Texas Monthly Hunting Guide
A rundown on where, how, and when and what to hunt around the state.
For most outdoorsmen, the New Year begins on September 1—not January 1, as observed by the rest of the world.
Just as the first norther awakens the virility of the buck deer and fills him with energy that has slumbered all summer, the hunter comes alive. Some even take to jogging, doing push-ups or otherwise exerting themselves for the first time in months. On the first day of the season, they spring out of bed as the alarm goes off, although they normally can't be dragged out of bed with a winch truck. Getting back to this most basic skill helps change the pace and perspective of life in a 100-mile-an-hour world.
Hunting is one of the most therapeutic strategic withdrawals available. Sitting on the side of a hill out in the Frio Canyon, a hunter can feel things falling back into the right places as it gets on toward 5 o'clock in the afternoon. It's the autumn of another year in his life, and a good time to reflect.
So much for psychology. What does Texas have to offer hunters in the way of game?
Over three million deer, for openers. That's about one-fourth of the entire nation's deer population. And they are annually taken in about 214 of Texas' 254 counties under widely varied circumstances.
If a hunter is up to it, he can assault the mountains and canyons of West Texas in the land known as the Trans-Pecos. Chances are he'll get a shot at mule deer and maybe two kinds of whitetail the same day. Or he might be after a real trophy for his den in the tangled cat-claw and prickly-pear world near the Mexican border known as the Brush Country. Some of the best whitetail racks of all time have come from that southland. But if he prefers picturesque rolling hills with sparkling streams where the deer and turkey abound in awesome numbers—and where each vista looks like a Pearl Beer ad—he really ought to hunt the Hill Country. The deer aren't the largest, but it's the greatest concentration of them in the world.
In the Panhandle, he can hunt a brushy draw along the Canadian River, where Texas' heaviest deer hide out. And the hilly area of the Possum Kingdom region provides thousands of whitetails for hunters west of Dallas-Ft. Worth. Even East Texas offers good hunting in the heavily timbered land along the Louisiana border. The state's mid-section, too, the Central Oak Prairie region, in many places is lush with oak thickets and acorn fat bucks.
But there's plenty besides deer. Over half of America's wild turkeys are Texans and much of the country's waterfowl winter here. This is the end of the line for those travelling the central flyway from Canada. Likewise for Sandhill cranes coming from the North to light in West Texas. Nearly ten million quail, 14 million mourning doves, a quarter of a million whitewings and a million squirrels go into the stew each season. There are still more javelinas (150,000) than pronghorn antelope (10,000) in West Texas.
Then for those who want something out of the ordinary come now the exotics, those critters not native to Texas or in most cases not even native to this country. Some, like pheasant, for instance, or prairie chicken, have been imported from other states. The most exotic ones, though, are the ones that didn't speak English at all before coming to Texas. A glossary of game which can now be hunted in Texas reads like a Swahili road map: Oryx, Aoudad, Nilgai, Mouflon, Axis, Barasinghi, Blackbuck. And a good many others.
Probably no area in the world offers a hunter such a divergent choice of game or hunting terrain for the $5.25 cost of a resident hunting license. (See the subsequent information on licensing requirements.) And there's an open season on something all the time.
So how does a person get into Texas hunting?
Leases Pro and Con
WELL, TO BEGIN WITH, HE'LL need a place to hunt, and that's not as simple as it used to be.
When Texas annexed the Union in 1845, one of the conditions the early Texans placed upon accepting statehood was that Texas retain title to its public lands. As a result, an abundance of federally owned public land open to free hunting simply does not exist in Texas as it does in some Western states. The National Forest lands are exceptions, but, practically speaking, he can't just pull off the road in an unfenced area and start hunting.
Whether or not there are signs saying he cannot hunt is of no consequence. The land belongs to somebody, and a provision of the Texas Penal Code makes it a crime to trespass for the purpose of hunting, and landowners don't condone trespassing. One ranch has a sign reading "POSTED. TRESPASSERS WILL BE VIOLATED." Odds are it wasn't a misprint.
