Public land public service announcement

[BuckSmasher]

Don't use surveyors tape. You are not surveying anything. It makes the woods look ugly and it broadcasts your position needlessly.

None of our forests have any areas further than a half mile away from at least a closed logging road. You can't get lost for long.

If you need to find your stand in the dark buy a cell phone GPS app and put a reflector on your stand.

[hully1029]

AMEN.

found a real, real nice 2 person stand yesterday. might as well just put flashing lights on it with all the tape leading to it.

[..Ambush..]

Originally Posted by BuckSmasher

Don't use surveyors tape. You are not surveying anything. It makes the woods look ugly and it broadcasts your position needlessly.

None of our forests have any areas further than a half mile away from at least a closed logging road. You can't get lost for long.

If you need to find your stand in the dark buy a cell phone GPS app and put a reflector on your stand.

100% agree... I tear the stuff down every time i run across it, nothing more than common littering IMO.

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[BuckSmasher]

Originally Posted by hully1029

AMEN.

found a real, real nice 2 person stand yesterday. might as well just put flashing lights on it with all the tape leading to it.

Originally Posted by ..Ambush..

100% agree... I tear the stuff down every time i run across it, nothing more than common littering IMO.

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I didn't figure it was TBH'ers doing it anyway but just thought I would share! Lol

I'm glad y'all think the same I do.

[Larry]

Don't touch another man's flagging tape!

Unless you plan on relocating it to another trail to totally confuse him the next time he tries to use it.

[Slow&Steady]

I use GPS specifically to avoid people following flagging tape to my stand. Public land hunting is supposed to be hard. I'm certainly not going to make it easier on the other guy by doing his homework for him.

[Texas Grown]

Originally Posted by Larry

Don't touch another man's flagging tape!

Unless you plan on relocating it to another trail to totally confuse him the next time he tries to use it.

So that's why I got lost and confused at the GV.

[BuckSmasher]

Originally Posted by Slow&Steady

I use GPS specifically to avoid people following flagging tape to my stand. Public land hunting is supposed to be hard. I'm certainly not going to make it easier on the other guy by doing his homework for him.

Exactly, I mean what are they thinking?

[BW96]

From 2 to 5 years old my dad would let stuff every pocket I had full. I was fascinated with it. I had every color, stripes long ways, stripes cross ways, reflective, ect. I didn't realize what I was doing till I started hunting public hard around 16, now I wish there were little kids like me running around ripping that crap down.

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[arrowsmack324]

Originally Posted by BW96

From 2 to 5 years old my dad would let stuff every pocket I had full. I was fascinated with it. I had every color, stripes long ways, stripes cross ways, reflective, ect. I didn't realize what I was doing till I started hunting public hard around 16, now I wish there were little kids like me running around ripping that crap down.

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First sentence is confusing as a monkey with a crossword puzzle.

[BW96]

Originally Posted by arrowsmack324

First sentence is confusing as a monkey with a crossword puzzle.

Starting at 2 years of age through 5 years of age, my dad would let me stuff my pockets full of surveying tape that came from public land. Better? Now read it again lol

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[Spearchunker]

Man amen! The public grounds I hit via boat are loaded with reflective tacks. It lights up like Christmas in the dark.

[SFAbowhunter]

Originally Posted by Spearchunker

Man amen! The public grounds I hit via boat are loaded with reflective tacks. It lights up like Christmas in the dark.

and those ain't mine!

[nimrodtracy]

I don't use flagging tape and believe that I will only show other my hunting spot but if someone else uses it I leave it alone, pulling down there tape could cause problems for them possibly put them in danger because they cant find there stand or find there way out of the bush.

Public land is for everyone not just the seasoned hunter and they will learn just like we did.

[BuckSmasher]

Originally Posted by nimrodtracy

I don't use flagging tape and believe that I will only show other my hunting spot but if someone else uses it I leave it alone, pulling down there tape could cause problems for them possibly put them in danger because they cant find there stand or find there way out of the bush.

