Looking to Hunt Hogs and Shoot Clays in South Florida

[RobV]

I'm originally from Central PA, and hunted there for for small game and deer for ~25 years, and I never realized how spoiled I was until I recently started looking for places to shoot and hunt down here in So. Florida.

First, I only found ONE gun range that I can shoot more than 25 yards (called Markham Gun Range) that is anywhere close to me... and the people running the place are referred to as 'Nazis'. And while I can appreciate that they don't want a bunch of yahoos running around, it did sound like they had a bunch of rules in place that seemed a little strict. Like you can't shoot twice at the same clay. Now, for all I know that may be totally normal, and probably a rule if you are a professional competitive trap shooter, but I had never heard of that before, and find it odd its an actual rule. I guess we are less formal up in PA. If you miss one on your first shot, you better hit it with the second one… that's why we use double barrels etc. And I don't see that as dangerous, or anything else. We shoot clays so when we go out for birds and rabbits, we come home with some… and if it takes two shots to get one down, so be it.

At another place, Bass Pro Shops, you have to shoot your long guns sitting down... and the range is only 25 YARDS! In PA, if we shoot 25 yards with a bench rest, you better end up with only one hole in your target at the end of the day. And I'm using a shotgun... but then some places only allow slugs, other only buckshot, others only that ammo that fragments, others only ammo that doesn't. So much for swapping loads and versatility...

If you research online, just about everyone hates most ranges, and the places they don't mind make you buy their ammo, pay quite a bit by the hour, or both. In PA we have 'ranges' owned by no one(?) out in the woods with spill piles all around as backdrops. And these aren't even private ones in people backyards… these are listed on maps. Sure we have more formal ones, but if you just want to scope in a gun, you just go do it, and be courteous if anyone else is there, and just be smart about it.

Hunting here is even worse. EVERYTHING is paid. They whine and cry about hogs destroying everything then try to charge you $150 for a pig and another $150 for a guide, and if you are lucky enough to get a big one, they charge you even more. One place charges a $1000 for a PIG HUNT. I mean that's great if you can get that out some some rich guy, but where I'm front we hunt for meat. And apparently even the farmers down here won't give you permission either. I haven't tried knocking on door yet, but several other guys told me not to even bother trying. And I would think farmers would want all the hogs killed.

I mean, maybe I can see paying $50 for a day and sharing the meat, but from what I hear that doesn't even fly down here. So that leaves these designated hunting areas ...but then I find many of these seasons are more strict than deer hunting, and you need all sorts of permits, and the season only lasts a few days, etc. And at the same time, the state is reporting damage in the in tens of millions of dollars… go figure.

I've spent about 6 hours between last night and tonight going through this forum trying to find related posts, and days reading everything I can online, but all I can find are guided hunts, or guys saying their are no pigs where they are looking. Then reading news articles saying they are all over destroying the place. It's crazy. Contradictions everywhere.

I'm going to the range in the morning and then out on my motorbike in the afternoon to try knocking on some doors myself to see what happens. I tried calling the animal control up in Clewiston but they haven't called back yet. I was hoping they might have some tips for me. Also thought about trying some feed supply stores and gun shops up that way to see if they had any tips.

But if anyone has any tips for me here on a place I could go to out and hand toss some skeet, or a place that might be decent to ask for permission to hunt, I'd love to hear your thoughts. Right now the only thing I can think of for shooting clays is to find someone with a boat and go out in the ocean. Serious. Don't even know if that is legal down here although I can tell you it wont be good for my gun. For hogs I guess I'm going to have to wait for a season and get all the paperwork filled out before that goes anywhere.

Anyway, any thoughts are welcome. Thanks in advance.

 

[03Shadowbob]

We all feel your pain down here especially those of us who were born and raised down here when it was a great outdoors hunting state before the northerners started moving down here for good and developing land and changing our laws. There's more than one reason us Crackers tell the northerners to go home and resent them.
As far as hunting, it's mostly either private canned hunts or the WMAs which are overcrowded and you need a buggy usually. There are ranches in Labelle and Okeechobee where it's $100 - $120 for a meat hog and a tip for the kid to quarter it for you. There are plenty of private ranches where you can hunt but you gotta know the owners or land managers very well.
No such thing as throwing clays anywhere around here without having a sheriff show up. It's a damn shame considering I used to just have to go west of 95 or Military trail to go shooting and hunting.

 

[RobV]

Well, I guess that is the way it is then and I better get used to it. I hear you on the Northerners too. Everywhere I ever been they say the same thing. California, Colorado, and Utah in particular. But I wish us Central PA boys could get an exception. I have better gun etiquette than just about anyone I've ever hunted or shot with, and while I'm definitely no expert marksman, at least I'm safe to take out in the woods and on a range, or where ever we happen to be shooting. I also don't litter and leave gates how I found them and all the other rules that are common sense but maybe not written down.

