MN bills introduced to allow crossbows during archery season.

[Catscratch]

There would be more mature bucks running around if more hunters took a doe or ate tag soup instead of harvesting a young buck, but that is not a crossbow specific issue. Bad hunters have a hard time harvesting a deer with any weapon, and good hunters are successful more often than not no matter the weapon. Crossbows won't kill deer hunting as we know it, but the pay to play and trophy only mentality may.

I agree whole heartily that the pay to play mentality will kill hunting. Leasing ties up land and keeps kids out priced. I disagree whole heartily with the earlier post saying kids need an easy weapon and won't work for it. Maybe (certainly) some kids want it easy, but I know a ton of kids who are hard working and very willing to put in time and effort to harvest a deer, any deer, antlers not a consideration. Can't do it without land to hunt though. I grew up knowing families who hunted as a frugal way to fill the freezer. Those same families now have to give up hunting as it's frugal for them to eliminate it. It's our our faults. Hunters with money will continue to force out those with less. Leases will get higher and higher until the socio economic classes sble to gain access to land will move from middle class, to upper middle class, to wealthy.

 

[Angus 1895]

I would like to say that processing a deer is not that hard.

then I haul in the scrap cuts in gallon zip locks, add 20 % pork boneless shoulder have the butcher grind it up. Freeze it in 1 lb tubes. I think it’s $0.85 a pound.

 

[SD51555]

I would like to say that processing a deer is not that hard.

then I haul in the scrap cuts in gallon zip locks, add 20 % pork boneless shoulder have the butcher grind it up. Freeze it in 1 lb tubes. I think it’s $0.85 a pound.

Keep in mind, the average person under the age of 35 will order in or carry out most of their food, regardless of their income. They don't possess the skills or initiative to even make a frozen pizza or easy mac.

I know a chick in her mid 20's that will literally eat her entire paycheck in a week and then have to get money from her parents to buy gas and pay rent. She'll be door dashing junk food until she explodes or the chair breaks.

 

[Angus 1895]

the undesirable cuts waste…….I cook in the man cave on the wood stove.

My pup twiglet the piglet loves it!

 

[Catscratch]

Plenty of kids can and will do these things if just given the chance. My boy and his friends started with live pork and turned it into dead edible pork all by themselves. I showed up in time to eat. Just kids, zero adults.

Nice use of the woodburner and extra deer parts Angus!

 

[4wanderingeyes]

I didn’t read the entire thread, but myself being in my 50’s, with bad shoulders, and after losing a nice buck last fall from bow hunting, I think I will make the change to a crossbow this year.

While I have bad shoulders, I think my ego would get the best of me to have to go the dr to get a disability ok to hunt. I would probably give up bow hunting and just rifle hunt. Which is my favorite pastime.

 

[Angus 1895]

4 wandering eyes


shoot the crossbow……

u are saving the planet…..

no gunpowder burned……

and hopefully less heartbreak ……..

 

[rocksnstumps]

Can't do it without land to hunt though. I grew up knowing families who hunted as a frugal way to fill the freezer. Those same families now have to give up hunting as it's frugal for them to eliminate it. It's our our faults. Hunters with money will continue to force out those with less. Leases will get higher and higher until the socio economic classes sble to gain access to land will move from middle class, to upper middle class, to wealthy.

In my part of the world can't blame the lack of free access or "cheap" leasing available because of all those greedy landowners or others with deep pockets to lease. Someone in my area that owns 100 acres of woods is paying $4200/PER YR in taxes if not in some tax savings or ag program to bring those cost down. Lease prices need to account for that or let's be realistic.... If I have to pay over $4 grand a yr am I gonna let anyone and everyone who asks to hunt do so for free? Maybe a youth hunter occasionally but come on. Greedy tax states own some of this problem too.

For the record, I am in a tax program which caps things at about 25% of the going rate (MFL) so not as fugly tax wise.

 

[SD51555]

In my part of the world can't blame the lack of free access or "cheap" leasing available because of all those greedy landowners or others with deep pockets to lease. Someone in my area that owns 100 acres of woods is paying $4200/PER YR in taxes if not in some tax savings or ag program to bring those cost down. Lease prices need to account for that or let's be realistic.... If I have to pay over $4 grand a yr am I gonna let anyone and everyone who asks to hunt do so for free? Maybe a youth hunter occasionally but come on. Greedy tax states own some of this problem too.

For the record, I am in a tax program which caps things at about 25% of the going rate (MFL) so not as fugly tax wise.

I'm guessing you're in Wisconsin?

 

[Catscratch]

In my part of the world can't blame the lack of free access or "cheap" leasing available because of all those greedy landowners or others with deep pockets to lease. Someone in my area that owns 100 acres of woods is paying $4200/PER YR in taxes if not in some tax savings or ag program to bring those cost down. Lease prices need to account for that or let's be realistic.... If I have to pay over $4 grand a yr am I gonna let anyone and everyone who asks to hunt do so for free? Maybe a youth hunter occasionally but come on. Greedy tax states own some of this problem too.

For the record, I am in a tax program which caps things at about 25% of the going rate (MFL) so not as fugly tax wise.

Nowhere did I blame landowners for leasing. I'm huge on personal rights and that extends to landowners making money by any means they choose. The simple fact is that hunters leasing land keeps hunting out of reach for a huge chunk of the population. If recruitment is the goal then leasing is the number one deterrent, not difficulty of weapon. Hunters are 100% in charge of lease prices. Hunters are 100% complicit in pushing out lower income hunters, which hurts kids who want to get into hunting.

 

[Mtyhunter]

I didn’t read the entire thread, but myself being in my 50’s, with bad shoulders, and after losing a nice buck last fall from bow hunting, I think I will make the change to a crossbow this year.

