Sumbeach!!!

[TN Bucknasty]

You want to hear a messed up situation?

For the past 5 years I have slaved year-round planting and maintaining food plots, roads, bridges, etc. on the farm I grew up on. I have also worked very hard to manage the deer herd. My dad has never shown much interest in hunting and I grew up hunting alone. I remember him going with me 3 times in 26 years. Every year, my dad hunts opening weekend of gun season- no big deal, his name is on the deed. He never helps build stands, plant plots, etc. What is a big deal to me is that he always invites people from work, my step brother, horse business customers, etc. to hunt with him and they climb into all of my best stands over my best food plots and shoot the crap out of the first thing with horns. Then they all talk about what a good hunter my dad is and ask how I haven't been killing a deer every time I hunt. It ticks me off, but I try to look at it like that's my lease cost.

The situation is about to get a whole lot worse. My dad calls last night and tells me he has to work on opening weekend this year. So I think, "YYYEEESSSS!!!!" in my mind. He asks where I've been hunting and if I've been seeing any in what I thought was casual conversation. Turns out he's fishing for info. He then goes on to tell me that they are going to hunt tomorrow morning instead. I told him, "Tomorrow is opening day of muzzleloader, and none of you own bows or muzzleloaders." He said, "I know," and acted irritated. Once I said something to him about it, and he went off the deep end.

So I've worked my butt off all year, built quality stands in good places, scouted, and got everything just perfect, and now, they are going to go in and poach at my expense. All the while I have to bite my tongue because my father owns the land. I hope that I never treat another human being this way as long as I live.

[The Kid]

i have been in your shoes,, I'll pass on small bucks and then my dad lets his brother and his dad come over and asks me if they can sit in my stand that i work so hard to get ready for, it sounds like u put a lot of your time and effort into what you love, sounds pretty similar to what i do to,, i'm sorry bud

[JackedUpZ71]

Sounds like a lesson I learned a long time ago. When I was in my early teens I had an uncle that would take me hunting with him. Whenever we would get out of the woods he would always ask me what I saw. If one of his buddies was hunting with us and didn't much of anything and I did he would yank my butt out of that tree and put is friend in it on the next hunt. Didn't take me long to learn to keep my mouth shut about deer sightings until after the deer was dead.

My best advice would be after this season to take down your stands, and not replant next summer/fall. Do most of your hunting out of a climber, or a loc'on that isn't very noticable. Hunt natural food sources and the edges of bedding areas. If they aren't going to help you then why help them? You will still be able to kill deer, but you're just gonna have to get to know them a little better.

Chances are they'll lose interest in your spot a lot quicker if there isn't a ready made set up for them.

[buckee]

You know, I hate to say this, but if that was my Dad poaching, I'd be making an anonymous call to the game warden, so he's there to witness the event tomorrow too. Your Dad doesn't have to know it was you who reported him.

I wouldn't put up with it.

One of my good friend's Dad did the same thing on land that I let him hunt on one time, and I heard about it after the fact. I booted him off the property, and he is no longer welcome.

[SourthenILdeerhunter]

You know, I hate to say this, but if that was my Dad poaching, I'd be making an anonymous call to the game warden, so he's there to witness the event tomorrow too. Your Dad doesn't have to know it was you who reported him.

I wouldn't put up with it.

yup id do the same thing.

[wtnhunt]

Hmmm, interesting topic here, gathering that you are saying that these guys intend to hunt with rifles during the ml'er season? Would probably have a tough time not saying something about it if these guys intended to hunt with rifles during the ml'er season if it were me. Too bad a twra officer is not watching this site to get keyed in, who knows maybe there is one who stops in. We know our warden fairly well, think he changed his cell # from the number we had, but bet I could get a message to him to have him call me of course without knowing any details it would probably be a waste of his time.

Far as the property situation, if you are co owner, then you should have a say in who he lets on. If you are not an owner of the property and you don't want to deal with your father inviting his friends and it is your fathers land then maybe you might need to look for your own land. From what I have read of your posts, sounds like you have a pretty substantial size piece of ground to hunt, guess you got to weigh out the good and the bad, that still is not excusing in any way knowingly allowing people to come in and hunt illegally.

To me working towards managing a property would get discouraging if this kind of thing was ongoing, but then again if I had a large tract I did not personally own that I was allowed to hunt I might still work towards managing but just not share everything I know with those who are invited.

[HUNTINGMAN]

Dad or not,if there poaching they need to be cought. He evidently don't care about the money and effort you have put into the area so why should you care if he gets busted for poaching,make the anonymous phone call like mentioned above.

[TN Bucknasty]

Good points WTN and Huntinman. I'm working on a plan to take care of it.

[msman825]

man, very sorry to hear this and congrats on all your hard work. but its your daddy, He see's all the work time and elfert you spend there, I'd try to have a son to farther talk before i envolved the wardens. they got enuff on there plate as is. why is every tom, dick and harry going there to start with????

[JackedUpZ71]

The poaching part would really get my blood boiling too. You're a man though, so do what you feel is right. It would be less of a headache to find yourself a new place to hunt.

[hunter109]

well here in ohio we have a hotline that is just for turning in poachs so we dont like that stuff anymore aroundn here

[ruttinbuc]

Tough situation for sure bucknasty. A one day gun hunter who is taking advantage of all your hard work. Father or not I would be done with managing the property and take all I put into it...out!.

There is no changing people when they get to a certain point of life. Hunting with you 3 times in 26 years says his friends are more important than his son. I'd be taking down every stand on the property but mine before opening weekend and then play dumb. Calling the warden might work, but he knows that you know what he is up to. Put him between a rock and a hard place with his buddies and if he figures out what happened and questions you. Ask him where he has been all this time.

[wtnhunt]

Post this same story over on tndeer.com forums since you are a member over there and let what happens happen. Last I recall they have twra officers checking in there.