Public land is for everyone not just the seasoned hunter and they will learn just like we did.

Sometimes I pull it down some time I don't.

If someone can't find there way out of the 'bush' 90 yards from a two track logging road, they have some problems flagging tape won't solve.

[Pope & Yum]

Originally Posted by Larry

Don't touch another man's flagging tape!

Unless you plan on relocating it to another trail to totally confuse him the next time he tries to use it.

[boomerball]

if it wasn't littering, I would be inclined to just move it to some random location

[duckmanep]

I like when they put each piece about 20 ft apart. They spent some time putting that crap up.

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[Felix40]

I was considering making a post about the same thing. Im so tired of seeing flagging, beer cans, water bottles and all other trash on public land. There isnt much pristine land left in Texas. We need to take care of it.

[BuckSmasher]

Originally Posted by Felix40

I was considering making a post about the same thing. Im so tired of seeing flagging, beer cans, water bottles and all other trash on public land. There isnt much pristine land left in Texas. We need to take care of it.

AMEN

I have thought of having a "TBH Cleanup" at the end of the season.

[Army of Dad]

Originally Posted by BuckSmasher

AMEN



I have thought of having a "TBH Cleanup" at the end of the season.

Flagging tape doesn't bother me nearly as much as the plain trash. Bottles, cans, food or bait containers, etc...

I pick up what I can, when I can (including old trot lines), but it seems like that battle will never end. I really hate seeing the trash on the landscape. At least with tape it's possible there's a use for it, but the "regular" trash has no purpose at all.

I prefer leaving as few traces of one's presence as possible. It makes for a better experience for all and I'm not a fan of doing the other guy's homework for him.


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[Sabineshooter]

I love the guys who put out the flagging to say “ this is my spot “ . I usually rip it down and find their feeder 100 yards off the road ...

[DeerBySchultz]

Originally Posted by BuckSmasher

Don't use surveyors tape. You are not surveying anything. It makes the woods look ugly and it broadcasts your position needlessly.

None of our forests have any areas further than a half mile away from at least a closed logging road. You can't get lost for long.

If you need to find your stand in the dark buy a cell phone GPS app and put a reflector on your stand.

Agree

[stinkbelly]

You mean you guys are taking my tape down. I thought the deer were eating it. Every time I go to the stand my flags are missing and there are deer droppings all over. I put more out every time to try to bring in the big ones.

At least no one has ever taken my duck decoys off of the lake during the night.

[backwoods]

If someone can't find there way out of the 'bush' 90 yards from a two track logging road, they have some problems flagging tape won't solve.

I dont like flagging tape either.

While I agree that in most eastern forest you are less than 3 miles "as the crow flies" to a trail or road, I think people need to research the area they are hiking into, let others know where they will be, bring along maps, GPS, and a compass. I wouldn't minimize the threat of getting lost.
I've spent quite a bit of time in national forest and preserves and the jungles of south east Texas can be dangerous if you are unprepared. You cant travel "as the crow flies" in some of the tangled thickets and swamps.

[Blackmouth]

Originally Posted by BuckSmasher

If someone can't find there way out of the 'bush' 90 yards from a two track logging road, they have some problems flagging tape won't solve.

We aren't all blessed with your navigational skills so I would second the comment about the risk of pulling someone's flags for safety concerns. I agree that they can be considered an eye sore but if it helps a new hunter or even a seasoned hunter with or without children to get out and do something we all enjoy then so be it as long as it's not a violation.

As far as the GPS or phone app with GPS, don't let that be your safety blanket. I dang near got lost in Big Thicket and I had a waypoint of where I parked the truck. It started to get dark and I headed back but the good ol GPS couldn't get a signal. I was only about 100 yards from the road but when every tree and water hole looks the same, you can go in circles if you don't watch out.

