How do you deal with property line hunters?

My scenario: Scouting for new stand setups and making sure the property line was well marked with signs I noticed a new hang-on stand setup on the property line on the corner of a corn field. My property is the woods surrounding the cornfield. The stand is on the woods edge and positioned so it faces into the corner (the corner is corn into the woods, not woods into the corn). There is a large oak tree inside the woods and is really a pretty good choice for a stand setup. I am giving the op the benefit of the doubt that they are setup on their property, however the angle degree of area that they would be hunting on their property would be some where 90 degrees, over the cornfield. Any suggestions on how to best handle the scenario? Leave a note? I do not know the op. and I am not really interested in getting into any type of conflict as there are other areas to hunt on the property. I would just like to have the reassurance that the hunter will be respectful and not push the boundaries.

What would you do?

drop some trees to build a cover wall on your side of the line or plant a plot screen if at all possible.

I would also find out who they are talk to them to let them know you will be hunting the other side. Be polite but let them know you will stick to your property and expect them to stick on theirs to hunt. Th exception might be tracking a deer but better to have this worked out ahead of time for both of you.

Just knowing you will be hunting it might keep them "honest" and on their side of the fence line. Good luck, these situations can turn bad but don't have to....

What 76 said first. If he is a butt put up on old trail cam pointing right at his stand up as high as you can get it. I would use one that doesn't work. He doesn't know it doesn't work. You could also put up some signs facing his stand if you cant reach him. Put them up high.

Put out a mineral lick by the property line then call a CO when he hunts over it lol

As deer hunting quality continues to fall due to Prop 2.0 Agressive Slaughter our deer #'s..... This is going to be a more common occurance>>>> Property line hunting on properties that have been taken care of and are still excellent hunting.

We approach this twofold....

1) We leave a note on the stand with a phone # to call for discussion of the stand placement. When making that request, we have had 100% participation in a returned call. Place the note in a zip lock bag and secure it to the stand..... They will find it.

2) when they call you back, thank them for doing such. Start off on the right foot. Assure them you want to have a good experience as they want too during hunting. We make sure then to go over our list of "rules" ie, "don't shoot on to our property", "don't track a deer on us without us with them".... Etc, Etc....

Then we ask them what their rules for us are.... And we listen to what they need. It usually ends up in a good conversation most of the time.... And instils accountability. I ALWAYS end the conversation with thanking them again as we know they are good people and we don't want them snagged in prosecution since we have a zero tolerance policy.

Again.... 95% of the time it ends up good..... And the 5% of the time it doesn't .... We prosecute and they leave, but knew they had it coming from the accountability I hold them and myself to from our very first conversation.

If you want to protect your property.... You cannot be passive..... You will get run over, and more and more will come to run you over. Being assertive to discussion before there is trouble is a good move. Just remember the saying "a good fence makes a good neighbor".... And sometimes the "fence" is simply a conversation.

One more thing.... I prefer face to face conversations with these people.... It "sticks" better.

Hope this helps....

Hunting continues to get better and better on my farm ... have a good relationship with the neighboring landowners and know most of the guys who hunt those properties.

Treestands on the property lines used to bother me but over time I got used to it. Had a couple instances where deer shot just across on their side came to my side to die and in each case I got a phone call asking permission.

I make it a point to introduce myself to everyone I see and exchange phone numbers. So far have had zero issue with guys that have permission ....

Stands on the property lines is just part of it.

if its not on your property, suck it up and deal with it. No law is broken. Nothing you can do. Let your presence be known

Exactly......
And trespassing to place a note on some else's stand on there OWN property is way out of bounds!!! The things some do when they believe there above the law never ends.....SMH

Like s_wilk said leave your number & request a call. Don't go at it as all line hunters are a-holes but give him the chance that if he wants the permission to retrieve a lost deer he will have to keep his hunt on his property. Tell him you have cameras up & you will prosecute if he does not heed your warning.

I agree with Scarlet Dew, Leave the note, it allows the neighbor to contact you.

Brew, what happens when you leave a note for the neighbor on YOUR property? Is he trespassing if he finds it?

I personally don't hunt property lines(determined by the weapon used), if I can shoot across the property line then I am too close. I expect the same from my neighbors.

What I do allow and encourage is that if a neighbor shoots a deer and it comes on my property...... come and get the deer then call me. I don't want a deer to go to waste because of spoilage or coyotes while you are trying to contact me. I catch you on my property without a blood trail you will be prosecuted!

Joe... Yes he is trespassing....But if you cross property lines to place a note in another man stand your TRESPASSING.... Plain and simple.... That was my point, guess I didn't make that clear.

