Unfortunately, it's started, and really, it does not ever end.
Next time you spy someone from the house, try to circle around and find out how and where they are coming in.
Keep all of your stocking records and receipts for legal action, if necessary.
Excerpt from Robert Crais' "The Monkey's Raincoat:" "She took another microscopic bite of her sandwich, then pushed it away. Maybe she absorbed nutrients from her surroundings."
I met a fine gentleman at a New Years Eve Party last. We hit it off because of our mutual interest in fishing, hunting, and gun collecting. He's now retired and for the last ten or so years worked in education. He mentioned that earlier in his career he was a game warden. I asked why he left, "my partner was murdered on duty."
I know exactly where they come onto the property b/c there's a pushed down piece of the fence on the back edge of the property along the golf course.
I went back there today and nailed the fence back up to the post and against a tree.....and put a posted sign right beside it. I put 4 other posted signs up.
Good news is I caught my first fish out of the pond today and it wasn't one of the ones I stocked....b/c it was a huge bluegill. That made me feel a little better. I also saw two bass cruising in the shallows which looked to be about the size of the 10 that I put in the pond last week.
It bugs me that these inconsiderate buggers are making me spend my $$ on efforts to keep them out........and yet then again I remember how it was being a mischievous young teenager too.
My thing is, depending on the way they were raised, they can become a major headache for me. We had a deputy come out today and talk to my wife and essentially said that unless they (cops) are able to walk right up to them and catch them in the act, there's nothing they can do. I could go out and buy a $100 wildlife camera and catch photos of them trespassing but what will that do? They'll either find it & steal it or if I actually catch them in the act and turn them in, they still live 100-150 yards behind my house across the fairway and will make life miserable like pranking teens can do......ie vandalizing and just general terrorizing. And with just my wife home during the day alone, that's not something I'm keen on.
Actually had the deputy tell us we should buy a big dog to roam the property and acted surprised when my wife said we don't need him coming back out to put the dog down as being a nuisance animal when it bites someone or better yet, we get sued.
I liked the range idea.....I also thought about posting a sign that says "warning: rattle snake nursery" lol
Harbor freight sells knock off survelince cams for 6$ I put them up and my neibor asked where i got my survelince sytem. if it keeps 1 person off the property its worth it. I am plnning on putting up a real dvr surveliance sytem that runs a 30 day loop. I have found them for around 500$ on line. 4 camera system day and night. thats if you have power. some advice on trail cams use infered amd put them up in trees abhout 10 foot up angled at 45 degrees to get there faces and this way they dont see the cam and swipe it. attached is a pic of a trespasser on my property.m I know who he was and afeter putting it in his mailbox i havent seen him around since
A weeks worth of vacation, 59 hours in a John Deere 160, 2 logs of Skoal, 1500$ in fuel, Lots of help from the neigbors and my old man, and a wife with an open mind to let me dig a pond at are cabin. All i can say is life is good!
The subject problem sounds manageable without knowing all the details.
Getting a picture of these people fishing does hold weight, but getting something like that through the trouble of the courts may be premature and the law does not have time for a lot of these types of things.
If you have pictures, you then can find out who the kids are and you then have so many more options on how to deal with it. Many times, a simple face to face dialogue can be very effective.
The shooting range option, while usually very effective, will likely be a hollow threat here with being adjacent to a public golf course and other homes.
Excerpt from Robert Crais' "The Monkey's Raincoat:" "She took another microscopic bite of her sandwich, then pushed it away. Maybe she absorbed nutrients from her surroundings."
Once we regain access to our property, a motorized, motion sensing system and internet will go on our place. along with internet viewing and notification...There is software that claims to be able to distinguish between people and animals and will focus in close up shots automatically, transmits wirelessly to the DVR and uploads to the net to save an image if the DVR is stolen or disabled.
Yeah you got it RM. That's exactly what I am fixing to do as well! If you can get internet there you can do a lot of stuff if you know what and how to set it up.
The only difference between a rut and a Grave is the depth. So get up get out of that rut and get moving!! Time to work!!
You might want to consider writing a handwritten note, laminating it, and posting it right by where they get to your pond. Emotional appeals might deter some people that will ignore, or get a thrill out of, walking by a "NO TRESPASSING" sign.
