Countless calendars have silently been counting down to this very week of October.  The calendars aren’t marked with exciting holidays, world breaking news or historic moments.  It isn’t the superbowl, celebrity concert or political rally that so many are waiting for.  Instead, it is the crisp early morning of the opening day of the Idaho deer hunt that have hordes of folks ticking off the days of their datebooks.

While the avid hunters are counting down to opening morning with the excitement of Christmas day, others, predominantly farmers and ranchers, are counting down to the dreaded day of the invading forces they seem to have no power over.

Farmers and ranchers rarely have qualms over hunting itself as many of them are hunters themselves.  Instead, it is the incursion of sportsmen that tend to take over the rural roads, rangelands and everything in between with little disregard to the people that live there.

Before taking to the hills to bag and tag this season’s trophy mount, take a moment to consider ways to be courteous to farmers, ranchers, and the other country folk living near your favorite hunting spot.

While the roadways may seem empty, you are not granted permission to ignore the speed limit signs and blast your way through the backcountry.  Even if there is no one around, you are driving past homes and through operations on your way to deer laden hills, and they deserve your respect by treating their space with a little courtesy instead of indifference.  Not to mention, an empty road can suddenly be filled with tractors, cattle, and the like, something you would never want to hastily have to swerve around.

One of the most enjoyable features of rural living to its residents is the peace and quiet.  The hustle and bustle of urban living takes a backseat to country life’s rustic ways.  As a visitor for just a few days or weeks of the year, do what you can to add to the peace, not the hectic chaos.

Follow the principles of the Boy Scouts- “leave no trace.”  From trashed campsites to just left out trash, traces of hunting camps can be seen all over the hillsides.  With more and more ATVs and UTVs becoming a popular mode of hunting transportation, little rangeland tracks are turning into backcountry highways.  Muddied streambeds or bogged swamps might seem like an adventure begging to be taken, but in reality are crying out to be left alone to run their own course.  True outdoorsmen respect the land that gives them the opportunities for adventure, thrill and even the food many use to fill their freezers.  

With so many, many acres of public lands to hunt on, you really don’t need to ask those farmers and ranchers to move onto their private lands.  Most likely, they, their families, or their close friends are already planning to take their own trek across their pastures in search of their next trophy mount.  Some may offer public access to their private acreage, and that is very generous of them.  Please don’t ever take their generosity for granted.

It is your responsibility as the hunter to know where public and private lands begin and end so that you don’t find yourself trespassing.  With the technology and resources of today, there is really no excuse for wandering onto private property.  Maps, GPS units, smartphone apps and various software can easily designate private and public lands, some in streaming in real time.

Idaho trespass laws states that “Hunters, anglers, trappers and other people should know that land is private, and they are not allowed without permission if the property is associated with a residence or business; is cultivated; is fenced or enclosed in a way that delineates the private property; or is unfenced and uncultivated but is posted with conspicuous “no trespassing” signs or bright orange/fluorescent paint. 

In those instances when road access through private property is allowed, leave the property just as you found it.  Gates should be closed or locked, fences should be up, and any equipment left untouched.  Even though you might be on vacation for your hunt, they are likely still working with cattle or gear on their property.

In the event you are not granted access through private property, you are not being issued a challenge of how to break in.  Cutting locks, removing gates or cutting through fences is destruction of property on top of trespassing.  Those landowners have every right to block access, even if the deer you are chasing heads that way or the road you need to take winds through their property.

Unfortunately, I have seen most of these courtesy tips violated in one way or another by hunters.  Our own locks have been cut, gate hinges taken off, barbed wire fences found cut and “No Trespassing” signs torn off.  The thoughtless manners of even a single hunter is frustrating.  

So come this hunting season, be the hunter that respects the local farmers and ranchers, that graciously thanks them for their help and respectfully shares the lands they call home.  You might not tag that trophy mount this year, but you are sure to bag a little bit of your own respect and favor.