I also agree with your point on loss Deer!!

I actually changed service providers to ensure I had good coverage on my farm....and I always have my phone on me no matter where I am. I prefer the call before retrieval.

Not trying to be above the law....... and every last note I have left since the early 1980's till present day, has lead to a good initial conversation. Not once have I ever had someone even hint that they would prosecute for trying to have/initiate a good conversation......... just like I never had a farmer try to prosecute me for trespassing for walking up to his tractor when out in his field as I ask for permission to hunt or talk with him, or leave a note for a landowner to call me on his house door on his property to see if I can go fishing on his pond....

Most people know a good person ....... from an "angry at the world" dumb azz that is just about stirring up s h i t in an effort to "keep the planets aligned".

Been a rough few weeks for you hasn't it Brew.... LOL!!!

Nope just stating the facts...Trespasser is a Trespasser....sorry if that hits home for you and your type! And believe it or not even good people need to follow the law... :rolleyes:

Are you trying to call someone a dumb azz DEW?? Our are you just being your usual attacking self centered self? Maybe you need to go shave in mirror and practice your signature line...lol

I can tell you that for the most part I hunt on the property edges since deer typically prefer the edge habitat. We leave the middle of the property as a sanctuary. The biggest thing is we have hunting rights on all the adjacent lands and most don't have anyone else hunting on them.

Are you two really this immature? Find a new forum.

No John.........some are just standing up to crap that goes on and goes on.... and confront it for EXACTLY what it is. In this case ...Brew knows that "Trespassing" would not even be considered at a prosecution level for leaving a note.......BUT.......he wants to smear others good reputations for his own entertainment and own personal egotistical slanderous purposes.......his "Trademark".

Some don't passively bury our heads and just go to other Forums...... we confront Troll's like that.......we single them out, isolate them, and put good logic behind our confrontation of them so that others getting into hunting know what not to be like. As more do this confronting .........those types like Brew get exposed for who they really are.

Sorry if you see that as "immaturity".......

Sorry you see it that way John....just calling out Trespassers for what they are...Some like Dew believe there above the law and have there own rights to do at will and expect others to follow there self set rules by leaving notes to confront folks on how to Hunt on there OWN property. People of that nature need exposed for what they really are in the Hunting world...Iam better then you mentally and your going to do as I say type that's not needed in the hunting world....SMH

Just calling a spade a spade some don't turn the Heads to these types ....John sorry if you see it different.

After reading Indiana's code, it would appear entering someone's property to leave a note would not be trespassing unless:

1. They crossed a fence
2. There are clearly marked "No trespassing" signs ("iffy call")
3. They were verbally told not to enter the property, before-hand

http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/incode/35/43/2/35-43-2-2

I'm not a lawyer, but it seems pretty clear.

Some states have "with unlawful intent" in their code as well.

This is like the "Hole Poacher" episode all over again. Some people just lack etiquette! The guy who just walks right in to the spot you already have and hangs his stand.

Back to the original post.....

If the stand is on your property, I would remove it and leave a note telling them where they could find it.

If the stand is on their property, I would leave things "as is" and put up a game camera just before the season starts and see what happens.

In the meantime, if you know the landowners I would talk to them about how you want them to recover any deer that they may shoot that runs onto your property. If that means they should call you and you will help them with the recovery, then so be it. I would offer them the same courtesy that you request.

What I wouldn't do is start a war over something that may not become an issue. If they shoot on their side of the line, what can you really say? If they cross the line, you'll have evidence of them doing so and I would drop the legal hammer on them @ that time.

YEP!!

We have this issue a lot on the farm I hunt and basically just have to live with it. Anyone could sit right on their property line, maybe even leaning against the fence post and that's their right, can't really take umbrage with it unless rounds start coming your way (which we all hope our blaze orange, general etiquette and common sense prevent). I'd say by far the major problem I have had with it is not actually trespassing, but being surrounded by ‘brown and down’ hunters, which, again, is perfectly within their rights, it just sucks that every time I let a six pointer walk by, I hear a bang when he crosses the property line. That's a whole other topic I'm sure people get worked up about debating too, so, anywho...I don't see a problem with leaving a note if it isn't confrontational in tone. Of course, it’d be ridiculous to go on someone else’s property to leave them a note ranting about your worries they are going to come on to yours, but shouldn’t be a problem with a friendly, “Hey, saw your stand just wanted to let you know where mine is from yours so we stay safe and leave my number in case you need to come over to retrieve a deer. (insert diagram and phone number). Good luck.” I don’t think any LEO is going to write you up for “trespassing” for that either.

someone left me a note said I was tresspassing and if I sat in MY stand again I was going to get pulled out and whipped I read it went back to the House got a ChainSaw Cut the tree down with the stand and left my own note never had a problem after that ONE incident

Note to self> Don't tick off THROBAK:)

Lol, you mean Thro-down!