"I've worked very hard to develop this pond for my family's enjoyment. When you come onto our property, you damage what we love and destroy my hard work. Please do not hurt us by trespassing on our land."
I was just in court last week for a case where my father and I caught two guys trespassing on land we manage for an elderly lady and in return she lets us hunt it. They had just killed a buck on it and were driving right through a soybean field. We were not happy! They actually drove over a posted sign to get on to the property...
We obtained their information and call the game warden. He came out, took our statements and then made contact with the guys. He charged them both with trespassing to hunt. In Virginia, that is a Class 1 misdemeanor, which is the most serious misdemeanor there is. It carries up to a 12 month jail sentence and $2500 fine.
Well, the prosecutor said they had no criminal record so she allowed to to do a plea bargain. They got a 6 month deferred disposition. This basically means, if they do nothing illegal for the next 6 months, the charges are dropped like it never happened... Pretty pathetic! Virginia has tougher trespass laws than most states. Where our hunting and fishing land in Pennsylvania is, the laws up there are a joke and getting the PA State Police, Game Commission or Fish Commission to do anything is next to impossible!
They wonder why land owners go crazy and start shooting at trespassers? It's called frustration that the laws are pathetic or not enforced!
I am dealing with an increasing problem at one of my mothers propertys that is getting really out of controll. She bought a 75 acre property that has a 7acre lake on it. One side of the lake has houses on it. She owns a perimeter of 20 yards on that side of lake, yet they have docks and shed's on the water. When she bought the place 2years ago I started with the nice guy approach and talked to everyone saying as long as everything is cleaned up " Beer cans, cases, fishing line ......" I dont care if they fish there. Now every time we go out some YAHOO and I almost get into a fight calling me every name in the book saying they have a right to be there from the former owner. Last week when I went out there to clean some brush I had the cops called on me at my own family property... What a mess. It took my mother driving 45 mins and me getting nothing done. Now that its on record with the police I am seriously thinking of making all neighbors good and bad stay off the property period.
They have docks and sheds on your Mother's property? That is insane!!!I would invest in a tall, quality, welded wire fence on that side of the property. Those yahoo's are looking to take over what isn't theirs. Good Luck!
A word on video surveillance systems. They can get expensive fast, but,..... don't go so cheap just to get a video system in place. Its of no value if the image is blurred and a positive ID cannot be made from the video system alone. Depending on the State, an official "No Trespassing" sign may need to cite the statute section number to be enforcable in court. Check your local laws.
A type of sign that says "Smile, you just got your picture taken" has worked very well for me.
CJ, I've found the PA State Police and Fish/Game Commission people to be very responsive and helpful.
I've also found that granting neighbors the right to fish or hunt your pond leads to bigger problems as they extend the invite to their friends and family.
Excerpt from Robert Crais' "The Monkey's Raincoat:" "She took another microscopic bite of her sandwich, then pushed it away. Maybe she absorbed nutrients from her surroundings."
If you have power and fast internet you've got some great options that aren't ridiculously expensive. I've got several power-over-ethernet PIR (passive infrared) cameras hooked up to a wireless router with a verizon 3G card. I get instant photos or videos on my iPhone, day or night, whenever the cameras detect motion. As an absentee owner, I can call my good neighbor who will jump in his car and intervene. And I have clear photos/videos of the perp which I use to prosecute. So far I've taken one person to court and he got slapped with a $175 fine and a warning. Word's out in the neighborhood that I don't play.
I am dealing with an increasing problem at one of my mothers propertys that is getting really out of controll. She bought a 75 acre property that has a 7acre lake on it. One side of the lake has houses on it. She owns a perimeter of 20 yards on that side of lake, yet they have docks and shed's on the water. When she bought the place 2years ago I started with the nice guy approach and talked to everyone saying as long as everything is cleaned up " Beer cans, cases, fishing line ......" I dont care if they fish there. Now every time we go out some YAHOO and I almost get into a fight calling me every name in the book saying they have a right to be there from the former owner. Last week when I went out there to clean some brush I had the cops called on me at my own family property... What a mess. It took my mother driving 45 mins and me getting nothing done. Now that its on record with the police I am seriously thinking of making all neighbors good and bad stay off the property period.
