good to go.. thank you for all the input and help
From: JohnMC
13-Nov-20
That is awesome. What had his panties in a wad in the first place?
From: Johnny Koester
13-Nov-20
Lot of suggestions here. You can talk to the guy and ask him to stop. However if he doesn't agree, nothing you can do about it. If it's his property he has the right to drive it at will.
From: Ackbowhunter
14-Nov-20
Oh it’s a good one! So I brushed my blind in right next to a couple cedar trees that were closer to his side of the property line... I brushed it in with cedar branches that came from my landowners property that he had just cut down a whole tree and he told me to use whatever I needed... the neighboring landowner thought I cut the branches off his side of the trees that were there. I explained where I got them from and even offered to go out there and show him I did not even touch those trees. He also explained that he has had other hunters adjacent to him on other sides set up and end up hunting on his property more than the property they were supposed to be on.. I told him I’m not like a few bad apples and that I only hunt where I’m permitted and if a wounded animal happens to get on other property I will come get permission before I even go track it.. after all this explanation he totally changed his attitude and said I can stay where I’m at and that there are more deer than anyone can kill... and he even said if I get one down and it goes on his property to feel free to go track it down but just not to damage the crops.. in which I replied I would leave everything better than when I entered to get it.
From: M.Pauls
15-Nov-20
Fantastic, a situation that turned out well! Great job on taking the initiative to go talk to him and clear the air
From: Jaquomo
15-Nov-20
That's great! Glad it worked out and was just a misunderstanding!
From: Ucsdryder
15-Nov-20
This is such a good thread about dealing with life in general. An adult conversation, man to man, is always the best advice!
From: t-roy
15-Nov-20
Good deal!
From: APauls
15-Nov-20
That’s awesome bud. It’s amazing how just talking to a person as a couple responsive adults often leads to this kind of result.
Good work brother.
From: SIP
15-Nov-20
Good stuff. Well done
From: Bentstick54
16-Nov-20
Great . Communication is always good. Glad it worked out. Good luck.
From: petedrummond
16-Nov-20
You must be pretty close tonthe property line for hunting m to know you are wven hunting. He may consider you a “fence” sitter which goes bad fast. Move away from property line or talk to him.
