Anyone give up leasing for going on hunts?

[tommy1005]

We got tired of all the bs that goes along with dealing with landowners a couple years ago. Did mule deer and pronghorn one year, elk last year, bear this past spring and Africa next summer. My family also has some land in north Texas so we have that to go to and shoot pigs and maybe a deer or 2.

We were able to get a girl on her first buck and didn’t have to stress about waiting for a buck that was old enough, we could just take the first buck she liked.

[txpitdog]

I’d like to find a lease that I could take my kids to, where we could build those memories of sitting around the fire, talking about the day’s work or the next day’s hunt, turning in early to get started early, or staying up late just to enjoy ourselves. I’d love to find a place where we’d be on it long enough to get to know the other families and where folks help each other out. Haven’t been able to find a place like that, so we go on weekend hunts, or day trips. We mix it up, and enjoy the time we spend together. I still wish I could find a place that offered the camp experience, but some things just ain’t in the cards.


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[RiverRat1]

This is the delimma. I think lease is best for the money as I get about 25 days a year that I see as a vacation as opposed to a few days. I suppose the lease is best bang for the buck.

Most people spend a lot more on a lease then they know.

Lease fee +/-2,500
feed $500
place to stay? $500-$2,000
All the extras you never remember buying for camp like TP, paper towels. plates, plastic wear, water etc.
Electric?
New feeder once every other year +/- $250 (if feeder is 500)
Replace a stand every 3 years +/- $300 (if stand is 900)

Clearing shooting lanes means you need a chainsaw, chainsaw chain etc...
How much do you spend on lease work weekend?

My guess is for MOST people the lease adds up to $4-6k per year. So it comes down to a couple choices.

1. Do you like to work at the lease?
2. What you want to shoot. If you want to be able to shoot what ever walks out without worrying if you can pay for it then stay on a lease.

If you don't like or have time for the work and are happy with just a decent buck or does/hogs you could go on 6-10 paid hunts in Texas..That's 18-30 days of hunting.

[Bear Charge]

I have a lease and own. Lease is $370 a year but has been in the family for 37 years. LO hasn't ever changed the price on the 500 acres. I guess he likes us.

[Still Hunter]

Getting older, love the lease but running out of time to get in the elk hunts, considering just doing a week in one state and a week in the next state hunting elk. Really thinking about it.Mountains stole my soul and I killed so many deer I just don’t get that excited with the white tail deer. Listening to bull elk bugle or getting in a frenzy beats anything I ever experienced. I figure six to seven more years being strong and fit enough to draw a bow and trek in the mountains after elk. After that, back on the lease to just enjoy the fellowship around the fire with friends.

[Dandy123]

I do both but I mainly continue our hunting lease to spend time with my old man and a couple other good buddies. Even though I have plenty of places to hunt I still throw my money in each year. Then I go on one trip out of state a year usually Texas one year and colorado or Wyoming the following. I don't make a ton of money but I make sure I keep enough hid from my wife to do the things i want come fall.

[eastxhunter]

Most people spend a lot more on a lease then they know.

Lease fee +/-2,500
feed $500
place to stay? $500-$2,000
All the extras you never remember buying for camp like TP, paper towels. plates, plastic wear, water etc.
Electric?
New feeder once every other year +/- $250 (if feeder is 500)
Replace a stand every 3 years +/- $300 (if stand is 900)

Clearing shooting lanes means you need a chainsaw, chainsaw chain etc...
How much do you spend on lease work weekend?

My guess is for MOST people the lease adds up to $4-6k per year. So it comes down to a couple choices.

1. Do you like to work at the lease?
2. What you want to shoot. If you want to be able to shoot what ever walks out without worrying if you can pay for it then stay on a lease.

If you don't like or have time for the work and are happy with just a decent buck or does/hogs you could go on 6-10 paid hunts in Texas..That's 18-30 days of hunting.

Good way to look at it . I’ve pondered this question myself the last couple of years

[Hoss163]

If you only have so many days to hunt out of the year then a couple of 3 r 4 day hunts are probably the way to go unless you can find a pretty cheap lease which are definitely hard to find now days ! But if your able to go at least every other weekend and enjoy just hanging out at the lease then the lease route is the way to go !!

[DuckDogTrainer]

No deer leases for me in the near future. I'd rather hunt out of state. It is cheaper and much more of an adventure. This year it is Wyoming Pronghorn and Kansas Whitetail for less than I spent on corn for the feeders last year! These trips give me something to look forward to without having to do all of the work a lease requires.

[Chad74]

Id rather make my memories sitting around the fire eating a steak drinking a beer, watching college football, sittin in a blind on a hunt , filling feeders, fixin pens and blinds, spending time with my grandson. Than on a hunt most likely without friends for 5 days.

This ^^^
I could careless about the “killing”, I let my son do all that. I enjoy getting out of the concrete jungle every weekend and relaxing. Riding fence rows till 2AM drinking and telling stories. To me that is priceless.

[tex4k]

Gave up leasing a good many years ago, got burned one to many times. Just a hunting bum now days.