[meteorite-list] Some thoughts on Hunting in West, Texas and private property....

From: Pete Pete <rsvp321_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Fri, 3 Apr 2009 04:09:49 -0400
Message-ID: <BAY141-W800BF49CB312E32093B6EF8890_at_phx.gbl>

Hi, Mike and List,
 
Would it be fair to say that Mr Enders was making ~ $3,500.00 a day; $24,500.00 a week from hunters?
 
I think he may be taking this summer off!
 
CHeers,
 
Pete
 


----------------------------------------
> From: mikewren at gilanet.com
> To: meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
> Date: Thu, 2 Apr 2009 21:13:55 -0700
> Subject: [meteorite-list] Some thoughts on Hunting in West, Texas and private property....
>
> Hello All,
>
> You can simply assume that what does not belong to you, belongs to
> someone else. Private property is obvious. If it is not yours, it
> belongs to someone else. Getting permission to hunt meteorites on
> other people's property is an absolute must. Especially, in places
> like West, Texas.
>
> When my son and I first arrived in West, Texas, the first thing we saw
> was Mike Farmer coming out of one of the local bakery shops. We
> stopped and said hello. I asked him if he had found any stones and if
> I could see one. He showed me a real pretty ~30 gram one. We all went
> in and had coffee and kolanches and talked some. I then told my son it
> was time to go find this strewn field. My son Chris, said why don't
> you just ask Mike where they are finding stones. I said we could, but
> I want you to see how this is done from scratch, besides we might find
> something out that they don't already know. So we headed out blindly
> and we started to knock on doors and talk to people.
>
> It did not take too long (about 6 hours) to start to understand the
> lay of the land and where some of the strewn field might be located.
> We came upon Mr. Enders farm and saw him and his son driving over to
> their barn. His place really looked good for hunting and we really
> wanted to talk to him. I went up to his truck and introduced myself to
> him and told him what I wanted. At first, he was not wanting to talk
> to me and said he was not wanting any more "Meteorite People" on his
> property. He was afraid of all of these strangers roaming his property
> and afraid on being sued. We talked for a while and I suggested that
> maybe my son and I could hunt for the day and that we were really
> excited to be hunting meteorites and would appreciate the chance to
> hunt his land. I told him that to me it was worth $50.00 per day per
> person to hunt. I would give him a $100.00 up front for my son and
> me, for today's hunting. He asked me what these things were worth and
> for the next several hours we talked about meteorites, hunting, places
> I have been, what they are worth, why they are important, etc, etc. I
> told him that it was way too early to know what this particular fall
> was going to be worth, but probably more than $20.00 per gram. I told
> him I would pay between $3.00 to $5.00 per gram and $100.00 per day
> for Chris and I to hunt. He accepted. He told me he let some other
> folks hunt for a day, but they offered him only a $1.00 per gram and
> no base fee for the day. I told him that was way to low. I said, this
> is your land and just to be able to hunt meteorites on it is worth
> more than that to me. He asked me if I wanted him to keep the other
> hunters off his place since I was "leasing" or paying for hunting
> rights. I asked him how much land he had and he said 500 acres! I said
> there was no way my son and I could hunt all that land. I told him a
> lot of these hunters came from far away and that they would appreciate
> a place to hunt that had good potential. I told him to keep to the
> base fee of $50.00 per person and around $3.00 per gram, but he should
> maybe be flexible with all and do a deal with each person as he saw
> fit. He thanked me for letting him know what was going on and Mr
> Enders gates were know open for business! Over 70 people searched his
> land and they keep searching and finding stones. Over 100 individuals
> have come off his land and his place is huge and there is no doubt
> more there on his property.
>
> On days when my son and I did pretty good I always gave him a bonus
> above our agreed amounts. We had fun and we paid to play. Also, Mr
> Enders knows my ebay store and knows what I get for my West pieces,
> and regardless I am welcome back anytime!
>
> Mr Enders called me the other day and thanked me. He said he has done
> real well and appreciated how I helped him use his ranch to make money
> in these hard times.
>
> Some things....
>
> * Always get permission to hunt on private property.
>
> * In order to get permission, be polite, kind, respectful and take
> time to do a little educating about meteorites.
>
> * There are dollars $$$ involved with meteorites, so maybe share some
> of this in whatever way works with the private land owners.
>
> * $25.00, $50.00 or $100.00 per day to hunt potentially meteorite
> laden ground is a small price to pay if you love hunting. Yes, of
> course, if you can do it for free and the owner of the land does not
> care about a fee, well I guess that is fine too.
>
> * Work out some understanding about value and what you might be able
> to pay. Believe me, you would hate to find a 5 kilo meteorite and not
> have some discussion ahead of time about how you are going to handle
> this with the land owner.
>
> * Respect people's wishes if they don't want you on their land.
>
> * If you are traveling with several meteorite hunters, maybe only have
> one person go to the door to begin talks. Think about it, after
> hearing a knock, you come to the door of your quiet farm house, and
> there are 3 or 4 guys standing on your porch???
>
> * If you are in Bush country, don't pull up with an Obama sticker on
> your car!
>
> * Don't bring your dog meteorite hunting-dog's chase livestock.
>
> * Assure the land owner that your responsible. You will close gates if
> closed. You will not damage fences. You will stay away from
> livestock. You will NOT sue him or her if you get hurt.
>
> * After you have a relationship with one landowner, maybe you can ask
> them to call their neighbors and vouch for you. This opened up several
> closed properties to my son and I. These people don't know me, but
> they sure as heck know the land owner and have for 30 years! Make
> friends and allies.
>
> * Stay off of planted fields. Dude, if you walked on my plants in my
> garden-I would throw a rock at you!
>
> * Get Permission. Be respectful. Share in the riches $$$. Also, always
> (In The Nininger tradition) take time to teach about the wonderful and
> exciting world of meteoritics!
>
>
> Some Thoughts...
>
> Michael Cottingham
>
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Received on Fri 03 Apr 2009 04:09:49 AM PDT