I think a compass should be in every person's toolbox if going out in unfamiliar territory.

[Ispdnxs]

Originally Posted by ..Ambush..

100% agree... I tear the stuff down every time i run across it, nothing more than common littering IMO.

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Took the words right out of my mouth.

[UrbanBuck]

i AGREE ...these fools dont realize it leads people including the Game Warden right to you...also lets the deer know ).... navigation skills? Everyone has a cell phone use your **** gps. No one wants to see you ugly flags thru the beautiful forest.

[FLASH_OUTDOORS]

Originally Posted by BuckSmasher

Don't use surveyors tape. You are not surveying anything. It makes the woods look ugly and it broadcasts your position needlessly.



None of our forests have any areas further than a half mile away from at least a closed logging road. You can't get lost for long.



If you need to find your stand in the dark buy a cell phone GPS app and put a reflector on your stand.

I will go against the grain here and say I am guilty from using it a time or two but ONLY, I repeat, ONLY for trailing a deer I’ve shot. I can get turned around super quick and lose a blood trail if I don’t mark the blood as I find it.

I use gps and memory to get to all my spots. Too many people in the woods to pave the way for someone.

One of my personal favorites is when I find hand written notes asking people to stay away. Those are always great.


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[Slow&Steady]

Originally Posted by FLASH_OUTDOORS

I will go against the grain here and say I am guilty from using it a time or two but ONLY, I repeat, ONLY for trailing a deer I’ve shot. I can get turned around super quick and lose a blood trail if I don’t mark the blood as I find it.

I use gps and memory to get to all my spots. Too many people in the woods to pave the way for someone.

One of my personal favorites is when I find hand written notes asking people to stay away. Those are always great.


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I use it to help blood trail too, when necessary. That said, I take it down once I'm done. This isn't really the issue. Do what you have to do to recover your deer, then clean up.

The issue is that I can go into the woods near where I hunt (which requires a significant boar ride) and walk into the woods, and I won't go 100 yards before I find the first piece of reflective red and silver tape. If I follow that red and silver tape, as sure as the sun rises, I'll end up at a certain treestand that popped up just before season. I saw that flagging tape the first time I went in there back in the spring. It's been refreshed since (though the old tape is still there). Having hunted my spot (which is 250-300 yards away from his), I now know that the hunter that hung the stand arrives 15-30 minutes before shooting time, and I know where he parks his boat and when he leaves. I arrive an hour or more before him, and I walk right by his stand on the way to mine. I don't think he has any idea that my partner and I are also hunting that area, and I know for a fact that he doesn't know that on opening weekend I saw around 15 deer and 5 or 6 hogs just a few hundred yards from his spot. That secret wouldn't stay safe long with a big bright breadcrumb trail of flagging tape leading right to it.

Also, I grew up in the Big Thicket. That is some nasty bush. That said, my Grandpa and Dad taught me to navigate by the sun and by the creeks and sloughs long before GPS was available on the commercial market. I get what you are saying about new guys, but I still think it's poor woodsmanship to leave that stuff out there. At the very least, pick it up on your way out when you are done hunting there.

[hogdoggintexas]

Originally Posted by ..Ambush..

100% agree... I tear the stuff down every time i run across it, nothing more than common littering IMO.

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I would like to know how it's littering?

[..Ambush..]

Originally Posted by hogdoggintexas

I would like to know how it's littering?

Like the old adage says... "pack it in, pack it out". In my opinion leaving anything, whether its a water bottle or flagging constitutes littering. Its just tacky and unappealing, we need to keep our Texas forests clean and pristine..

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[hogdoggintexas]

It's made from plant material. I don't see how it's littering. Also how do you know it's not from a surveyor?

[..Ambush..]

There are some kinds of flagging that are made from plant material but most are vinyl/ plastic... use it or dont use it im not here to be the police, just don't care for the stuff

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[Felix40]

Originally Posted by hogdoggintexas

It's made from plant material. I don't see how it's littering. Also how do you know it's not from a surveyor?

