My name's Gregory. I'm new to the forum and have only been living in Texas for 4 years now. I live in Johnson County and I'm looking to buy hunting land and wondering what areas to avoid. Like, certain ranches or towns altogether? Driving several hours to the property is not an issue.

Thank you in advance.

someone will be along with comments pertaining to your comments. Welcome to the forum!

What I did 40 years ago.

Figure out how far you will drive and your budget. Start calling realtors in that/those distances.

Enjoy the search. Being willing to drive several hours will improve your chances of finding exactly what you are looking for. It really kind of depends on what type of terrain you'd like to be on. One thing I should have done when I was looking is tell your realtor you're outa there the first inkling you have that you're not gonna buy a place. Don't waste any more time than you have to at a place that isn't for you, or, as happened several times to me, the seller has a cockamamie idea about something he expects you to accept, i.e. he'll "make you a deal" on water they're keeping, or you're gonna have to drive within feet of his @$$hole brother's house to access, etc., etc. Good luck!

I would want nothing to do with East Texas. Around here, water is king. A well to drinking water is 850-950 feet down and much of the drilling is through limestone bedrock. It would add a lot to the price to have a well drilled. I ran a long line and got co-op water. The well was a constant PITA. Just adding in that aspect for your search. Good luck.

Thanks for the info gents. I'm originally from West Virginia and looking for land to do some deer and hog hunting. Any other animals are a bonus. I'm not worried about water, right now as I'll bring my own for the time being.
Right now I'm looking in Menard County and South of there. I don't want to get too far south and have to deal with any border crossing issues. I've heard about staying away from certain ranches due to being completely hunted out but can't remember this ranches names now.
I'll start contacting realtors about places available.