Steve Knight

The old saying has always been there are two sport seasons in Texas, football season and spring football.

The same can probably be said about deer hunting. Hunters are either involved in the season or thinking about the next one.

As a matter of fact, last season hadn't ended before the calls started from hunters looking for a lease.

The future demand for hunting leases is a little cloudy right now. Logic would dictate that because of the increasing cost of gasoline and food that demand could go down. However, there always seems to be someone waiting in the wings to take over a lease, often at a higher price. If it isn't Texas hunters coming onboard there always seems to be a vast pool of out-of-state hunters looking for a lease in a state where deer numbers are plentiful, regulations are liberal and the season can run more than four months.

And if they don't walk away from the hunting, some hunters might look at ways to reel back their investment either by looking for a smaller lease or one closer to home.

Of course looking for a lease has become a high tech search and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has finally jumped into the fray and is attempting to match wanting hunters with needing landowners through its Hunt Texas Online Connection. Located on the department's Web site, Hunt Texas is the latest listing of available leases. Free to both hunters and landowners, the online service goes beyond deer hunting and lists ranches available for wild hogs, exotics, migratory birds and quail. The current 12 pages of listings cover counties throughout much of the state.

Hunters just wanting to look at leases available don't have to register. Those wanting to contact a landowner on the site will have to log in.

Because it isn't highlighted, the site is a little difficult to find on the TPWD Web site. Access is quicker by going to https://www2.tpwd.state.tx.us/huntwild/hunt/planning/hunt_lease/.

The leases on the site come in many sizes from 200 to almost 20,000 acres. The costs are as varied, ranging from about $1,500 and up for a season prices. Broken down per acre, the prices go from about $5 an acre up to $15, pretty much the standard for today.

Surprisingly, the list also includes day leases with hunts costing from $100 a day upward.

Having put the site together, the next big challenge will be keeping it current. That has always been the biggest problem with this type of list. Being open-ended and free, there isn't much incentive by the landowners to clear ranches when they become leased, but it becomes frustrating to hunters who reach dead ends.

The TPWD list is just one place to start. It actually also has links to about a dozen commercial outfitters as well.

And with deer leases being big business, the search doesn't end there. In counties where deer hunting is big business hunters need to contact the local chambers of commerce and county extension offices since both are often sources of available leases.

The hunting landscape in East Texas has changed dramatically over the last five years as landowners such as Temple-Inland and International Paper have sold much of their land.

The Campbell Group, operating as Crown Pine Timber, acquired about 1.5 million acres of Temple land in Texas, Louisiana, Alabama and Georgia and continues to lease much of it to hunters.

Information on available leases can be found on their Web site, www.crownpinetimber.com.

Forestar Real Estate Group manages an additional 350,000 acres of what was Temple land. Information on leases is available by e-mailing recreationalleases@forestargroup.com.

International Paper's land has already changed hands for a second time. Originally purchased by a group called Timber Star, it is now a part of Red River Timber. Information on leases in East Texas is available at http://www.redrivertimberhuntclubs.com/.

However, the best method for finding a lease is still networking through friends. Mention you are looking as often as possible, and certainly anytime you hear two hunters talking about a spot that sounds promising.

Of course locating a possible lease is just the start. A wise hunter will spend as much time as possible on the ground looking over the site, looking at previous harvest logs, surveys or any other information they can get their hands on.

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Contact Outdoor Editor Steve Knight at 903-596-6277 or by e-mail at outdoor@tylerpaper.com

LOOKING FOR A BETTER HUNT: Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is helping hunters find places to hunt with an lease registry on its Website. The free service includes information on a variety of hunting options.
(Staff Photo By Steve Knight)