Managing Trespassers on Your Property

Owning your own piece of hunting land is one of the best things you can do for yourself and your family. It gives you the freedom to cultivate the land anyway you want, as well as regulate it how you please. However, owning and maintaining a pristine piece of land can have its setbacks. One of those major setbacks being trespassers, or people hunting your land without your permission! That is both illegal to do and can be detrimental to the land you worked so hard for. Here are some innovative easy ways to keep unwanted people off your private land!

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Signs, Everywhere

No trespassing signs are the first thing people think about when planning how to keep people off their property. Signs provide a clear message to whoever is reading it, that should be easy to understand. Do not let trespassers have the chance to say that they didn’t see your signs. Make sure they are clearly visible, removing any brush or foliage that can get in the way over time. Other tips for signs:

• Put them out of reach of trespassers. Making the signs too high to take down gives you the piece of mind that no one can simply remove your sign
• Put signs on every entrance and exit. As well as signs going along any border or fencing on your hunting land.

Create a Community 

Your neighbors and the people with adjacent property lines can be one of your biggest assets when it comes to stopping trespassers. Making it clear to everyone around you that your land is private both lets your neighbors know to stay off without permissions. As well as puts more sets of eyes on your properties. The better relationship you have with those around you gives you a better chance of catching trespassers!

Hunter-Landowner Relations can be strained by trespassers 

Hunters should be aware of the following trespass issues and how they affect their relationship with their landowner:

• If a wounded animal goes onto private property, the hunter must obtain landowner permission.  If a landowner cannot be contacted a local sheriff or game authority should be contacted.
• Blinds or tree stands should not be mounted to power poles, whether they appear abandoned or not;
• Trespassing to hunt, fish, or trap from roads or railways without legal permission is criminal;
• Trespasser that are convicted in one state may be revoked from hunting, fishing or trapping in other states as well;
• Trespassing is costly to the violator- fines, court fees, jail time and suspended or revoked licenses could add up;
• Big game violations make the penalties harsher;
• Violating requests to leave a property either verbal or written can result in intentional criminal hunting;
• All hunters must have permission whether the land is posted or not.

Barriers, Borders and Fences for your Private Land

Planting natural border around your hunting property is a great way to improve its privacy. Through planting a combination of trees, shrubs, and grasses you will be able to create an organic border for your property. Which will also add to the overall foliage and coverage for the wildlife on your property.  If you are looking for a fast privacy solutions grasses like corn are perfect. They grow tall quickly over a span of just a few months.

A more permanent solution would be the planting of trees. While time consuming, planting trees as privacy is a great way top improve your land overall. The best trees to use as a border will depend on the region you live in. For some areas pine trees would be the ultimate option. While in others you may not have that tree available to you.

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Landowner Rights

Knowing your landowner rights and what you can and can’t do to deter trespassers will help you in the long run. Taking the necessary steps to reduce trespassing on your property can help you from having to fight costly legal battles.  If a trespasser gets hurt or causes damage, they may try to hold you liable.  For a sound peace of mind, it is always a good idea to have a Vacant Land Insurance policy to help with injuries and damages that may occur!