The Future of Iowa Hunting - Rumors Flying

[Shoot2Kill]

I have changed my mind.I believe Iowa should have OTC tags for NRs and FREE NRLO tags.Any if you have family land to hunt in Iowa then NRs should be able to hunt the same as a resident.Then in a couple year Iowa will have a crappy deer herd just like Minnesota,Missouri and Wisconsin.Then these threads will stop because no one would want to come to Iowa for deer hunting anyway.

If you would just read what people are saying you would see that the people who replied to you in the last couple pages are not arguing your stance - seriously man. I can't find at all where people want OTC and free NR tags and the same rights as a resident. :thrwrck:

If you can't take being ganged up on by people that have been fairly nice to you (AND AGREED) with some of what you are saying, then do yourself a favor and put some actual thought into your posts instead of coming across as an uniformed selfish jacka**. I pretty much said the same thing as your last sentence back on page 9 or so about NR not wanting to come to IA if the hunting tanks......

 

[TH75]

I have changed my mind.I believe Iowa should have OTC tags for NRs and FREE NRLO tags.Any if you have family land to hunt in Iowa then NRs should be able to hunt the same as a resident.Then in a couple year Iowa will have a crappy deer herd just like Minnesota,Missouri and Wisconsin.Then these threads will stop because no one would want to come to Iowa for deer hunting anyway.

Again this sounds like a response a 2 year old would give. I said nothing about allowing NR hunters more freedoms than they currently have, or even anything about lowering tag prices for NR. I simply think that you blaming NR hunters for Iowa's perceived problems is not genuine. If you really think that NR "buying up all of Iowa's land" is a problem then maybe you should get to the root of that problem....The current residents of Iowa that are choosing to sell their land......How is this the NR fault, would they be buying the land if it was not for sale???? Just a thought.

 

[MN2IAGuy]

I have weighted in on these issues before.... I am always surprised that the Iowa hunters think that they represent all of the Iowa people... I think that the majority of Iowans would rather let more money and NRs come into their state.. lower car insurance because there would be less deer & deer/car collisions and lower crop damage ......Sooner or later the money & NRLOs will get a foot hold.... That's the way the system works.......:way:

 

[sureshot]

I have weighted in on these issues before.... I am always surprised that the Iowa hunters think that they represent all of the Iowa people... I think that the majority of Iowans would rather let more money and NRs come into their state.. lower car insurance because there would be less deer & deer/car collisions and lower crop damage ......Sooner or later the money & NRLOs will get a foot hold.... That's the way the system works.......:way:

From a hunters perspective (resident or non-resident), do you really think this would be a good idea? I'm not going to argue for or against any of you, because I know what my opinion is and i'm not going to change any of yours. I will voice my opinion to the people who have the ability to keep and/or change the regulations.

However, for the sake of quality hunting, is it a good idea to let more non-residents in?

For those of you in Illinois and Kansas, how has hunting changed now that there is basically 'no quota' on non-resident tags? Has the overall quality of the hunting changed? Is it better or worse now than before?

 

[singlecoyote]

[QUOTE there would be less deer & deer/car collisions and lower crop damage ......[/QUOTE]

I don't believe this would be the case. Long term there will be a higher deer population.

More NR tags = more NR interest in purchasing land = larger tracts of land being bought up = land not being hunted by locals during shotgun seasons = higher deer populations.

The deer population is by and large regulated by the shotgun seasons. Less access to land means more deer. Land owners shoot deer too, but not in the higher numbers like if groups hunted the land during both shotgun seasons.

An exception to this would be a land owner who systematically regulates doe harvests on their land. Would this always happen? Easier said than done.

Just some thoughts...

 

[Fishbonker]

Last time I checked all of the land being bought by NR is also available to be bought by residents

This is very true. What goes unmentioned though is the dirt cheap, no pun intended, cost of land in Iowa compared to any east or west coast state.

A motivated nonresident can purchase many hundred more acres of Iowa ground than their own state.

A motivated Iowan can watch land come on the market only to see it sold for inflated prices to nonresidents who may try to change the laws in Iowa so they can hunt every year.

I love all 6,000 of ya. I just don’t love the few that are trying to change the laws for their own selfish purpose.

And last time I checked, there were NR either sex and NR antlerless tags still available. Is it about the hunt or about the bone? Why increase the number of NR tags if they aren't being sold out every year?

How much is coming home to hunt worth? How much are you willing to pay to come back to the old sod to hunt? Does it make a difference if it is an antlerd deer? Then it isn't about hunting with friends and family it is about antlers.