Is plastic made from plants? A lot of the stuff I find is several years old. Its trash and it stays in the woods for a long time.

[hogdoggintexas]

I'm a surveyor, i use it every day and I also know that ALL of it used today is made of soy bean.

[crawdaddct]

I was pulling some down till I saw it was the logging company putting it up. oooooopppss. Talked with the guy, they were doing a survey.

[Felix40]

First result on google search for flagging tape says "plastic" in the description.

So obviously not ALL of it is soy bean.

[hogdoggintexas]

I said all of it USED today is made of soy bean.

[BuckSmasher]

Originally Posted by backwoods

I dont like flagging tape either.

While I agree that in most eastern forest you are less than 3 miles "as the crow flies" to a trail or road, I think people need to research the area they are hiking into, let others know where they will be, bring along maps, GPS, and a compass. I wouldn't minimize the threat of getting lost.
I've spent quite a bit of time in national forest and preserves and the jungles of south east Texas can be dangerous if you are unprepared. You cant travel "as the crow flies" in some of the tangled thickets and swamps.

True. But if folks did that much research on their area odds are good that they will leave the flagging at home. Plus you have a longleaf pine in your avatar. Arguing is pointless.

Originally Posted by Blackmouth

We aren't all blessed with your navigational skills so I would second the comment about the risk of pulling someone's flags for safety concerns. I agree that they can be considered an eye sore but if it helps a new hunter or even a seasoned hunter with or without children to get out and do something we all enjoy then so be it as long as it's not a violation.

As far as the GPS or phone app with GPS, don't let that be your safety blanket. I dang near got lost in Big Thicket and I had a waypoint of where I parked the truck. It started to get dark and I headed back but the good ol GPS couldn't get a signal. I was only about 100 yards from the road but when every tree and water hole looks the same, you can go in circles if you don't watch out.

I think a compass should be in every person's toolbox if going out in unfamiliar territory.

I see your mocking but will not let it bait me into an argument. I just don't care enough about flagging tape to argue about it on the internet.

Originally Posted by UrbanBuck

i AGREE ...these fools dont realize it leads people including the Game Warden right to you...also lets the deer know ).... navigation skills? Everyone has a cell phone use your **** gps. No one wants to see you ugly flags thru the beautiful forest.

Truth. I spend all my time on public land trying to ESCAPE hunters not draw them to my setup.

Originally Posted by FLASH_OUTDOORS

I will go against the grain here and say I am guilty from using it a time or two but ONLY, I repeat, ONLY for trailing a deer I’ve shot. I can get turned around super quick and lose a blood trail if I don’t mark the blood as I find it.

I use gps and memory to get to all my spots. Too many people in the woods to pave the way for someone.

One of my personal favorites is when I find hand written notes asking people to stay away. Those are always great.


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Flagging for blood trailing works. After a few flags you can look over your backtrail and begin to infer a direction of travel etc.... but wouldn't you pick it up after you found your deer and therefore none of us would ever see it?

Originally Posted by Slow&Steady

I use it to help blood trail too, when necessary. That said, I take it down once I'm done. This isn't really the issue. Do what you have to do to recover your deer, then clean up.

The issue is that I can go into the woods near where I hunt (which requires a significant boar ride) and walk into the woods, and I won't go 100 yards before I find the first piece of reflective red and silver tape. If I follow that red and silver tape, as sure as the sun rises, I'll end up at a certain treestand that popped up just before season. I saw that flagging tape the first time I went in there back in the spring. It's been refreshed since (though the old tape is still there). Having hunted my spot (which is 250-300 yards away from his), I now know that the hunter that hung the stand arrives 15-30 minutes before shooting time, and I know where he parks his boat and when he leaves. I arrive an hour or more before him, and I walk right by his stand on the way to mine. I don't think he has any idea that my partner and I are also hunting that area, and I know for a fact that he doesn't know that on opening weekend I saw around 15 deer and 5 or 6 hogs just a few hundred yards from his spot. That secret wouldn't stay safe long with a big bright breadcrumb trail of flagging tape leading right to it.

