Any suggestions for private land near Faulkton?

TGM

TGM

Member
Looking for any leads on private land to hunt within driving distance of Faulkton with reputable landowner and reasonable fee. Just two of us. Want to hunt on our own. Last week of October. We have accommodations. Last year was our first trip to SD. It was fun but public land was heavily used and birds were sparse. Would like to have more options this year.
Thanks.
 
Hmmm...no magic to this request. Either one pays to hunt, or you spend your time knocking on doors developing relationships.

I don't think there is any shortcut to finding private land to hunt; it takes lots of research.

In late December, you may find a farmer that will allow you to hunt with no fee. However, most charge a fee throughout the season.

If you are based in Faulkton, start your inquiry/research at the local cafe, bar, gas station, motel et al. Drive the countryside and identify farms that appear to have decent habitat.

Start pounding on doors!

Good Luck!
 
Yep - I get it and will keep working it. We spent a lot of effort on research and probing last year with no success. Hotels, bars, cafes ..., everyone was easy to talk to and provide general advice but nothing concrete. Fellow hunters in hotel were very friendly and willing to talk about thier successes but tight lipped on where to go and who to contact. Landowners are busy this time of year and are difficult to track down. Maybe I need to make a pre-season trip to work it but thats a lot of expense and questionable odds especially with no leads. The best source of input and advice I've found is this forum. The contributors are helpful and supportive. Last year, a user gave me a few leads that didn't pan out but gave me something concrete to chase. I was thinking someone here may know of a landowner that books his property in advance. I'll keep working it. Despite these frustrations and a slim bag count last year, I loved the hunting experience and can't wait for this season. Thanks.
 
you can't hunt til ten am...be out there at first light, scout for birds on the roads, feeding, etc...if there is snow on the ground this is quite easy. knock on doors after 8 or 8 30, unless you see someone outside...if you want access, start with the fee proposition..."is it possible to access your land for a fee?"...pretty simple. Game of #'s...go get 'em! Good luck. Come back to the same area, establish relationships...this helps a lot.
 
For years I hunted the Miller area with a friend who had relatives in the area. The first several years we had land to hunt, then things started to change.

Farms became leased and we were faced with finding new farms to hunt. And the prospect that we had to pay a fee.

Although we had contacts in the area, we still had to contact new farmers and start a dialog with people in town about new hunting land. It seems to be an ever-changing task, but if you work at it you will be rewarded.

December will be easier to find farms than October. Benelli B had good advice...
 
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i think no matter what you do, finding ground available, even for a fee, will be tough to do......unless you have it pegged by now.
 
JonnyB - you nailed it; been hunting for years, land changes hands, or some other event occurs and sometimes you lose access; like it or not, you have to keep working to develop new relationships; sucks to lose great hunting land, very rewarding to strike a new relationship, and new ground to hunt. Keep all relationships, best part of the journey
 
Later in season u go the better hunting on public gets plus easier to get private land access ... Ask in bars grocery stores etc but get out early & scout ur areas public I'm talking listen & watch plus hold down a good area etc. If ur out there long enuff u will find a area worth hunting then get there b4 others...

I find spots that hold birds on public areas that won't be gone the next year etc. Then check a few new spots each season then u get a bunch of good spots to try after a few trips I'd hate to pay a guy only to have that farm & spots go away the next year & start my search all over again each season or time somebody change there mind etc.

$$$ talks in south Dakota pheasant lands so if ur will to pay u will find lands to play on...
 
TGM said:
Looking for any leads on private land to hunt within driving distance of Faulkton with reputable landowner and reasonable fee. Just two of us. Want to hunt on our own. Last week of October. We have accommodations. Last year was our first trip to SD. It was fun but public land was heavily used and birds were sparse. Would like to have more options this year.
Thanks.
Click to expand...
TGM, did you hunt the Faulkton area last year?? I'm not terribly familiar w/ that part of the state, but I can see on the Public Hunting Atlas that it's not exactly in the bullseye of a bunch of great public ground. It's quite a distance from good numbers of WPA's, GPA's, WIA's &/or CREP. I see there's a ton of "school" land west of Faulkton. Hopefully you didn't focus your attention on it least year. There's NONE of that in the parts of the state that I hunt, so I'm not at all familiar with it. But I don't recall a single person saying a single good thing about it in terms of pheasant hunting. It's not managed by the GF&P or the USFWS. While it's open to hunting, its mission is NOT to provide hunting opportunities. Small groups of reasonably experienced pheasant hunters (1-3 guys or so), with at least 1 reasonably good dog, can expect an OPPORTUNITY to shoot a limit on public land almost any day of the season. Obviously effort comes into play, but it's much more about knowing when to hunt where. You can have all the private land in the world at your disposal. But if you're not at the right place at the right time.....
Also, I don't know your dog situation, but I see this a lot on public land. 2-3 guys. 1 flushing dog (lab, springer, etc.). Guys all spread out, while the dog basically hunts w/ it's owner. Those other guys better get in there within 5-10 yards of the guy w/ the dog, or they don't stand much of a chance of getting a shot. 1 guy, 3 guys, 10 guys....you can only cover as much ground as your dog(s) can cover.
 