 

[Crockett]

How much is coming home to hunt worth? How much are you willing to pay to come back to the old sod to hunt? Does it make a difference if it is an antlerd deer? Then it isn't about hunting with friends and family it is about antlers.

:way::way::way::way:
The nail(as it were!) has been hit on the head!!

 

[DannyBoy]

'Bonker - I completly understand your view and agree with almost everything you posted. But, I think to many folks (including me), the hunt for "the big one" is as much the hunt as a hunt is for meat, especially at that steep a price!

 

[bloodhoundhandler]

I am on the residents side here because I am an Iowa resident and proud of what we have and want to keep it and to be quite honest do not want to share it. But the one thing I never see on here is anybody ever complaining about the tv shows or magazines making Iowa look like there is a 150 inch buck behind every tree. I'm sorry to break it to all the people who have never hunted here but have read about it or watched all the shows or videos but it's not like that everywhere. I personally think the glory days of whitetail hunting are behind us and if we are not careful it will be like the ringneck pheasant

 

[iatreehugger]

The deer is on the same colision course as the pheasant. But here is the truth, there are a few who get to shoot a lot of pheasants every year because they have access to awesome ground. The same will hold true for the whitetail hunting. There will be a few who will have access to large pieces of ground and think hunting is still awesome. I hope everyone recognizes that we are in the process of watching the WHOLE of hunting change...access to land, relationships with people, a more laid back affair...It is now about money, harvesting (which means making sure I shoot one), and even managing to make sure the deer stay on my property and you don't stand a chance. That isn't the Iowa I fell in love with, but it is the reality of the Iowa and Iowans that I am living with.

 

[TH75]

How much is coming home to hunt worth? How much are you willing to pay to come back to the old sod to hunt? Does it make a difference if it is an antlerd deer? Then it isn't about hunting with friends and family it is about antlers.

This year I am paying $363.88 in license fees alone to harvest a doe. I am "willing" to pay this much for a chance to hunt with my Father and Brother for at least one more year, I'm not sure how much longer I will have this opportunity and because of that the price does not bother me. I have never been a big antler hunter, even when I was a resident. The biggest buck I have ever harvested was a 135" 8 point, and that was when I was a resident. There have been many years when I don't even harvest a deer. Deer hunting to me has always been about the experience and the chance once a year to spend some real quality time with my Father and Brother. I am probably not your typical NR hunter though. I would not expect Iowa to do anything for me as a NR, and if they decided to not allow NR hunting altogether I simply would not hunt deer anymore. I would be sad and disappointed, but I would not begrudge any Iowa resident for trying to do what they think is best for their state. All of that being said I think that if residents really wanted to change the NR landowner situation then they should focus on the landowner portion of the equation. Instead of raising NR tag prices or limiting the number of tags to NR maybe Iowa could pass some very steep property taxes(I mean something like $5000/acre per year) on NR landowners with a portion of this tax going to the DNR. I would think this would be allot more effective than raising tag price's a couple dollars. Just a thought.....

 

[GregBickal]

You don't care about antlers?
You sure look happy holding that rack in your avatar though.

My avatar had pictures of does in previous years This is the first buck ive shot, and unless a bigger one goes by me, probably the last buck i'll shoot. Tender young does taste better

If you don't like paying the $27 for another seasons tag, then tag another one during slug season and pay $13 and save the $14.

I do. I currently have my anysex and doe tag for shotgun season 2 and 2 doe tags for late muzzy, and I usually get 2 more urban management tags for late season antlerless. The first muzzy tag was also $27. Even with the $27 its worth it. I would be willing to pay more if I knew that money would go directly toward buying more public hunting land. I would even be happy with them increasing the hunting license to $100 and use that money to buy more land. Maybe we need a COOP hunting land purchase.

In the early 2000s, MN had the "overpopulation" problem that much of IA has or "did" have - a few years of people shooting 5 a piece took care of that so maybe if IA keeps offering all the antlerless tags it will be a state that reverts to a "lottery" doe tag and you can shoot ONE deer PERIOD all year like what we have here and no more NRs will even want to hunt IA so the tag increases won't even matter will they?

The private land that I hunt, the homeowners let anyone hunt there, which is nice cause I have access, but the herd is definetly down from what It use to be. If I don't shoot the deer someone else will, and the homeowner wants as many harvested as possible. Its a sad reality I agree, but gotta get while the gettin is good cause you never know what will happen tomorrow. Cedar Rapids is encroaching more each day and properties become city limits and no more gun hunting.

 

[G6]

This is very true. What goes unmentioned though is the dirt cheap, no pun intended, cost of land in Iowa compared to any east or west coast state.

A motivated nonresident can purchase many hundred more acres of Iowa ground than their own state.