Assuming the stand is NOT on your property, why not leave the note just on your side of the fence facing their stand for them to see?

Would you want someone stomping around your stand then climbing in to leave a note for you for you to call them to "review the rules"?

A trespassing charge seems very unlikely if you did step over to leave the note, but the golden rule seems to apply here.

Good communication is the key here. Doing exactly what you expect/hope they don't do is not the way to open the dialogue.

I have this exact scenario on the ground that I own. I bought the ground in the fall of 2008 and it has been a battle with neighbors ever since. On any given fall I can count 6 to 10 tree stands at 10 yards or less from the property lines, most facing into my property. The "fence sitters" as I call them drive me nuts.

My "solution" was first to post my entire property lines. I now use the orange plastic signs that slide over a T post. I have them located such that if you stand anywhere on the property perimeter you cannot not see at least one of these signs ... and generally you will see 2 or more. Every sign has my cell phone number on it as well. I check them every spring before crops go in and every fall right before gun season opens as that is when the fence sitter issue happens around my property.

What I do for every stand that I find sitting around 10 yards or less from my property line is I make a sign of some sort. I've used 2x2 posts with plywood attached (about 24"x24"), I've used old election type of signs, etc. I then use sharpie or print something out in bold stating that this is private property and that I basically have a zero tolerance policy when it comes to trespassing or shooting deer off of my ground. I put on there that if you need to track a deer onto my ground to call my cell phone number (listed on the sign) and we can arrange for that. I put these signs on my side of the property line (very close to the line) and face it right at their stand. They cannot hunt that stand and not see the sign.

For me this has worked pretty well. One neighbor called me up the first year after seeing the sign, we had a nice conversation, he actually moved his stand about 10 yards deeper and turned the way it faced, and hunts it still to this day. He has called me one time to track a deer on my land. I had another neighbor who he and I agree to disagree on the topic of shooting a deer across the property line and to date he has not done so that I know of, but it is possible that he has and I have not caught him. I have another neighbor that our conversations have gotten very ugly and he has flat told me that he will shoot whatever and walk where ever he wants to and every year he seems to re-position a couple stands right on the property line ... needless to say I will have him arrested the first time that I catch him. I have yet another neighbor who is super nice and he will stop by and talk hunting, tip me off to what he is seeing, and always leaves with a "I'll call you if I need to track something".

It's a shame anybody has to worry about crap like this..

I have some of these scenarios as well. At the end of the day there's a difference between legal and ethical. I would try the note in a respectable manner taking the "ensure we are hunting safely" approach. I'd make it clear they can and are expected to contact me prior to retrieving a wounded animal and ensure them I'd help however possible to retrieve said animal. (At least until trust is established and earned) lastly if I deemed it necessary I'd probably hang a old obsolete stand very close to this proximity so they always had to wonder whether or not I would be there or have recently been there. I'd honestly have no intention of ever hunting it. Definitely post property lines well.

I have had a bad experience once with the opposite point of view.

I got permission to hunt land that I had lived on for over 10 years, so very familiar with the area and neighbors.

The land was completely unmarked but I had maps from the assessor's office along with my permission letter (signed).

Land owner on adjacent property came by during a hunt and claimed I was on his property - no proof, just a claim. We went over the map, I showed him the permission letter, My sister even babysat his kids a few years earlier... so he knew me sort of. He claimed I was 15 feet on is property. I asked if I could hunt there that year and then I'd move the stand.. I also planted a small food plot, 1/4 acre. He said no. So I moved, 15 feet away from the original stand on property he admitted was the owner in which I had permission. he didn't like that, so he would walk out there leaving garbage and pop cans, beer can all around my stand. Some land owner!! I eventually left after another season, never to return.

I had property maps from the city showing natural terrain - it really was impossible to tell, but I relented. 15 feet over an 80 acre area.

This guy just didn't like hunters. Over the years he purchased that land, claimed he loved wildlife, then cut down every tree and mowed all the natural habitat down to a nub, planted grass over 10 acres.

Some animal lover, right? I asked around and all the other neighbors knew him as an old crotchety... well, you get it.

I vote for communication and ethical hunting. Be nice, that is the name of the game.