Nonresident deer license increase proposed

[Daver]

Why is it that certain people, especially non-residents, use this forum to criticize everything from deer drives and party hunting to the drunken Iowa hicks hunting in gangs? Although it is not my cup of tea, I do not look down my nose at others when they get together in a group and hunt. Some people actually hunt deer to gather meat, not everyone is obsessed with rack size.

If this states deer management is so poor then stay in your home state and do your griping there! How can we be so bad here and yet so many people want to come here and hunt? ( Yes, there are abusers and jerks to be found here, but there is that everywhere and I don't think that defines everyone.) Oh, I forgot, you bought some land here and now we need to change our laws to suit you.

True sportsmen who like to hunt in Iowa and can appreciate our state for what it is, you are welcome here IMO. Whining, selfish, "I want what I want" jerks who want to change the laws in states they don't live in, take it elsewhere!

 

[tracker]

I being a resident prefer to use a bow, but that is a choice.I also have the LUXURY to be able to get all the time it takes to hunt with a bow.

Alot of people that hunt in these shotgun groups are farmers.They all get together to hunt after the busy months of harvesting.Perhaps some of these non residents are unaware that the crops that grow in the fields are actually the income for these farmers, and they unfortunately can't take two weeks offf, or call in sick to have someone else take their shift for them while they go off deer hunting.All the farmers are busy at that time.The longer the crop stays in the field, the better chance of losing it to falling on the ground, rot, or simply by being eaten by nature. So the only time they have to hunt is in December, after the crop is out and the ground has been turned over, or ripped up.

You also have to look at it as income they never receive.

If you are a non res, who do you think feeds these animals all year??I don't see the DNR runnning around with buckets of corn dumping them on the ground for wildlife to eat.

Have you ever watched a turkey or pheasant walk down a corn or bean row after a first planting and pick the seed right out of the ground?Once the seed leaves the ground and enters their stomach that plant is lost for the season.No it's not going to be just half an ear of corn or just 3 pods on the bean stalk, it's completly gone,no crop-----no income.So after you lose some seeding the spring, your hay is munched up all summer, then in the fall your fields turn into an all-you-can-eat-smorgusboard, I'd say you've invested enough money in wildlife habitat to earn yourself a free hunting tag or two.Heck, they almost qualify for a game farm, they supply food and refuge, so who is to say what type of method they use to fill their tags??Their idea of management is to get the herd out of their pockets.

So the next time you complain about the people that harvest with shotguns and their group hunting, remember who they are.Why don't you bring this up to them when you are asking permission to hunt their ground.By the way, also tell them that you're going to shoot the big buck only, you don't want to spend the money to put a doe on your wall.I bet they'll understand.

 

[bowmaker]

I know that this is off the original topic of the post but I wonder what makes some "bow hunters and true sportsmen" so holier than thou? I can make a very good argument that bow hunters are not hunters but only people who sneak arround the woods disguising themselves as trees in order to ambush deer when they come out to peacefully feed in the evening. They climb up in trees to take unfair advantage of the deer's nature not to look up for danger. Then they use high tech mechanical aboratation one step removed from a crossbow called compound bows and shoot carbon arrows with mechanical broadheads because they are easier to use than a real bow and wooden arrows and supposedley more deadly.

My point is that we are all deer hunters no matter how we legally do it. Why should I have the right to say my method is the most sportsman like and should be the only way allowed. If hunters who get together to hunt deer in a group and enjoy themselves and the outdoors in a legal way are denegrated because of their choosen method we all loose. There is no state that I know who says that deer drives are illegal and many even allow running deer with dogs. Why don't we start a campain to have these states do away with these methods? Who cares, we don't live there?

I hunt deer with everything that is legal, bows, muzzle loaders, and shotguns and enjoy them all for different reasons. I personally enjoy the family group hunts because that is about the only time some of us get to spend that much quality time together. We talk and laugh and kid each other and remember those who are gone. I like that! Our children have grown up this way. Because the kids are adults now we have started only shooting our own deer and rotating between drivers and sitters so everyone gets a fair chance. If a person wants a throphy he or she lets every thing else go just like bow hunters. If they want meat for the freezer they shoot something just like bow hunters.

The last thing is how many of the 135,000 deer killed wouldn't be if we outlawed party hunting and drives. I think that would drive a lot of people away from the sport. Then our herd numbers would skyrocket and the buck/doe ratio would go to hell and so would our deer hunting, or is that what we want so that those of us who are left can take 25 or 30 deer each year to try to keep pace with reproduction. Every hunter in Iowa has the right to enjoy deer hunting in what ever manner that is legal, safe, and ethical and I believe that drives are ethical.

I'm sorry but I get incensed when a group takes the moral high road and says others are stuck in the dark ages because they like other things than those approved by the choosen. That is why the Pilgrims came here and why there was a Revoultionary War, and why we fought every World War. Please think about it!

 

[Guest]

I think alot of these folk don't like drive hunting cause they think someone is going to shoot 'their' deer that they didn't get bowhunting. If that is the case, we better take the keys from people who drive those 4-wheeled contraptions called cars, who mercilessly slaughter our deer without a license. I am a bowhunter, and I don't necessarily like drive hunting. But I see no shortage of good bucks every year, and neither do the other bowhunters I talk to. So take a chill pill, and hunt your own state where they don't allow drive hunting, but allow rifle hunting during the rut....and where a trophy is a 90" eight pointer.

 

[Benny]

I have bow hunted in neighboring states for over 15 years. I was fortunate enough to draw a non-resident archery tag in 2001. I never harvested a deer that year, but it was the most quality hunting experience I had ever had. Why did I chose to come to Iowa? Bottom line: It was because I was seeking a quality hunting experience. Why does Iowa have a quality hunting experience? In my opnion it is from several factors. Those are; 1.) Delayed firearms season 2.) No rifle hunting 3.) Low hunter density/sqaure mile 4.) Low road density/sqaure mile and 5) Capping the # of non-resident hunters.

Would adding an additional 8,000 non-residents hurt Iowa deer hunting opportunities? Probably.

The first problem would be an increase in leasing of additional large tracts of land from "wealthy hunters" essentially cutting off access to the average middle class sportsman (both resident and non-resident). The second problem would be an increase in recreational user conflicts on public lands and the third thing would be a deteriotation in the quality of the hunting experience. Why do I say this? I have seen it first hand in MN and WI. A great example is in Buffalo County, WI, which is idenftical to NE Iowa. It harbors monster bucks, but unless you are direct offspring of someone who owns land or unless you can afford to lease a chunk of land for 5,000-7.500 per year, good luck gaining access.

There is an old saying that really applies to this issue: "If it aint broke, don't fix it". Leave the non-residents quota where it is at.