Fella's, what do you think.....

[SoftCall]

Those of us with long term leases will obviously have the same price. I am happy with mine.

[Meeka]

Speaking of sports and Ole Miss, Gulf Coast, I played raquetball for about 1 and a half hours this weekend. First time in years. Yes, a few spots are bad.

Have raquet and will travel.

[Delta Duck]

Hammer, much better tude on your reply, I do hear where you are coming from.
I'm not sure about the curmudgeon, but I do like Andy Rooney

Sounds like you have alot to be thankful for, Family, Church, able to stay involved with the outdoors. The Ole Mistake sports thing, I don't guess everything can be perfect.

Reality, It would be a better world if people would stay close to it


Do you need a couple or 7 All American dogs? I was just thinking what Deadeye said

[GulfCoast]

Delta Duck: You can't get rid of any dogs! That would take you below 20 dogs. Everyone knows that a world class duck guide has to have at least 20! You only had 22 last time I was there, so you only got 2 spares!

[torch]

Hammer I agree with you and the "Delta" being the arm pit of america. Why in the hell would my forefathers settle in this godforsaken land. I'm glad they did. I live in Cleveland. One of the very few Delta towns to survive and thrive. My business is in Shelby(one of those Delta towns trying to survive.) But I am able to do things here I wouldn't be able to do in larger towns outside the Delta. School system here is great, I live 15 minutes from anything I want to do Golf, fishing and hunting. I know most people by their names and they know me, kids can play in the street and you don't have to worry. I'm proud to call the Delta home.

[JB Free]

Why would you pay a lease when we have such great, uncrowded public land to hunt..... cough, cough.

[mallardchaser]

I like the way hammer speaks his mind!
I think the lease prices will come down, I hope so, so I can rent me a place with one or 2 other guy's. I'm through with the large camp thing, I guess I'm too hard to get along with. I'm going back to solo hunting, that way you don't have to worry about someone going back to an area you showed them!!!!!!!!!!!

[sportsman450]

Dammit boy!!! I justed wanted a "simple" opinion on leases. Not necessarily a discertation on the haves vs the have nots, the farmers vs the businessmen, the repulicans vs democrates, etc, etc.

I'll tell you one thing.Hammer HAS alot more than most of the FNEJ types that frequent this site,but there is a very big difference.He WORKED HARD for it.His didn't come from DADDY!!!!

[HARLEY]

Went to supper the other night with the farmer of our lease, and the farmer from the property next door. I asked the same question about prices dropping. First let me say that our lease is a long term one where all involved are freinds so there should have been no bias in the answer. Both stated that there had been much discussion lately on the subject, and the reply from most is that if they cant get at least what they are presently getting then they probably would not do anything at all. Said there is to much work involved ie; pumping water, pulling levees, poly pipe, the list goes on and on. The only people who MIGHT see a break in price are the ones who lease sloughs, and natural flood areas as there is no work involved and a paycheck just to let somebody hunt on your ground is kinda nice.

[dedux]

A. I'm from the Delta.
B. I'm a farmer and landowner.
C. I'm not a "welfare queen"- I've worked every day of my life.
D. I was born here, raised here, and will die here.
E. I love this god-forsaken "armpit", as it has been described.
F. I lease my land out for duck hunting, and I work at it just like farming.
G. I've got a lot of ducks and geese; always have and always will.
H. Land is coming up for lease renewal this year.
I. Hammer, please do not respond to my ad in the Clarion - Ledger.

[Hammer]

Hey Dedux:

No offense intended...Just calling it like I see it not to insult anybody but to make the point that it is time for serious changes in the Delta...

Obviously the problem with over-generalizations is that there are exceptions to every generalization...There are some great people in the Delta (including many of my relatives) but the general direction of the region is headed south- without any doubt- way south as it has been for the last 40 years...I think the primary reason for that is an unwillingness to change, to adapt to new realities...

For example, the average Chinese rice farmer farms 5 acres by hand...There are millions of such rice farmers...When they get tractors, chemicals, etc there is no way that US rice farmers can compete with them other than through ever larger subsidies from the US taxpayer...There is merit in the food/fiber security argument up to a point but I think we basically have way too many farmers farming way too much land in the US where the opportunity cost of capital is very, very high...Virtually every farmer whom I know that has left farming has been very successful in his new occupation...

Based on the above, I believe that the Delta "leaders" should plot a new course...One that is not so commodity agriculture dependent...Other than Tunica, which kinda happened despite the Delta "leaders" there has been little or no willingness to do things differently and the region continues to whither on the vine as a result...Alternatively, several of the "border" towns such as Batesville, Grenada, and Winona are thriving...

As for your ad, I have two good duck holes- 1 that I own and 1 that I lease- so I dont need another duck hole particularly with the forthcoming reduction in days/limits and very overinflated prices paid by guys that simply have more money than sense...

As for Delta Duck: Thanks but no thanks on the dog(s)..I've got my hands full with two small kids...

As for Sportsman450: Thanks for getting my back...Daddy never had much money but he was one helluva duck hunter and in the words of the TV ads, our trips afield were "priceless"...

As for Harley: The work is not nearly as much as most Delta farmers make it out to be...I put in a 100' well for $7500...I run between 1/2 mile and 1 mile of polypipe to two or three different holes (depending upon rainfall) every year and had to build levees and install pipes to create my holes...Basically once the levees are built, they are there...Ditto for the pipes...The poly pipe takes no more than 1/2 day to put out and another 1/2 day to pick up...It costs about $100 per roll for 1/4 mile...The work/expense is just not that much unless you were born with a silver spoon in your mouth and have always had poor folks do the actual labor for you and the government pay you to not grow crops or come up with some other hocus pocus scheme to keep you in business.

HAMMER

[Deadeye]

Well spoken Hammer, I see your point. I did not take it personally because I am not and have not ever lived in the Delta. I was just curious as to what the new 30/3 season (if passed) would do to lease prices.

There are a broad type of reponses that one will get on any post here, some are offensive while others are of good insight. Things have gotten out of hand, that I will not argue. Take the price of a coke, 15 years ago you could get a can coke for 25 cents. Now it's more than doubled that....
people still pay for it! Just ask Delta Ducks wife.....

Take Care!
Deadeye

[Dutch Dog]

I have dealt with several of the landowners in the north delta. Some were actual land owners, and some were leasing the rights from the actual landowners (usually insurance companies). ALL of them have been A$$holes with the exception of 1 fella who was not from up here...he was from Rosafort??? is that right? anyway its from down around cleveland/clarksdale area I think. As far as I am concerned their land can ROT before I will lease any of it from the ones I have had dealings with. I am sure there are exceptions to the rule, but probably few and far between. I can also tell you that the ones around Tunica are in real need of a reality check. Before the casinos came along their county THEM INCLUDED was the POOREST county in the COUNTRY. They did absolutely NOTHING proactive to turn their county's economy around!

[Delta Duck]

Ya'll don't forget the 30 extra days of Snow goose hunting

[sportsman450]

The writing was on the wall 30 years ago.I was dove hunting with a land broker near Drew.The talk turned to duck hunting,and he just started laughing and said,"Doctors and lawyers from Jackson are paying me more for swamp land than I can get for prime farm land!"

It's been down hill ever since!!!!

Now their children are trying to preserve the heritage daddy bought!!!!