TGM,
I hear exactly what your saying. All the public land I ever hunted was exactly what you described. Our group is full this year but if anyone drops out I will keep you in mind. We hunt 25 minutes North of Faulkton. Private ground. Lots of birds in good years. All wild. Pay per gun. After hunting good private ground and only able to make one trip a year I would never hunt public ground versus private ever again. When we get back to our cleaning station the public land / ditch road hunters can’t believe how many birds we bring back. Maybe call a chamber of. Commerce or something like that in the small towns in the area?
 
I'm not familiar with the Faulkton area, but I'd try calling the grain elevator, feed store, livestock auction, chamber of commerce, fertilizer dealership, tractor dealerships, and the local hardware/sporting goods store (places landowners/farmers frequent) and ask if they know of anyone that's looking for hunters who would pay a fee to hunt. Surely by contacting one or more of those places somebody would know somebody and pass the word. You might even ask those businesses if you could email or fax them a sign to put up on their bulletin board with your contact information and what you're looking for, as far as hunting is concerned.

We were staying at Platte, SD, last year and were all outside standing around one morning waiting for 10:00 am to get there. A farmer sees us all standing out there so he drove up, got out, and asked us if we needed a place to hunt (for a fee). We already had arrangements made, so we didn't take him up on the offer.
 
I have hunted this "vicinity" since 2012 either by myself or with 1 or 2 guys, very rarely have we had to use the golden hour to get our limits. All public land, many cases when I'm by myself I should have limited in the first field I have hunted, but many days my shooting leave a lot to be desired. Need to put boots to the ground and do some scouting and driving. I run 3 dogs, all together the first day to burn energy then combo's and I only make one trip a year, but I have 8 years of maps showing where I have done well and always look to add new spots. I generally hunt election week.
 
The original posting for this is 4 years old but if still looking for pay hunting within an hour or a little more from Faulkton I have a contact I can share. Have never hunted the land but have seen it and they do manage it to a degree for birds. I also have the phone number for the guy in Faulkton at the grocery store that cleans birds And would assume he may be able to put you in touch with some people that do day fee hunting? We spend a day or two each year north of there and there are birds in that general area.
 
Matt D said:
The original posting for this is 4 years old but if still looking for pay hunting within an hour or a little more from Faulkton I have a contact I can share. Have never hunted the land but have seen it and they do manage it to a degree for birds. I also have the phone number for the guy in Faulkton at the grocery store that cleans birds And would assume he may be able to put you in touch with some people that do day fee hunting? We spend a day or two each year north of there and there are birds in that general area.
Click to expand...

Yes - The post was resurrected by Eryman's bot phishing reply.
[Note: Eryman's post has since been deleted (I reported it)].
 
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jonnyB said:
Hmmm...no magic to this request. Either one pays to hunt, or you spend your time knocking on doors developing relationships.

I don't think there is any shortcut to finding private land to hunt; it takes lots of research.

In late December, you may find a farmer that will allow you to hunt with no fee. However, most charge a fee throughout the season.

If you are based in Faulkton, start your inquiry/research at the local cafe, bar, gas station, motel et al. Drive the countryside and identify farms that appear to have decent habitat.

Start pounding on doors!

Good Luck!
Click to expand...
Bring some cheap beer, that always gets you on for free.
 
Matt D said:
The original posting for this is 4 years old but if still looking for pay hunting within an hour or a little more from Faulkton I have a contact I can share. Have never hunted the land but have seen it and they do manage it to a degree for birds. I also have the phone number for the guy in Faulkton at the grocery store that cleans birds And would assume he may be able to put you in touch with some people that do day fee hunting? We spend a day or two each year north of there and there are birds in that general area.
Click to expand...
I just read this post and want to come to the Faulkton area next week. Ive got access to some private ground but am always looking for another good spot. Paying to hunt not a problem. If you would share your contact I would appreciate it. Also if you have any info on the covid situation in that area. Im coming from St Louis and want to be aware of what the outbreak is doing. On line it looks like Faulk Co is much better than where I am. Thanks again
 
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