While I have bad shoulders, I think my ego would get the best of me to have to go the dr to get a disability ok to hunt. I would probably give up bow hunting and just rifle hunt. Which is my favorite pastime.

Same here, in my 50's with a baseball injury req'ing shoulder surgery a few years back. Bought a left handed recurve, got decently proficient pretty quick, but, took no shots that year cause I was really worried I would wound one instead of kill. I Bought the crossbow, and took a buck at 45 yds with it next year. It was still normal deer hunting, so it wasn't as easy as everyone makes it out to be. But, far easier than getting one within 25 yds to shoot with a lefthanded recurve. The saving grace was the quick kill.
That being said, the crossbow still didn't turn me on like I thought it would. Something about it just doesn't seem right. I guess I'm old school still.

 

[Tree Spud]

Interesting bit of irony here ...

We want to increase the # of hunters, thus increasing greater demand for available land ... but we want lower lease prices that are "affordable".

Free market here at work ... can't have both.

 

[Bszweda]

1st world problem here. I wouldn't get too worked up on this issue.

 

[PatinPA]

There was a huge uproar in PA when they fully legalized crossbows. Now it's back to "whatever". The only real turnoff for me was personal. The neighboring camp at my parents house where I used to hunt the majority of the time were all solely rifle hunters. When they legalized crossbows they all bought them, but they had no clue how to archery hunt. They ruined the hunting there for a long time. I still don't hunt there but it's gotten a little better says my dad.

 

[Catscratch]

Interesting bit of irony here ...

We want to increase the # of hunters, thus increasing greater demand for available land ... but we want lower lease prices that are "affordable".

Free market here at work ... can't have both.

Maybe some irony or even hypocrisy on my part. I freely admit it. I don't particularly want more hunters but that is the common theme when talking easier weapons such as the crossbow. My contention still is that the ease of the crossbow won't recruit more hunters if they don't have a place to hunt. Makes it a mute point. But, I do however hate to see kids who want to partake in the outdoors being pushed out. It breaks my heart. Currently leases are headed towards all inclusive rights to the land. Talking with a friend a couple of weeks ago and asked if she ever finds sheds on her alfalfa field. Said she used to but their leasors didn't allow them to shed hunt, fish their ponds, or even allow their son to shoot a doe during the antlerless season in Jan. They hunt a week during rifle season but have the land tied up for the year. No kids using it, not even their own son who wants and needs to fill his freezer. I want more access to land for kids in general, not just kids of well to do families.

 

[bwoods11]

My county could be the exception but we have a good number of young kids that hunt in our county.

My sons classes all had very active outdoorsman . They are serious archery hunters, turkey, waterfowl, coyotes, carp shooting. These young men travel to many states to hunt (elk, antelope, muley, whitetail).

They tend to take it very serious and spend money on quality equipment and clothing. Much, much more than I ever did at that age .

I never took an out of state trip until I was 25 or 26 (pheasants in SD). Both of my kids have shot elk and antelope. I’ve never hunted either one.

I’m not seeing the lack of youth participation at all in my area of Minnesota. We have plenty of adult hunters and a lot of youth hunters.. no shortage !

 

[Brian662]

I'd just like to remind everyone who isn't from MN or hasn't hunted here.. we already have the main firearms season during PEAK rut, opening the first weekend in Nov! How much easier can it get for youth or beginner hunters to tag a deer or fill a freezer? Now we need crossbows for everyone too?

MN would/should have as many or more trophy hunting opportunities as surrounding states do(WI, Iowa, Illinois), but the season framework we already have is a limiting factor. We don't need to make it worse.

 

[Troubles Trees]

Yeah, my taxes for a modest ranch style house (bought as a fix-R-upper for $24,500 and now assessed for $130k) and 30 acres is $3,924 this year for school and county property taxes, NY loves taxes.

I am curious if those commenting about crossguns would prefer your state go the other way and moving compound bows to gun season so folks could only hunt with recurves during regular bow season? Seems like a favorable position to open up land access and increase age structure for bucks. The problem then might be that a majority of compound hunters would likely skip bow season and flock to rifle season with a gun instead of a compound and land would be tied up again, so you would probably have to also support banning rifles and make it only shotgun for gun season (or maybe only muzzleloaders IDK)? So ideally you would have recurve season, shotgun season and then muzzleloader.

I typed and reworded this 4 times because it comes off as sarcastic, but it isn't intended that way! I am genuinely trying to see things from your perspective. I am just old enough to remember the compound debate when it was just recurve allowed for bow season and it feels like the same debate all over again. My county has been shotgun only until 2 or 3 seasons ago when they allowed rifles so it isn't a ridiculous concept. I tried to look up the year compounds were allowed here in NY but I can't find it, anyone know by chance? I know the compound bow was invented in 1966 and states started incorporating it in bow season but can't find when NY implemented it in the regular Bow season.

 

[Angus 1895]

I disagree…

if Minnesota would eliminate party hunting antelered deer….

less antelered deer would get tagged.

Crossbow use would increase deer harvest, but it also would decrease animal loss IMO. ( hit but not recovered)

 

[bwoods11]

I'd just like to remind everyone who isn't from MN or hasn't hunted here.. we already have the main firearms season during PEAK rut, opening the first weekend in Nov! How much easier can it get for youth or beginner hunters to tag a deer or fill a freezer? Now we need crossbows for everyone too?

MN would/should have as many or more trophy hunting opportunities as surrounding states do(WI, Iowa, Illinois), but the season framework we already have is a limiting factor. We don't need to make it worse.

Brian you nailed it !! Minnesota has poor season structure and too many seasons already !

Now we are also dealing with a terrible winter ! I’ve found dead fawns already on my farms .