Knock Now – Succeed Later (part 1)

…access is an issue that faces most sportsmen and outdoor-women…with about 97% of the state in private ownership, some great hunting and fishing opportunities are on land “someone else owns“…in fact, there are still some amazing places in Nebraska you can gain access to - just by asking…and late winter is a good time to get out and knock on some doors…

…in my experience, there are several things that can help considerably in gaining the chance to hunt or fish on private land…here are a few:

…Be a Guest!…first and foremost, you should always remember that you are asking somebody to allow you to be a guest on their property – which is an extension of their home…you don’t let just anybody into your house (I hope!), so it should be understandable that most landowners are somewhat selective on who they allow to hunt or fish…(despite what you might hear, this is actually a good thing – do you really want to spend lots of time and effort hunting an area that everyone else already does?)…

…First Impressions! – landowners, upon meeting you for the first time, are asked to make a judgment call about you…they must decide if you are a trustworthy individual and will respect them and their place – so you need to present yourself as just that – mature & responsible…you can help do this by dressing properly, making the request at an appropriate time and just plain being respectful…

…Get off the Beaten Path! - generally speaking, the further away from a town the land is, the less others have asked to gain permission & the more likely they are to grant you access…the larger the town, the further away you might have to get away from it – this is especially true of eastern Nebraska and some of our better known ‘get-away’ towns…

…Fear No Rejection! – Ask enough folks if you can hunt/fish and eventually you will be told ‘No‘ (sometimes sooner than later)…this isn’t necessarily fun, but what have you actually lost in the process? – a few minutes?…you arrived with nothing to lose & are leaving with nothing lost…having knocked on doors in several states, I am still impressed at how politely I have been turned down here in Nebraska – in fact, on more than one occasion the person turning me down pointed me in the right direction…

…Always Have a Good Map! – PLAT/TAM Books are worth their price…available for purchase from many county offices, they contain maps that show ownership (PLAT) & occupancy (TAM) – so you can significantly cut-down the search time for your next honey-hole…find a piece of land that looks like nature heaven – then go to the book to find out who owns it and where they live…also, the more you know about property boundaries of the area you are interested in, the more prepared you are to ask about it – and better you look to the landowner…

…Thank Them! - regardless of whether or not they let you on their place, be sure to thank them for their time – it’s back to that respect thing…if you do get access, stop by afterwards (when your done fishing/hunting) and let them know how you did – and thank them again…I am amazed at how many hunters/anglers don’t go talk to the landowner after they are done – yet landowners I know are always curious to see how I have fared…

…To Give or Not to Give?! – it has long been advised that successful hunters and anglers offer part of their take to a landowner to help say ‘thank you‘…to be honest with you, I have pretty well quit doing this – why?…because over all the years I have done this, the offer has been declined 99.9%  of the time - even when it was ‘oven-ready‘…in comparison, no one has ever declined my wife’s homemade bread…

…more to it than listed here – but we’ll save that for another time…

hershy