Here is a couple more range rules i just found that seem a little over the top:

1.) no human silhouette targets. Apparently people at the ranges can't tell them apart from people?

2.) no rapid fire pistol shooting.... where 'rapid fire' is defined as shooting more than once every 5 seconds. In my opinion, rapid fire shooting is unloading the entire pistol in 5 seconds... and I rarely do that. But one one thousand, two one thousand, three one thousand, four one thousand, five one thousand? Where I come from, that's not pistol training, that is weight training

...ah well, maybe with a concerted effort and good luck, some new opportunities might open up. Appreciate your local insight. Thanks.

 

[RobV]

Ended up at the National Armory (http://www.nationalarmory.info/) off of Atlantic and 95, standing, using slugs (only)...

Nice place. Seemed professional, clean, well lit, and well ventilated. Service people were friendly (in that gun shop/tough guy/gun on hip sort of way) and the range manager was helpful and friendly. (He politely waited until I was down with my first round of shooting before he asked if I was using slugs, which I thought was respectful.) I didn't need to buy their ammo or targets, but I bought a few extra shells anyway... the price was fair for buying 5 at a time.

I only stayed for about 40 rounds at 25yard (max range) before my cheek and shoulder were sore, and I was pleased with the gun, and where it was hitting, so I bailed before the hour was even up. Its only about 10 minutes away and I just wanted to squeeze a few rounds off with some slugs before I headed out this afternoon.

Anyway, this was the only place that I hadn't heard any real reviews, but I liked it, would recommend it, and will go back with my pistol to soak up some of my time in the future without destroying my shoulder. I'll report back any thing else I come across in case anyone one is in the same boat.

Oh, and they obviously were ok with any target silhouettes, and rented all sorts of weapons/no ban on rapid fire. Seemed A-OK to me

 

[Sebastian the Ibis]

2.) no rapid fire pistol shooting.... where 'rapid fire' is defined as shooting more than once every 5 seconds. In my opinion, rapid fire shooting is unloading the entire pistol in 5 seconds... and I rarely do that. But one one thousand, two one thousand, three one thousand, four one thousand, five one thousand? Where I come from, that's not pistol training, that is weight training

You have to join a shooting club that rents out the LEO range at the far side of Markham or Trial Glades, or start one with your friends, then you don't have to deal with the ridiculous rules. There is a guy I shoot with who loves ripping off a mag out of his Mac-10 whenever they say "no rapid fire" on the loudspeaker.

For hunting or long range shooting, there is nothing closer than lake Okeechobee that I know of.

 

[RobV]

There is a guy I shoot with who loves ripping off a mag out of his Mac-10 whenever they say "no rapid fire" on the loudspeaker.

AHAHAHAHAHHA!! Love it!


>lake Okeechobee
Yeah, I was supposed to get out and scout up there on my bike yesterday, but I didn't have a pontoon side-car ... we got hammered with rain down here. And Sunday is a bad day to knock on doors, at least where I'm from.

My strategy is fairly simple: do a search for guide services then look for low land with decent cover within a 10 mile radius of their address, on the assumption these guys wont drive more than that far every day to hunt. No idea if that holds true down here but its usually the case in the little towns up in PA, at least when it comes to birds.

I also found some articles in the local paper that talked about problem pigs that allowed comments and so I wrote up a little offer to help them solve their problem, along with my contact info, in case anyone happened to come across them, but the articles were pretty old.

Feed supply stores, diners, bars, and hardware stores make up the rest of my bag-o-tricks. We'll see...

 

[MattTheHat]

There is a guy I shoot with who loves ripping off a mag out of his Mac-10 whenever they say "no rapid fire" on the loudspeaker.

AHAHAHAHAHHA!! Love it!

And *THERE*, folks, you have the reason why land owners (such as myself) don't allow others to hunt on their land. If a guy can't follow the rules at a range, how in the heck am I supposed to believe he's going to act responsibly on my land.

I shoot handguns at at my local range which has a rule against rapid fire. I don't personally care for the rule, but I darn sure make sure to adhere to it while I'm there, because it's their property, and their right. Almost every single time I'm at the range, someone has to be reminded of this rule, even though it's posted at every single shooting station, and is clearly mentioned in the rules you have to read when you sign up to shoot.

As was mentioned in the original post, you see all kinds of threads all over the internet where people complain about the rules at different ranges. The opinion seems to be that nobody has the right to tell us how to shoot. Well, when we're at a range or on other folks property, yeah, those folks have every right to tell us how to shoot.


-Matt

 

[RobV]

Hey Matt, I follow the rules. Doesn't mean I have to like them.

