Hunting near Nashville? (lawyer, buy, taxes)

[akm4]

Someone please fill me in on this. I'm told there's not as much public land on which to hunt in TN as other states, so you need written permission from land owners. Is there a website or do you just need to meet someone? Yikes! There must be an easier way.

[alleycat]

Originally Posted by akm4

Someone please fill me in on this. I'm told there's not as much public land on which to hunt in TN as other states, so you need written permission from land owners. Is there a website or do you just need to meet someone? Yikes! There must be an easier way.

Well, there are several public lands and scheduled hunts, however, it's not the best hunting.

And yes, you're suppose to get written permission. The "written" part is often ignored, but most people at least get permission.

There are clubs you can join. I don't know a lot about them. And you can advertise in the paper for land to hunt on; I see that done every year.

Are you mainly talking about deer hunting, or hunting in general?

[akm4]

Thanks for the quick response! My nephew from northern CA is here and he's used to having tons of land on which to hunt. It's a bit tougher here. As for what kind of hunting, he's up for anything. Just wants to get out there.

[alleycat]

Who old is he? The TWRA had some youth hunts, I believe.

There is also dove hunts around Labor Day; these are private farms where someone charges a fee to hunt. And there are some hunting farms in middle Tennesssee, primarily for bird hunting.

Deer hunting is a bit stickier. People are protective of prime deer hunting locations. Still, you can probably talk to people and find something.

Duck and geese hunting can also be difficult. I used to know a lot of duck hunters who hunted at the Kentucky Lake and Land Between the Lake areas. There's a drawing for the the blind locations every year. If you're friends with some of these folks you can get an invitation. If not, well, you might be out of luck.

There MIGHT be public hunting on Land Between the Lakes. I'm just not sure.

[shadowwalker]

Good luck on finding a place to hunt on someone's land. I quit asking on landowner number 91 yes. I asked 91 one landowners for permission. I came dressed in clean levi's, clean shirt, ect. My pickup washed and I was polite. I offered to share the game with them. I had answers ranging from "I don't know you. To. You need to git off ma land, NOW!!!" This state sucks for trying to hunt. I also came from one with millions of public acres.

[alleycat]

Originally Posted by shadowwalker

Good luck on finding a place to hunt on someone's land. I quit asking on landowner number 91 yes. I asked 91 one landowners for permission. I came dressed in clean levi's, clean shirt, ect. My pickup washed and I was polite. I offered to share the game with them. I had answers ranging from "I don't know you. To. You need to git off ma land, NOW!!!" This state sucks for trying to hunt. I also came from one with millions of public acres.

I'm sorry your experience has been so bad.

Let me offer a prospective from the other side, from someone who has to deal with this issue. Someone owns land, they maintain it, they pay taxes on it . . . then someone comes to ask if they can hunt on it. Probably not the first, or the tenth. You don't know this person, and there's plenty of those you do know who have asked. What do you do?

Then there's the liability issue. Yes, you can have someone sign a form saying you won't hold the landowner responsible if something happens. However, what do you think is going to happen if some kid falls out of a deer stand and breaks his neck . . . and then a lawyer comes to suggest a nice, little lawsuit. The boy's family are neither family or friends; they probably won't have many qualms about doing it.

There is still a lot of good hunting in Tennessee. But the days where you could just wander out and find someplace to hunt is probably gone in most areas. This isn't Montana or out west with vast open ranges. Most of the land is privately owned and used by the folks living here.

Again, I'm sorry your experiences have been bad. I wish I knew something to suggest to you, but other than the things I've already posted, I can't help much. You could buy some property yourself . . . and then you could turn down people who ask to hunt! (I'm just teasing a little on that last part.)

[shadowwalker]

I too have owned large amounts of land and know what it is like to pay taxes, payments, ect. Then have people ask to hunt. Nope, I do own land here,not alot but enough. I have neighbors that shoot anything that moves so animals on our land is few and far between. Nope I will pay this place off, we got about 4 years and 5 months left. Then we sell and go back home.

[alleycat]

Have a safe and happy trip.

[shadowwalker]

You can't imagine how happy it will be.

[alleycat]

Originally Posted by shadowwalker

You can't imagine how happy it will be.

I might. I've lived in a couple of places I didn't enjoy, so it felt good to me to get "back home".

Is that some financial reason why you're waiting? It's an easy transaction to sell and pay off what you owe at the same time. The market for selling is good now in most areas.