Yep when your dollar goes twice to 3 times as far here as in Penn. or New York ect. where are you going to buy rec. land, it's a no brainer. Right on the money (pun intended) Bonker!

 

[G6]

The private land that I hunt, the homeowners let anyone hunt there, which is nice cause I have access, but the herd is definetly down from what It use to be. If I don't shoot the deer someone else will, and the homeowner wants as many harvested as possible. Its a sad reality I agree, but gotta get while the gettin is good cause you never know what will happen tomorrow. Cedar Rapids is encroaching more each day and properties become city limits and no more gun hunting.

WHAT? There is a such thing as hunter success rates so if you don't shoot as many then it will leave room for hunter error by others leaving more deer, do you understand that? That's like shooting a basket rack buck because you THINK someone else will kill him anyway. Come on Greg I'm not saying don't shoot your deer but your logic is all wrong and if it was right then there never would be any big deer here.

 

[dedgeez]

If I don't shoot the deer someone else will, and the homeowner wants as many harvested as possible. Its a sad reality I agree, but gotta get while the gettin is good cause you never know what will happen tomorrow.

That is the most selfish attitude, and the most ignorant thing I have heard on here yet (and that's saying alot).

Whatever happened to leading by example? being a role model for other hunters and future generations? Im sure you are setting a great example for your kids(if you have any).

I deeply care about the outdoor lifestyle and passing it on to future generations, so that they can experience what I have. I'm just glad we don't all have the attitude that you do " gotta get mine"

Get a clue man!

 

[GregBickal]

Greg I'm not saying don't shoot your deer but your logic is all wrong and if it was right then there never would be any big deer here.

Its not often someone tells a programmer that his Logic is wrong lol.

Looking at the big picture for this propery... The surrounding properties are overloaded with deer because they are in city limits and noone can gun hunt. By reducing deer on this property those deer move in to fill the vaccum.

If I didnt shoot any deer the population would go up, but then my freezer would be empty.

 

[GregBickal]

That is the most selfish attitude, and the most ignorant thing I have heard on here yet (and that's saying alot).

Whatever happened to leading by example? being a role model for other hunters and future generations? Im sure you are setting a great example for your kids(if you have any).

I deeply care about the outdoor lifestyle and passing it on to future generations, so that they can experience what I have. I'm just glad we don't all have the attitude that you do " gotta get mine"

Before you go critizing my attitude and ethics, you need to understand the context to which I am referring and get the whole picture.
You cant pass on the outdoor lifestyle on a property that will most likely be a subdivision in a few short years.

I am hunting this property and not hunting public hunting ground for exactly the reason you describe. Trying to give people who don't have access to private ground a better chance at public hunting.

And as for my Daughter, I am setting a great example, as we dont eat beef anymore and the only red meat we eat is deer. Free range and alot healtier on our ecosystem than cows.

Airborne to you too!

 

[G6]

Its not often someone tells a programmer that his Logic is wrong lol.

Just remember that computers are not capable of logic/common sense when you're programing them.

 

[Scooter1]

Ok come on guys
Ive patiently listened to all of your opinions, some I agree with and others not. Heres how I see it. Branstad may or may not allow for more NR tags. I personally dont want that to happen. Call me selfish but I dont want to see Iowa land boutht up by NRs. But I cant stop that. The state needs more money and he can exploit the fact that Iowa is a whitetail destination. If u dont want that to happen let the state people know- we all have a voice.
Reguardless of what happens I will still be in the woods because I am a hunter. If the deer herd in Iowa is deconditioned by an influx of NR buyers and hunters, the deer I do take will be that much more fulfilling. For me its about the hunt, the time in the woods with no traffic or bills or phones or whatever.

 

[Hardwood11]

This is very true. What goes unmentioned though is the dirt cheap, no pun intended, cost of land in Iowa compared to any east or west coast state.

A motivated nonresident can purchase many hundred more acres of Iowa ground than their own state.

I love all 6,000 of ya. I just don’t love the few that are trying to change the laws for their own selfish purpose.

And last time I checked, there were NR either sex and NR antlerless tags still available. Is it about the hunt or about the bone? Why increase the number of NR tags if they aren't being sold out every year?

Good point...That is a big factor, lower prices in Iowa compared to their home state. The tag sitation does not always matter, as the Lakosky's have several thousand acres some purchased by celebrities. They look at as cheap.

Personally, I do not want them to offer tags over the counter, I'd like to see a limit, but I would like to see them bring back archery doe tags. Some of us ethical hunters would not abuse this, and if someone is caught shooting a buck on a doe tag, then they should be banned for life from all hunting in Iowa!!