What would you guys do about illegal tree stands??

[Earl E. Nov...mber]

With that much activity in that small of an area, you don't have to worry about the DNR screwing up deer movement, all of your hunting buddies already have it screwed... Report it.

[Cyclic-Rivers]

I would poop and pee all over their Bait pile.  Anyone acting like that would surely have a huge pile of corn exactly 20 yards  from the stand.

People like that are the exact people I try to avoid while hunting.

I would go to another location hopefully void of other hunters because even if the tree stand may be removed, you will still have people walking around looking for it.

My time in the woods is too short to go hunting down criminals, I would move on.

Chris it sounds like your area is small and that's too bad, perhaps mid week adventures?  I bet most those guys walk in 1.5 hours before dark and are back to their trucks by 7 am.  Mid day hunts might be productive too.

[Clint B.]

If you want a tree stand taken down, then you might as well take it down yourself. Imagine the trouble it would be to report good enough coordinates so your state agent can hike in and take it down. That is, provided he feels like taking a hike.

[Archer Fanatic]

A farmer friend of mine here in Ohio if he finds a treestand he takes it down and leaves a note telling them if they want it back come to the house. It is amazing that there have been some who do go and ask for their treestand back. The farmer also calls the gamewarden and tells him about what he did.

[Mike Mecredy]

I got so tired of illegal stuff, and other issues afield that bother me, that I don't even hunt anymore.  I just like to make bows and shoot, and hear the stories from others that use my bows to take game.

[Ragnarok Forge]

Leave it up to the law.  If you mess with their stand and someone gets hurt your liable.  I do remove all colored tape I find in the woods.  Last year someone was leaving his beer cans where he moved off the road to his hunting areas. I picked them all up wondering what slob was littering.  I had a good laugh when I heard him complaining to a buddy about it at the trailhead the next evening.  Apparently he couldn't find his hunting spot without a silver can to mark it.

[buckeye_hunter]

Turn it in now.

If there are that many permanent stands in one small area then the one time intrusion of a conservation officer would be better. Otherwise you will have the constant intrusion of the other non-rule following hunters ALL season long. Once is better than all season(that will definitely change deer patterns)!

The other hunters have the right to be there, but should follow the rules. You will likely still have to share the spot, but at least it will be with more contientious people.

Just my 2 cents,

[James Wrenn]

I would print out the section of the law covering it and pin it to the stand after leaving it at the base of the the tree with a warning it would not be there the next time it was left in the woods.

[Bonebuster]

For decades, baiting was the most common way people "bowhunted" in Michigan. It was banned two years ago. Compliance is low. VERY LOW!

After finding lots of illegal baitpiles on public land, I had my wife make up and print some warning letters, and made them look official, as if they were from a Conservation Officer. They state the law and describe the fines, and explain that anyone found hunting in the area will get a citation. They really look official, complete with MY scribbled, impossible to read signature. The warning ends with instructions to scatter the bait and remove the stand(s) and no further action will be taken. I put out over TWO DOZEN last fall, and in EVERY situation, the next time I returned, they were GONE. Worked EVERY time. They probably just moved elsewhere, BUT it at least made them THINK!

I have no idea if I broke the law by doing what I did. I ran into a CO towards the end of November, and told him what I had been doing. With a smile, he told me I should "probably" stop.

It worked too good to stop.  

[Sam McMichael]

I agree with those who say to  report it to DNR. I'm not sure if there could be legal consequences for you if you bother someone else's property, even if it is there illegally. But there is no reason to take a chace. Let the law handle it.

[Chris Shelton]

Alrighty guys thanks for the input, my little sister is friends with a girl who's father is the head of Maryland's three western counties. I will talk to him.

to the fellow that asked why I would want to hunt such a small area .. . thats where the deer are, lol

I am not to dependent on this area, right down the road is another chunk of public land, 169 acres. and not far up the road is another 5500 acres. But those areas are overhunted a bit. I wish my 55000 acres of public land was closer than 1.5 hours away  :(

[PAPA BEAR]

as far as touching another persons property goes i wouldnt.you're not the dnr/co so its really not your place to do it.let the people who's job it is to control these things do it.you'll only start a fight if you take them down.maybe post a note to the tree at eye level.if you dont want the dnr/co walking in and disturbing the area then a note is as far as i would go.jmho

[ChuckC]

If it is illegal... without a doubt turn it in.  If you allow it to go on then you have no right to complain about it.  Those laws are there for all of us.

I guarantee you if I find your stands in the woods I hunt I will either mark it with a glow stick and tell the DNR or I will take coordinates and then tell the DNR.

What I would not do is take it down or take it away.  That is theft.  Just get good directions, or coordinates and call the DNR.

As for the tape / ribbons.   I take them down too.  Small pieces placed so that they are not obvious and obtrusive I will leave.  The rest are trash and litter.  I pick up litter and trash in the areas I hunt.

ChuckC

[M_Kanzler]

Here's a suggestion:
Make up a flyer that explains that it's illegal, and that if people keep breaking the law, eventually everyone will lose the priveledge of hunting in that area.
Put them in ziplock baggies & always have a few with you.
Put them at the illegal tree stands (you'll have to decide whether to take them down or leave them standing).

It's possible some people don't know it's illegal, or never thought about the possible consequences.

[mrjsl]

Hey, let me let you legal eagles in on something... I used to hunt on a large NWR with very limited access by foot. You either boated in or hiked more than a mile or both to get to some good areas. I ran across climbers that were left in there overnight on numerous occasions. Better than 50% of the time, they belonged to one guy - one of the Fed. Game Warden's son. He didn't have to hike - his dad gave him a ride. This guy was in maintenance - not enforcement.

The story I related earlier happened in a different part of the same refuge, and I knew it wasn't the game warden's son. I would not turn in the game warden's son, because frankly there is no reason to rock the boat. I had a good relationship with the enforcement guy (different guy) on that place, he respected me and liked me, and saw no reason to piss off any of them. Especially when I had 18,000 acres to roam on that weren't the game warden's son's favorite spot.

So, the situation is not always cut and dry. Turning in a game warden's son would have made my favorite piece of public land less enjoyable to hunt from then on, I promise you.

[Earl E. Nov...mber]

Slade,, it sounds like you should have reported the illegal action of the warden and his son to his supervisor..
Don't know about down there, but up here he would probably be looking for other employment rather quickly. At least he would have a clear understanding between himself and the guy who writes his annual review.
Now if it was the county judges son or kin, it would probably be a different story.