Ever had your hunting gear stolen while in the field?


fly

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I'm just wondering the stats on how many of us have had our hunting gear stolen while left in the field. I'm wondering how the poor economy is impacting the number of theives out there?

1. What do you leave in the field and for how long?

2. Please indicate the year(s) you were ripped off?

3. What did the thief take?

4. Where did it occur?

(a) public land

(b) private ground (owned)

© private ground (leased)

(d) private ground (permission to hunt)

(e) other - describe

As for me, I've never had anything stolen, but then I only keep a couple cheap stick ladders and stands in trees during the season on private ground that I have permission to hunt on.

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1. What do you leave in the field and for how long?

Hang-one stands (14 of them)- Some all year some half the year

Ladder stands (8 of them)- All year

Climbers (had 5...now 4)- Some are out during the season and some wagged in when I need them.

Trail cameras (4)- run from mid July through the end of March

2. Please indicate the year(s) you were ripped off?

I've had one climber stolen about 8 years ago.

3. What did the thief take? See #2

4. Where did it occur?

© private ground (leased)

BTW, I have a buddy that moved to Iowa 9 years ago. We had this discussion 2 years ago and he and his brother together have had 14 stands stolen in Iowa from various pieces of private property. He's also had 2 trail cameras stolen.

You didn't ask anything about how many years we've been leaving gear in the woods. I've been leaving some stands in the woods (private leased land only) for the past 18 years. Never did before that.

Edited by Rhino
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1. What do you leave in the field and for how long?

Ladder stand gets left year around.

Trail Cameras 10 months to year around.

Pop up blind during season for a few months.

2. Please indicate the year(s) you were ripped off?

2006

3. What did the thief take?

Cuddeback Camera that we had just gotten for christmas

4. Where did it occur?

(b) private ground (owned)

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Nothin here yet either but I did leave a climber attached to a tree base one year on private, returned to find it left 25' up and the perp slithered down taking his tree steps along the way. Pretty sure he was coming back for it, but I made it there 1'st only living across the road.

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Was walking to a field once in bow season when i heard something moving. Finally picked out the motion only to find a guy trying to hide under a tree. I explained to him that he was about 1/4 mile off his property. Got to the field only to find my climber was gone. Man I was hot and went back to the truck. A year later it dawned on me to look where the guy was hiding and sure enough there was my stand.

I still leave all my stands up year-round, and I've only had one other climber stolen since.

Al, you got waaaaaay too much junk, dude.........;)

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nothing stolen that was in the woods..

1.what do you leave in the field and how long.

camper, wood stove, lanterns, gas grill, buddy heater, butain tanks, hunting cloths, trail camra, camper, wood stove, lanterns, grill, buddy heater butain tanks have been there 3 years , hunting cloths sense feb.

2. what year was rip off 2009

3. what did they steal,see #1

4. leased land

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1) Hang on tree stands- most of the time year round unless on land other then mine.

2)2005 and once more in 2008

3) In 2005 a hang on tree stand was taken with in 12 hours of hanging it. A friend and I went hunting at his uncles. His uncles nieghbor thinks he owns every inch of land on that side of the hill and tells everyone to not hunt HIS land. We are pretty sure it was him but never could pin it on him, but it was a cheap stand so I moved on. In 2008 my API Grand Slam was taken from my Dad's. I hung it on a Tuesday and was going to hunt on Saturday. The stand was in the valley nowhere near anyones land. But it seems some people dont understand boarders. They came within 200 yards of the barn and took the stand. Thing is I have a very old stand I have wanted someone to steal for 3 years now hanging right beside a 4-wheeler trail on the fence line and nobody has touched it.

4) Both private land- 1 was PTH, the other is family owned

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Had an Ameristep blind stolen about 3 years back on private land we had permission to hunt. Had just bought it and hunted out of it maybe 3-4 times. Went in to hunt out of it one morning and couldn't find it and waited til the sun came up to look and it was gone. It was brushed in very well amongst some tree tops left from logging. Either someone knew it was there or they came up on it while in the woods and took it.

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I'm just wondering the stats on how many of us have had our hunting gear stolen while left in the field. I'm wondering how the poor economy is impacting the number of theives out there?

1. What do you leave in the field and for how long?

Deer stands is all we leave up year round

2. Please indicate the year(s) you were ripped off?

I believe it was 3 or 4 years ago

3. What did the thief take?

3 deer stands

4. Where did it occur?

(a) public land

(b) private ground (owned)

© private ground (leased)

(d) private ground (permission to hunt)

(e) other - describe

d: private ground(permission to hunt)

As for me, I've never had anything stolen, but then I only keep a couple cheap stick ladders and stands in trees during the season on private ground that I have permission to hunt on.

The situation sucks. Luckily we found out during preseason scouting and not when we were heading out to hunt the stand. This was on land that my dad, a close family friend, and myself had all taken 140"+ bucks on. Now they are building a house where me and our family friend shot our bucks. Sad to see it.

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I hear that all states are prepraring for a much higher poaching rate with people shooting extra deer for food. :(

food is just an excuse to paoch a nice buck.:mad:. anyone needing food only needs to contact their local game warden. they'll get all the food they can use. road hits, mercy killings, poached animals. the game & fish has lots of stuff to give to the needy. also, most poachers have a truck 8 years old or newer. they're not needing food.

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Well the data I have indicates that 7 out of the 18 posters have had gear stolen from them while left in the field (That's 38.8% or greater than a one in three chance!:eek::mad:). The dispicuous act occured most frequently on private land and within the past 3 years.

I know this isn't much data to base anything on, but it sure seems to me that one is really taking a risk leaving items in the field (especially these days).

Edited by fly
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We have had 7 treestands stolen over the past 16 or 17 years. The last one was taken about 3 years ago, and to add insult to injury, they forgot to take the safety strap, so came back a few weeks later and stole the one out of my other stand.:rolleyes: Lucky they didn't take it too.:(

All of my stands were chained, locked and lag bolted to the tree.

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