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3 StatesFirearms hunter pressure is a typically the first question asked from potential applicants. We recognize what it takes for a good hunt, firearms season or other. We also do not just cater to firearms hunter, we monitor membership levels for a land profile supporting mix of archery whitetail hunters, upland and waterfowl. The idea is never to have too many of any one type of hunter, yet have more than one hunter pay for the same land keeping costs down for all. No one wants to spend time scouting or hunt on land where numerous firearms hunters have been processed through assembly line fashion rotated through stands positioned between feeders and groomed food plots. The firearms hunts we offer is for the individual hunter on un-pressured land. The land we lease is for its whitetail deer attracting habitat and in those regions of each state with a trophy deer hunting history of production that returns the value for the cost of the lease. We will get the firearms deer hunter to the right habitat in the right region of the state and once he is there he employs his own deer hunting style to include pre season deer scouting. He may also hunt each state he has tags and all for the one cost, this is inclusive of firearms season and all other deer hunting seasons.
PressureFirearms hunter pressure is reflected in this chart of the number of hunters that made at least one day's reservations during the modern gun season in all three states the last several year.
The Missouri deer hunter numbers are highest compared to Iowa and Kansas as the Missouri deer tags are lower cost and over-the-counter purchase. The incidental or one weekend a year whitetail deer hunters will take advantage of this season for opening weekend where on Saturday they are all buck hunters and by noon on Sunday they will settle for the first doe that comes by. On opening week Monday of the firearms season the land is vacant and motels rooms empty. While the deer hunter numbers above reflect actual hunting reservations made they do not necessarily reflect the total number of whitetail deer hunters. Missouri being the case in point on opening weekend when the weather is adverse many will not show in the field. To gauge the number of dedicated deer hunters that maximize their field time time look to the Kansas or Iowa accounting. These are the deer hunters that spend as much time as possible throughout the entire season in the woods in pursuit of their trophy whitetail. Time spent is not just hunting, these hunters will do their homework before hand and have an idea of where they want to hunt. The Kansas hunters for example in 2003 had 126,000+ acres to hunt allowing the 92 hunters over 1,300 acres available to each if all had hunted the same day (Kansas deer leases). Plenty of room for all and that is how the Association is managed. |
