Getting Hunting Permission - Hints & Tips

[Togger]

Yesterday I read this thread and got to work on Yell.com. Printed off some letters, got the stamps and sent them off (I only sent 6). Then after dropping the letters into the mailbox I went for a drive up to one of my permissions which has been a bit neglected for a while (not a lot on it now), had half an hour just scoping it with the binoculars and then made my way home.
However, half a mile or so down the road there were hundreds of pigeons sitting in a tree above a stubble field. Just a bit further down the road and there's a farm entrance with a bloke sat in a van, so I pulled up and asked if he knew who owned the land, as i'd just driven past and noticed that it looked like theres a big pigeon problem. "I expect you'll be wanting to come and shoot it then!"

Moral.. i'd spent an hour or so in the morning researching farms, writing letters, addressing envelopes, posting them, and then just out for a drive and fell across a new permission! While sending out letters is a great idea, and hopefully i'll get some positive replies, getting out and talking to the farmers is instantly gratifying.....well it was yesterday

Togger

[watthefunk]

hey thanks for this, its gave me some good tips

[dazza1980]

Same as my friend, i got mine today. I have my insurance gun, but no where to shoot, im going to approch the couple of farms around my ways very soon tho.

[Carlo42]

Amazing advice thanks alot .

[Geordie2k9]

good advice i think i will give this a go with the farmer up the road when i get my rifle thanks for the hints

[highlander]

Today i got 3 new shoots all for just being nosey ..... i moved to the highlands 6 months ago and as spring approached i went out in the car for a local reccy .... i popped into the local gun/fishing shop and had a look at his air rifle display ....all 3 of them .... 2 bsa lightnings and an old hw77..
i asked why so little air rifles and he explained everyone up here has a FAC so there was no great demand for them ... as its 22 rimmys for the rabbits and bigger for the deer .. muttering under my breathe after finding out i will have to go all the way to inverness to get my bottle filled i left shop to find 2 4x4s sitting with lamps, gun racks etc .. after nodding a friendly hello to the chap driving i laughingly asked him "where do i have to go to get a shoot with my airrifle ?" .. one of them in the back cracked a joke about pea shooters etc but the eldest gent told me to give him a phone and gave me his name and number .. anyway i gave him a call and low and behold he invited me down to his farm ... upon arrival there were 4 massive livestock sheds ... after introducing myself and the usual banter the chap then told me about his jackdaw , feral problem he was having ..
we wandered over to the barns to find about 50 jackdaws inside and about 30ish ferals ....... he then went on to explain that the other 2 guys in his car were his nephews and that they had blown that many holes in the roofs that they were no longer allowed to shoot in or around the farmyard/barn area ... upshot was he owned another 2 massive farm/outbuildings in the local area and iv got full permissions on all..
im also under strict instructions to chase his uppity nephews if they appear LOL anyway bagged 5 jackys and 8 ferals this morning
so im now going round all the local farms and offering my services specifying the barnwork only ..... old guy is a well known Local Farmer and says just to mention that ive got permission on his and most will grant it...
anyway i cant wait to chase Mr Peashooter away from my new shoot LOL

Moral = dont be afraid to ask farmers who you already think have shooters .... alot dont let people with rimmys into their barns or outbuildings as holes in roofs = money ..

[rab a sas]

thank you very much for all of your advice, do you guys think that i would be able to get permision as i am only 14, 15 in jully. i am very responsable and safe but have not really had any experiance hunting. i do have a friend who is in his 20's that has had experiance hunting, do you think it should try to get him to get permision for both of us?
thank you for your help
rab

[Crab Doctor]

You would be very lucky indeed to get a shoot at your age. Even if you did, you would need someone over the age of 18 to carry your gun to and from your shoot. You would not even be allowed to carry pellets if you are under the age of 18

Persons over the age of 14 but under 18:
1) No person under the age of 18 may purchase, hire or be given an airgun or ammunition.
2) A person in this age group may shoot unsupervised on private land with the permission of the landowner but must be supervised by somebody over the age of 21 if in a public place.
It should be noted that this means that a person aged seventeen and a half who may have a driving licence cannot take an air rifle from home to his club to shoot unless the gun is possessed by somebody over the age of eighteen or the seventeen and a half-year old is supervised by a person over the age of twenty-one.

I'm not sure whether you could get shooters insurance at your age but I doubt it I'm afraid.
Your best bet is getting experience by joining others on their shoots but that is up to them because if anything happened to you they would be in a world of sh!t.
You never know, by joining others you may get to know one of the land owners well enough for him to let you come on your own but nobody in their right mind would let someone as young as yourself on their land with a gun.
Sorry bud, I'm not trying to rain on your parade or belittle you or even doubt your responsible nature but I am just saying I wouldn't get your hopes up .

[rab a sas]

ok thanks, il pm you when i have permision
i know i wont get permision at somewhere like a golf course but im hoping something will come up where i know someone who will let me shoot.
thanks
rab

[Crab Doctor]

ok thanks, il pm you when i have permision
i know i wont get permision at somewhere like a golf course but im hoping something will come up where i know someone who will let me shoot.
thanks
rab

yeah no probs I honestly wish you all the luck in the world mate, hope you get one