On top of that, it just ain't safe to cut across a pasture without permission. Not that the average, experienced hunter is going to wilfully shoot him it's just that he may be passing through the sights of someone with bad eyes and a highly excitable trigger finger who might mistake him for a buck. It happens every year.
If he finds a ranch that he wants to hunt on, it probably would do no harm to go up to the ranch house and ask permission to hunt. The land may already be leased or may be up for lease; he'll never know until he asks.
Most Texas ranchers that have any deer to speak of, (and maybe one or two who don't), lease their land commercially for hunting purposes. It's simply a matter of economics. The rancher has to make a living off his land. Deer actually detract from the rest of his agricultural operation since they compete with domestic livestock for food and are an absolute menace to some crops. A few ranchers actually consider them pests. If the deer are allowed to remain, then it stands to reason their existence ought to be justified in dollars and cents. Many ranchers consequently even look upon their game as a cash crop and manage it for the best economic return. Thus one pays to hunt in most places in Texas.
Charging a fee to hunters is not a one-sided proposition, however. There are advantages to the hunter. Most ranches that cater to hunters will improve their range with an eye toward better hunting. Some plant a few acres of oats or other grain savored by the game and provide water and salt or mineral "licks" for the wildlife. Some places, like Operation Whitetail, run by Sportsmen's Clubs of Texas, even restock their preserves with healthy King Ranch deer each year.
Another obvious advantage in lease hunting is the assurance that his party is the only one hunting a particular pasture. Landowners seldom overload a pasture with hunters, a practice which makes hunting considerably safer.
Other advantages to this system are the hunter-convenience improvements many ranchers have made—maybe a camp house and some stands or blinds. If the lease is of sufficient duration—a year or longer—these can be constructed by the hunters themselves if the landowner has not already done so. At any rate, a hunter quite often has a better, safer, and certainly more comfortable hunt on most Texas fee-charging leases than on unimproved, public lands.
Needless to say, the cost of Texas hunting leases, whether by the day or by the season, will depend on the extent of improvements and game management practices. Naturally, a hunter would expect to pay more to go first class than he would to rough it.
Hunting leases in Texas come generally in two kinds: the season lease and the day lease. A season lease may actually be a year-round lease or for a term of years. A day lease is usually for one day at a time, but a number of ranchers are leasing for several days, an entire weekend or up to a week at a time.
If a season lease is of the year round type—for 12 months or longer—oftentimes the hunter's whole family can use the lease before and after deer season for recreational purposes. This could include fishing, camping, or perhaps even bird or varmint hunting if the landowner will permit. Some just like to go out to the lease to get a chance to be in the country.
A season lease will usually provide more total acreage per hunter than most day leases. By having the lease for the whole season or longer, a hunter will be able to scout the terrain and find out "where they're crossing." By locating game trails the deer regularly use going to and from food, water, and cover, the hunter will greatly increase his chances of bringing home the venison. If the lease is of adequate duration to justify it, some hunters construct elaborate camp houses, kitchens and hunting blinds. A few others like to rough it with catalytic heaters and sliding windows in their blinds so they don't have to brave the elements any longer than is absolutely necessary.
About the only disadvantage to a season lease is cost. Hill Country deer leases start at about $125 per gun per season. South Texas prices are higher, with some going out of sight. Hunters get about what they pay for in total hunting time and an all round better lease, as discussed, but this only holds true if they can take advantage of it. If a person cannot go hunting but once or twice, it's not very economical.
Day leases are attractive to many occasional hunters who do not have either the time or money for a season lease. Since the rancher only charges for the day or days hunted, there's no great outlay of cash. A day of deer hunting can still be had for $10-$20.
Probably the main disadvantage in day-hunting is that the leases tend to be over-hunted. Hunted out in fact. After a couple of weeks with an anxious hunter on each stand every day, there just aren't many deer left. Those that are left have figured out something's going on and avoid travelling near the stands in daylight. In some parts of the state, though, the vegetation doesn't die off enough to make for good shooting until later in the season. Often the deer don't move until the weather gets colder, either.
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