Lesson Learned Spoiled Goose Hunting Trip (Please Read All)

5119 Views 11 Replies 9 Participants Last post by Brian W, Nov 12, 2004

NY Fingerlakes Hunter

Discussion Starter · Nov 8, 2004

Last Weekend while Goose hunting with my son and his friend I was kicked off of a hunting spot that I have had permision for 20yrs to hunt.
Here is the story as it unfolds.
After a couple of hours of hunting I started to walk across a plowed corn field to check out another spot for a better setup. As I was walking back to our first setup I seen the farmer coming up real fast on his tractor and he stopped in front of our setup and he was waving his hands and yelling. When I approached the farmer he said after today we could no longer hunt on his land. I was shocked and asked why . He told me he had seen my son's friend pull up some soybean plants and he had destroyed his crops.
I quickly chastized the youth and said that I would pay for any damage . I told Him I was sorry. He said to finish hunting for the day and see him after we picked up. I was real sick about the issue. After he left I asked my son's friend how many plants he pulled up and he said 4 and showed me where he had pulled them. I told him never to pull even one plant on a farmer land that is His living.
I have taught my son that we do not even leave shell casings or any trash laying around and to respect the land owner's property. This was the first time that the youth hunted with us and it was my fault for not telling him the same.
We pulled our gear and I went talked, showed the farmer that 4 plants had been picked nothing else destroyed and that I was real sorry ( which I was) and asked about the damages and He said that will be $40. I almost fell to the ground but I did not argue I paid him he said to take the 4 plants that I had paid for them. I did and shucked out the soybeans and put then in a small baby food jar. I even weighed them 3ozs.
$213 per pound is what that comes out to.
This was a very expensive lesson learned both in money and experience

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ponass

· #2 · Nov 8, 2004

Sorry to hear about your screwed up weekend. It really sounds like there is a lot more to this story than your farmer friend passed on. Having grown up on a farm and still having many relatives farming I would have to say that your farmer is full of it. The deer, bear, and geese eat their weight in beans and corn every day in our neck of the woods. He should be paying you for the beans you saved by shagging the geese and deer off the field. Crop damages each year are many times more than your son's friend could pull out by hand. If four plants is an issue, the field must be the size of a postage stamp. I would be watching in the next couple of weeks to see who your farmer friend has leased out his land to. Sounds like he is looking out for a cash crop that is larger than soybeans.

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NY Fingerlakes Hunter

Discussion Starter · #3 · Nov 8, 2004

Come to think about it He did say something about some one paying him to keep rows of corn standing for hunting. I have a deep feeling you are right.

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vanvo

· #4 · Nov 8, 2004

we have a john deere dealership in nw ohio and i also farm and about four plants of soybeans would cost about maybe 1.50 at the most. that farmer must be on crack to make u pay forty dollars for four plants

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goosehuntinman

· #5 · Nov 8, 2004

Im with ponass on this one, Definately something else going on, im betting he was offered money for a lease of the ground also.

Goosehuntinman

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mallardhunter

· #6 · Nov 9, 2004

It was kind of rude to kick you off of the land for 4 little soybean plants, but I guess its what got him mad.

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NJ_H2OFWLR

· #7 · Nov 9, 2004

I agree, 4 plants Was Not the Issue. He was Waiting for something to Kick you off with! Somebody put the squeeze on ya!

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Brian W

· #8 · Nov 10, 2004

NJ_H2OFWLR said:
I agree, 4 plants Was Not the Issue. He was Waiting for something to Kick you off with! Somebody put the squeeze on ya!

I agree too. Don't put too much blame on the kid. Yes, he did something he shouldn't, but it's not like he did something horrendous, like shoot in the direction of a building.

Ultimately it's the farmer's land. Just be grateful for the years you were able to access his property. Twenty years. Did you ever help mend fences, cut trees, or otherwise come around at all off season? Just wondering what kind of relationship you had with the farmer.

FWIW, you really can't hunt down here without leasing land. It's just a fact of life.

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macduck

· #9 · Nov 11, 2004

NY: I think everybody who has posted is getting @ the facts. Brian's right - Texas is lease country. I'd be willing to bet that the Fingerlakes region may be going the same way. Hot spot=high demand=leasing. Down here in West PA, the Erie flood plain, which includes Pymatuning State Park & Crawford County around it, is going this way. In Crawford Co. you've got to pay to play. Sounds like someone upped the ante on you in your area.

Sadly, $40.00 may soon prove cheap. I've found some places to hunt - most of these are people that I work with who own land in Crawford, Mercer, Lawrence. But if I'm going to have to add a few adjacent farms. Geese'll keep moving. These are people I don't know - I dread that I may have to dig deep in the wallet. For what it's worth - best of luck. I hope - hope - that we're wrong.

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husker

· #10 · Nov 12, 2004

I agree with these guys. From an agricultural position, you got screwed. But you did not pay for the 4 bean plants. You paid for rights to hunt for another year. Most guys would think $40 for a years hunt is cheap. I have grown up around farmers and they are a strange breed and are many times hard to get along with. Thats probably why they farm for themselves and not work for someone else. As you stated in your post, it is their lively hood and they are very passionate about their way of life. It is very important to see thier point of view, especially when they control who hunts, and who watches the birds fly from the road.

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NY Fingerlakes Hunter

Discussion Starter · #11 · Nov 12, 2004

Husker,
I did not pay $40 to hunt. He told us no more hunting. My Grandfather was a farmer and so was my deceased father-inlaw and I spent many hours planting,harvesting also butchering hogs and beef. I appreciate the farmer letting me hunt and I respect their way of life. When things cool down I am going to talk to Him and try to get to the real problem. Maybe He just had a bad day.

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Brian W

· #12 · Nov 12, 2004

Just be thankful you don't live where leasing has become as predominate as here. I turned down an offer to join a quality waterfowl lease this year @ $675 for the season. Would have joined 7 other guys in order to get that rate. I'll go on a couple of guided days, maybe three or four max. I'm too busy in the fall to get to a lease every weekend.

As bad as that is, it's absolutely chump change compared to quality south Texas quail hunting. That's truly an expensive proposition.

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