Where to hunt in Texas depends on several factors

Except for a small percentage who own land holding game or have access to land controlled by family or friends, Texas hunters face three options: hunt public land, become a member of a hunting lease or club, or use the services of a guide or Approximately 97 percent of Texas is privately owned, and the state’s landowners long ago learned hunters are willing to pay for access to tracts with good game populations. […] some of those areas can provide high-quality hunting for those lucky enough to draw one of the limited number of permits issued for some of the sites or willing to put in the time and “sweat equity” to scout and learn areas open to low-cost or no-cost access. Federal lands – including portions of the Angelina, Sabine, Davy Crockett national forests, Caddo National Grasslands and Big Thicket National Preserve – offer the largest tracts of no-cost hunting for deer, squirrel and other game. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department offers the state’s most diverse and popular public hunting program. The agency’s special-drawing hunts offer opportunities for deer, antelope, feral hogs, turkey, alligators and other game on the agency’s wildlife management areas and dozens of state parks. The $48 permit gives holders access to hunting for a variety of game, including deer, waterfowl, quail, dove, feral hogs, squirrel and other game. Other options include commercially run hunting lease registries, many of them online, where landowners or lease managers advertise openings and, for a fee, hunters looking for leases can access information about those leases. While guided deer hunts are out of the price range of most hunters, guided hunts for feral hogs are moderately priced and increasingly popular.

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