Dang it man that is just jacked up!! Docks on your pond??? That's even more jacked up. Isn't it amazing what people think they can do just because they been doing it and getting by with it??? So many people in our country have no respect for anyone anymore it makes me sick. Your going to have to spend some money on that side of your pond to keep people out and I can see any kind of fence being damaged all the time just out of spite if you put one up. Where have all the good people gone?? Not just kids these days even grown 30 plus year old men think they can do whatever they want to whoever they please?? WTF is up with that???? It's fustrating for sure!!
The only difference between a rut and a Grave is the depth. So get up get out of that rut and get moving!! Time to work!!
You might want to consider writing a handwritten note, laminating it, and posting it right by where they get to your pond. Emotional appeals might deter some people that will ignore, or get a thrill out of, walking by a "NO TRESPASSING" sign.
"I've worked very hard to develop this pond for my family's enjoyment. When you come onto our property, you damage what we love and destroy my hard work. Please do not hurt us by trespassing on our land."
I am actually considering this option too. I know within a 5-6 house range where the teens are coming from. I thought about taking pictures of the damage to my fence line and writing a short letter that communicates the fact that we're investing our time & money into repairing damage that has been done by trespassers and just want the violations to stop. Then putting these fliers in the mailboxes of the houses on this street with hopes that the adults in the home are responsible and can say something to the teens.
But that said, I also figure that can open up another can of worms by essentially "advertising" the property and also getting the teens in trouble = opens up the odds of them vandalizing the property.
I've certainly had my share of trespassing, theft and vandalism issues at our property. IMHO nothing will eliminate trespassing especially if you are an absentee owner but also my experience has been you can reduce trespassing through the following courses of action:
1. Research the trespassing laws in your state/county. Know what the laws are and what your rights are as a land owner.
2. Get to know the local law enforcement. In my area there are two Deputies that patrol the area. We have met and talked with both of them. They are great guys. Let them know you on a personal level.
3. Make sure your entire property is fenced.
4. Patrol your fence line as often as possible, repair any broken or cut fencing.
5. Post "No Trepassing, No Hunting, No Fishing, No Motor Vehicle Activity" signs along the entire fence line and along every trail on the property. Surround your pond with the signs. At a very minimum post them at the interval required by law. We have gone way beyond this interval along the fence line. You can purchased quality aluminum no trespassing signs in bulk on Ebay (25 signs for about $45 with shipping). (Ebay no trespassing signs). The signs are very visible and are reasonable enough to replace. IMHO the plastic ones are a waste of money, the don't hold up. With the bulk signs in the link you have to drill your own holes but that is easy. We mount them to the fence using heavy wire twisted tight with the ends cut off short. That makes them harder to steal. Along trails and around the pond we pound in "T" posts and mount the signs on them. When a sign goes missing goes missing we replace it immediately.
6. Buy reasonable game cameras and surround your pond and other valuables with them. Mount the cameras in security boxes and use a locking cable (Python cable) to secure them to trees. Put them high enough in the tree that they cannot be reached on foot. All of ours our mounted at least 10 feet up so covering them up or otherwise tampering with them is difficult. If you capture an image of a trespasser forward the image to your local law enforcement. They might know who the person is and be willing to contact them.
7. Use "property under surveillance" signs and post them in any location that you suspect people are entering your property and around your pond.
9. Get to know your neighbors. Meet them face to face. This will do two things, first you might recognize as trespasser when caught on camera (one of the trespassers on our property was a neighbor) and second you can make the neighbor aware of the trespassing issues you've had and ask them to keep an eye out for trespassers as well. Tell the neighbor that you have added security cameras and that you intend to prosecute trespassers and ask the neighbor to spread the word.
10. If you are an absentee owner try to arrange to have family, friends or neighbors, check on your property as often as they are willing to.
11. Determine the legality of shooting firearms on your property and set up a safe and legal shooting range. Practice with the firearms frequently on your property.
Basically you need to make your property as uninviting as possible to trespassers. We have had way more than our share of issues with trespassers and are utilizing all of the above methods. We haven't eliminated trespassing but we have reduced it significantly. The signs and cameras cost money and are a hassle but IMHO are good deterrents. Plus with the cameras you get the bonus of getting some good wildlife images.
JHAP ~~~~~~~~~~ "My mind is a raging torrent, flooded with rivulets of thought cascading into a waterfall of creative alternatives." ...Hedley Lamarr (that's Hedley not Hedy)