Also, I grew up in the Big Thicket. That is some nasty bush. That said, my Grandpa and Dad taught me to navigate by the sun and by the creeks and sloughs long before GPS was available on the commercial market. I get what you are saying about new guys, but I still think it's poor woodsmanship to leave that stuff out there. At the very least, pick it up on your way out when you are done hunting there.

I think folks in Texas have grew up driving a four wheeler in to a box blind and sitting a feeder. Woodcraft is dying amongst Texas hunters.

[Kmart49]

Originally Posted by Spearchunker

Man amen! The public grounds I hit via boat are loaded with reflective tacks. It lights up like Christmas in the dark.

Once had a friend give us "directions" to a timber hole in AR when the White River was flooded. Told us to go down this lane to this lane and then find the reflective tacks to lead us to the hole. Every **** tree in those woods had at least one tack in it!

Took us until the sun came up to find where we were trying to go due to getting lost and leaving the gps in the truck.

[Felix40]

Originally Posted by hogdoggintexas

I said all of it USED today is made of soy bean.

Interesting that home depot would stock so much of something that is never used.

[dacento]

I saw a post on another thread where someone said he places a sheet of toilet paper on each blood drop when tracking an animal. Pretty neat idea and if you don't pick it all up it's gone in the first rain.

[tiberiuswade]

Originally Posted by nimrodtracy

I don't use flagging tape and believe that I will only show other my hunting spot but if someone else uses it I leave it alone, pulling down there tape could cause problems for them possibly put them in danger because they cant find there stand or find there way out of the bush.

Public land is for everyone not just the seasoned hunter and they will learn just like we did.

I agree, we have to teach new hunters on public land use. And if they read rules, it states "No flagging". Use starbrite tacks??

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[dacento]

While we're on things not to do on public land, has anyone ever come across a feeder set up on public? Saw one last week pretty far in. I left it alone, but it's disappointing to see something like that when I'm putting in the hard work.

[..Ambush..]

Originally Posted by dacento

While we're on things not to do on public land, has anyone ever come across a feeder set up on public? Saw one last week pretty far in. I left it alone, but it's disappointing to see something like that when I'm putting in the hard work.

Yep seen just about everything... feeders, tripods, ladder stands, and even hog traps. Very disappointing to see that kind of stuff when you're doing things the right way. Always somebody out there taking shortcuts..

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[BW96]

Last year I took a hike and ended up find a box stand with a feeder, and a ladder stand with a feeder along with miles of atv trails leading from private land. There's some bold people that think they can do what they want.

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[Army of Dad]

Originally Posted by BW96

Last year I took a hike and ended up find a box stand with a feeder, and a ladder stand with a feeder along with miles of atv trails leading from private land. There's some bold people that think they can do what they want.

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If you talk with the land manager for whichever public piece you were on I'd bet they would be very interested in that info. Maybe with GPS coordinates and some pics...


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[BuckSmasher]

Originally Posted by BW96

Last year I took a hike and ended up find a box stand with a feeder, and a ladder stand with a feeder along with miles of atv trails leading from private land. There's some bold people that think they can do what they want.

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Originally Posted by Army of Dad

If you talk with the land manager for whichever public piece you were on I'd bet they would be very interested in that info. Maybe with GPS coordinates and some pics...


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I agree with AOD. That's next level brazen. Are you positive it wasn't on a private in holding in the forest/wma?

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[BW96]

It's clearly marked public. I gave the GW gps coordinates. Not sure what ever happened but I don't plan on going to check it out. It was pretty nerve racking knowing these people are that bold and that they could be there with a gun. So I'll just mind my own business and hopefully the GW took care of business

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