Howdy! Most, if not all, of your questions can be answered by getting an Annual Public Hunt permit from TPWD or wherever hunting licenses are sold. You get a booklet with maps and all of the information on WMAs. Always, Gene

You can also be busted without a cold storage log book for game animals.Ask a game warden to provide you with a cold storage log book,it is mandatory

Yes thieves can be verry dangerous at times , I had a poacher on me lease at circle lake in pinehurst about 25 years ago that pulled a gun on me & said he would hunt the damed land anytime he wants, called the sheriff & he said he thinks he knew who it was but couldnt do anything. Be Careful with them out there.

 P.S. what part of Magnolia do you hunt in , I live off 1488 between Magnolia & Fieldstore.

Thanks for the response, been hard trying to get some information out of some. I was in Tyler this last weekend and headed out to the land to see some 10 hogs while fishing (spring fed tank), 2 deer bouncing off as I approached my feeder (it hasnt had corn in it for some time but the deer are close), and saw a few dove. I'll be back up for opening weekend so hopefully my game cam will produce something positive and I'll bag some dove for NFL season opener. Go Cowboys!

I believe as long as she's not shooting or holding birds she's ok. I wouldn't even hand her the gun. All it takes is a game warden to see her with a gun, and she's considered a hunter.

Not trying to be negative here, but good luck finding inexpensive hog hunting. Unless you are kin to the land owner. There's too much money to be made in hog hunting. Everyone complains about there being too many, but nobody wants to let people hunt them without a payday.

Season Duck Lease being auctioned at banquet:

2011/2012 Water Fowl Season Membership
Executive Membership

HUNTING PROPERTIES
1. Franz (Brookshire)- New property with 6 duck ponds and a roost. 2. Turkey Creek (Beasley) New property 30 minutes from Houston 4 ponds and roost. 3. Reed (Lissie) New Property 2 ponds in Rice. 4. Glen Flora (Wharton) New property 10 acres of flooded green timber and 40 acres of crawfish ponds with rice. 5. Blue Creek (El Campo) 4 ponds and a roost. 6. Grady Allen's (El Campo) 1 Pond in rice. 7. Blockers (Bay City) 80 acre D.U. project can hunt 3 groups. 8. Darnell (Bay City) 2 ponds in rice. 9. Red Gate (El Campo) 1 pond. 10. Silivas (Bay City) 3 ponds. 11. Nada 2 (Garwood Prairie) 4 ponds (In Negotiation) 12. Coastal (Markham) 6 ponds (In Negotiation) We are in negotiation on two properties right now. If they do not work out we plan on replacing them with something equal in size, location, and quality.
MANAGERS
Nick Stillwell and Lane Thompson With 20 Years Of Water Fowl Management Experience

For The Entire 2011/2012 Season, No Guest Fee, Only One Guest Per Hunt Allowed Child Or Adult
GUIDED HUNT OPTIONAL
If You Book A Guide, Guide Fee Is $50.00 Per Person, Extra Scouting, Guide, Retriever, Decoys And Hunt Set Up Are Provided
HUNTING TIMES
You Are Allowed To Hunt Monday-Sunday As Much Until 12:00pm
RESERVATION PROCESS
Hunt Is Booked By E-Mail or Phone Call Four Days In Advance Or Sooner
FOR QUESTIONS OR DETAILED INFORMATION CONTACT
TO GET SIGNED UP AND RESERVE YOU’RE SPOT
Pay On Line At www.ghcof.org
Or
Mail A Check to GHCOF, P.O. Box 3082, Sugar Land, Texas 77487-3082, Attention: General Membership

Scout the area you want to hunt first. Go deep in the woods if hunting public land. A hand held GPS works great for this, you can mark all of the spots that look promising on it. The deeper you go the further you are from everyone else, and the more deer you will see. One thing I never understood was most of the guys I've seen that hunt public land never travel very deep into the woods, or they walk and stalk. I've yet to see these methods work on public land. One thing you've got to remember is there will be more people there than you expected, and the deer will not be used to all of this new activity, and it will drive them deeper and further away from all of the commotion. Also buy a climber type stand, and you will have a lot more success. Public land hunting can be a lot of fun, but it is a LOT more work than a lease.

Just not on public land unless otherwise noted. Crossbows were legalized for archery season last year, but quite a few of the public hunting areas do not allow them unless handicapped. 

Danny,

Five things I hope will help:

First, getting a lease usually takes time.  Get to know the people who interact with ranchers like foresters, wildlife biologists (TPWD or otherwise), ag salesmen, or even oilfield landmen.

Second, unless you have deep pockets you'll probably fill a slot on an existing lease.  Get to know those guys as much as you can before you sign.  I've had real good success hunting with others on leases, but as many on this board will attest to there are some real horror stories because everyone is not as ethical or safe as you'd like.  Expect to pay about $1,500/gun minimum for a decent place.  There are exceptions, but generally speaking its not going to be cheap.

Third, since the cost is so high most leases in Texas are overhunted.  Find out how big the lease is and how many hunters will be on the lease, what the bag limits are, and what the guest policies are.  Before I signed I'd call the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department biologists and get his opinion on the hunting pressure.  What works with hunter density in ETX usually will not work in WTX.

Fourth, I'd also get Google Earth or some other capacity to look at the lease to see what's around it as far as water, cover, topography, and the size of offset ranches.  Sometimes a smaller lease next to a big ranch is a real honey hole.  But, these days with high fencing and the like those are few and far between.

Last, there are a number of guys that hunt public land on this site, but most of those are bow hunters.  I wouldn't hunt there with a gun though - at least for the first week of the season, and around Thanksgiving.