Well, I have decided to be very flexible about location because I'm retired and can be away from the house for several days no problem. I'm not expecting to have landowners lining up so that we can pick and choose, so the first thing that is reasonable I'll offer to the group. Of course, I'll be the one determining what is reasonable.

Well, if we could focus efforts on a < 3-4 hr. radius to the metromess, I think it would have a higher level of interest to the majority of us. I'd even be willing to focus some effort on westward counties if needed.

I will be honest, and take my advice for the value that you have invested in it, but doesn't seem like enough information to put together a solid group.

DQ has laid out a few basic ground rules and postoak has a few in the OP, but since every lease is different, it might help to layout some basic ground rules and expectations from the organizer, who I assume will become the lease boss.

Some items that would make it or break it for me would be:

-general location
-bow hunting and/or rifle hunting
-open stands for bow and rifle or just rifle (DQ already hit on these)
-price
-year around access
-work weekends
-typical management plans, non-managed, honor system, score system, age system, etc
-guest/kids (addressed in OP)
-off season hunting, dove hunting during season, night hunting, etc

And I am sure there are more. Many can be worked out based on the lease that is chose, but if I was getting a group of people I was not familiar with, I would want to get the base established to weed certain ones out from the beginning.

Good idea and I wish you luck. Rules in the OP are a no go for me.

I was thinking people with land they want to lease would approach me on here. I wouldn't know how to focus efforts in a particular area of the state because that implies actively searching.

Four hours from DFW seems like a pretty good size area to me.

And could mean 8 hours from you

One idea you might try is to pick a few counties that offer what you are looking for in deer density, average antler size, accessibility, and location. Once you narrow it down, there are a few different methods that work well to isolate a lease search. Finding a vacant piece of property looking for hunters isn't going to be easy and someone is going to have to do a lot of leg work.

I think it will be a lot simpler if we start this out as a "bachelor" group. People wanting to bring in others to hunt complicates things so much. There should be enough singles to form a group.

Allowing bow hunters a month start on the season from rifle hunters seems grossly unfair unless you are going to restrict everybody to there own area and stand(s), which seems to be a turn-off to even more.

Price -- going to depend on the landowner, isn't it? Offers received will be passed on to the group as received. But, if the land owner doesn't care about numbers of guns -- just comes up with a total dollar figure, then I guess I'd be deciding how many guns to allow and that would determine the price for each. I am disposed to put fewer, rather than more hunters on a place, so, leaning more to the more expensive side of things. Also, if the landowner wants hunting rights, that will be taken into account.

This is your show, just throwing ideas out that I would be looking for. I will be very interested to see how this turns out and wish you the best. New group of "unknowns" will make the season very interesting but could turn into something great. Good luck and if I think of something else that might help, I might throw in another 2 cents

Looking again at your list, I'll address a couple more things:

1) I am not management oriented and don't want to "grow big bucks". Anyone who wants one of those can get with an outfitter and buy a hunt. I want to be able to take one buck and one doe -- every year. There will have to be enough land per hunter to allow for that.

2) Year round is what I would like, ideally. Almost everybody wants to corn these days, how can you do that without year round access? But if a lease came up that was deer season only and there was a big price differential, I'd go for it.

chrisj81

swaybelly321

I'm new to the forum, but ready to try and set up for the next season.

I agree and hope it works out. I promise you from years of my own experience that it takes much leg work, time, money, and trial and error to put together a compatible group. Also, in most cases if a landowner is approaching you about leasing their property then red flags go up. A good ranch for lease with a good ranch owner typically are leased up rapidly. Be careful

I'm game to see what this alternative way of going about things goes..

If you have minimum hunting pressure, located in an area where 160"+ deer are a reasonable expectation, and are serious about hunting, I am in +1 for my teenage son which I will pay for if I can drive to it in a day.

James Black

If your plan is to wait for landowners to contact you then I think you're going to be disappointed. Have you seen the number of "lease wanted" threads on here? Also, you want a year round lease but want to take away 1 month of hunting from any bowhunters because it's somehow unfair? Unfair is them being allowed to do it and you aren't. Having the option to do it yourself and choosing not to is not unfair. Anyway, good luck. You'll need it.

This lease must be for single folks only. I can't imagine any dad getting on a lease where they can't take their kid for an opportunity to harvest a deer. Just sayin'.....

why worry about how he runs his potential lease ?
let the man be

if folks don't like it they don't join

I think it's a good thing he's doing this for the commune

I'm in Red Bone 936

I have ran across several leases (that are not advertised here )
and they have similar rules, no guest and that includes kids ...
not my thing but they are getting more restrictive with increased demands

I guess if the OP is retired he has time to waste so maybe this thread gives him something to do. I wished him luck and I still say he'll need it. You can't put a group together for a property that doesn't exist, in an area that's undetermined, with a price that isn't defined. He could get 100 names in this thread and waste his time contacting them once he finds a property only to have 100 people drop out due to price, location, or any of 100 other reasons. At the very least he should pick a general location and figure out how much everyone is willing to pay to hunt that area. Figure out if people want water/electric or a camp house. Just a few simple questions/perimeters would stop lots of tire kicking. Just a little friendly advice from someone that's been there and done that many times. It's worth exactly what you paid for it.

PS... MYOB

likewise

Some of you guys in the DFW area, like DQ kid should contact the guy who is looking for 3-5 guys for a place near Childress.

I may close this thread and start one with strict parameters as several of you have suggested. I really don't think it will be hard to get together a group of guys who don't have family that also want to hunt, but we'll see.

Threads about the bow season thing have come up a number of times. Whether it is fair or not, again, I think I should be able to put together a rifle-only group.

Where you've got me worried is this talk about if a landowner contacts me that that is a red flag. I never thought of that, and am going to PM one of you to get more information on why that could be trouble.

Bowslayer, I tried to PM you, would you clear out some of your PMs?