 

[Cob]

The difference between a yankee & a dam yankee



Your best bet is going to be to get on the telephone, drive a bit, start knocking on doors, and try to obtain a private lease of some sort, either solo, or as a member in conjunction with a hunting club... in that part of the world, $10.00/ acre is cheap., i've seen $25-$30/ an acre for land to hunt in prime locations. talk to local game wardens, foresters, farmers, landowners, etc... thers' a system in place there for locals, you have to tap into it... go to the local waffle house, look for camoflage, or local gun store, etc... You have to find the place with the right atmosphere to be successful...

Use the lease in conjunction with the FL public land draw, which sign-up starts in a week, May 11. try to scout public land on a map first, within a 2.5 hours drive of your location... find what may be available for walk in hunts, or by quota permit, then put in for the draw. Check FL FWC website for more information. There's over a million acres of land in FL to hunt, and the quota system is going to be your best bet for public land, with limtied access.

and BTW, if you find a good place, guard it as best you can, as politics for hunting in that part of the world can be fierce.

there are game ranches in FL that offer hunting on a fee by day basis, if you get in on a meat hog hunt, they are generally somewhat cheap, and success is guaranteed, though not my preferred style of "hunting"....

 

[Cob]

http://www.fl-dof.com/state_forests/index.html

here'sthe link to state forest's managed by FL DOF


http://myfwc.com/hunting/wma-brochures

Research the WMAs. The FL FWC website offers a web page designated to the WMAs with maps, brochures and regulations. They break up each WMA into regions making an easier search for your public hunting land. Determine the area of the state that you wish to hunt and review the brochures and maps for each WMA

 

[RobV]

Thanks, Cob!

Thanks for bringing up the lease thing.... thats the first I heard of it! And while I have already seen the links you posted (thx, btw) I did NOT realize the May 11th date! Wow, thank you for pointing that out too!

As far as the guided hunts go, I feel the same way. It's not that I don't value a good guide, it's just that I've been down here 4 years now and I'd like to start actually hunting down here, instead of just flying back to PA. (Actually I'd like to do both

...but I don't mind putting in some time to make it work. That's why they call it hunting, right

Thanks again for your advice. I really appreciate it.

 

[Cob]

I actually told you wrong... the date for applying for some limited entry hunts started May 3rd. like Green Swamp, & alligator permits....The rest of the WMA's "big game" applications periods start June 1. The dates are a bummer, you really have to check the FWC website to get the best information

After moving to Fl from MS in 2001, I was faced with the same dillema... here's another piece of advice...hang on to PA hunting spots for as long as you can, don't lose the places to hunt where you are from either... ....

 

[Sebastian the Ibis]

And *THERE*, folks, you have the reason why land owners (such as myself) don't allow others to hunt on their land. If a guy can't follow the rules at a range, how in the heck am I supposed to believe he's going to act responsibly on my land.

We were. Instead of just going the public range for $10, we formed a company obtained a million dollar insurance policy, and met all the other requirements to rent out half the range for hundreds of dollars a day so that we can rip off a mag out of an MG. Unfortunately, that's what it takes to be able to do it down here.

 

[gatorjames85]

But I wish us Central PA boys could get an exception.

Believe it or not, we do distinguish between types of northerner. When you hear complaints/stereotypes they usually refer primarily to city dwellers from the northeast.

 

[RobV]

city dwellers from the northeast

Yeah, I hear you My home town is maybe 6000 people and big cities are about 3 hours away in every direction, although most people that live there have never seen them, or had any reason to visit. We get the first day of buck and small game season off from school, so the teachers can go hunting too, instead of sitting in an empty classroom

I think I'm going to get to tag along to a private 4wheeler/shooting camp called River Ranch this weekend up in Central FL where I hear we can shoot some clays. I bought 100 low brass shells and a box of white flyers, so I'm hoping everything goes as planned. I haven't been on real ground in months (just concrete or my back yard) and I'd like to break in my new gun and dust some fake birds

We own about 25 acres in PA of pretty dense forest and swamp (where I sometimes hunt with my .44 for deer) but we hunt deer with some friends of my family (for 50 years) that have 1700+ acres of nice land, and a little cabin I helped build. Since we have a great place to go, we give access to our land to our neighbors, because that is ideal for them.

Image from my tree stand:

Image of our friend's cabin:

 

[oneounceload]

Here's a list for clays:

http://www.claytargetsonline.com/list.php/FL

As for your disdain for how things are different here - remember, the interstate goes both ways. You obviously moved here for a reason - don't try to "Californicate" ( a term we used in NV) Florida - adapt to what this place is like, don't go changing it into what you left. There are reasons things are done in certain manners. Of course, you can always buy your own spread of land and do what you want