Fish and Game to spring turkey hunters: Thank your landowners

Apr. 11—Miss Manners would be pleased.

With spring turkey season three weeks away, New Hampshire Fish and Game is asking hunters to thank the landowners across New Hampshire who make hunting and other outdoor recreational activities possible.

And teach your children to do the same, the agency says.

"Remember that access to private land is a privilege provided through the generosity of the landowner," said Mark Beauchesne, coordinator of Fish and Game's landowner relations program, Operation Land Share.

More than 70% of land in New Hampshire is privately owned, Beauchesne said. "Practicing good landowner relations is key to maintaining access to private property for future generations," he said.

Hunting etiquette

Fish and Game offers the following tips for hunters to establish good relations with landowners.

DO:

—Treat the landowner's property as if it were your own.

—Even if you had landowner permission last fall to hunt turkey, check back in to discuss the spring hunting season and make sure nothing has changed.

—Become familiar with the boundaries of the land, surrounding property and adjacent recreation areas, farms and active logging operations.

—Always ask landowner permission if you plan to construct a ground blind. Get written permission if the blind will damage a tree or require cutting branches.

—Written permission also is needed to drive an OHRV on private property. Make sure you know where you are permitted to drive and carry the written permission with you.

DON'T:

—Park on lawns or block roadways, trails, crossings or gates. Leave all gates and barriers as you found them.

—Hunt near buildings, livestock, active logging operations or hiking trails

Spring turkey hunting season is May 1 to 31. For information: www.huntnh.com/hunting/turkey.html. For more about Fish and Game's Landowner Relations Program, visit: www.wildnh.com/landshare.

That goes beyond hunting and fishing access, he said. "There are a lot of folks who recreate on private land — birdwatching or blueberry-picking," he said.

"New Hampshire has this unique tradition of private land/public access, and that's been around since this land was settled," Beauchesne said.

During colonial times, he pointed out, "We couldn't hunt the king's deer, because it was England's land." So early on, New Englanders were mindful of keeping lands open for hunting game, he said.

Fifty years ago, New Hampshire lawmakers passed the state's "current use" law, which gives landowners tax breaks for keeping their property undeveloped and open for outdoor recreational activities, including hunting, fishing, snowmobiling, horseback riding and winter sports.

Beauchesne urged hunters and others to visit the owner of land they plan to use before the season begins. "That's just good neighbors," he said.

Here's where Fish and Game takes a page from Miss Manners, suggesting hunters make an effort to express appreciation to landowners with a note of thanks, a small token of appreciation or even an offer of assistance with a task or chore.

"Maple syrup opens a lot of doors," Beauchesne suggested.

Beauchesne has been following this practice since he was a boy, when his father sent him to a neighboring farm to ask permission to hunt squirrels there. "Ongoing communication with landowners makes a world of difference," he said.

Hunters often will offer some of the meat from game they've harvested to landowners, he said. "Sharing the game is fun," he said. "You do feel really good about it."

When you're on someone else's land, the golden rule works best, he said: Treat the property as you'd like your own land to be treated.

Without this sort of cooperation, Beauchesne said, the New Hampshire landscape would look quite different. "It would be a lot of yellow (no trespassing) signs," he said.

Beauchesne said it's also important to demonstrate good landowner relations in front of young people — for instance before, during and after youth turkey-hunting weekend, which this year is April 29 and 30. Show youngsters how to ask permission to hunt on the land and follow the property owner's requests.

"Remember that you are the guest of the landowner," Beauchesne said.

swickham@unionleader.com