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Category: Fieldcraft
Finding a place to hunt can be really tough these days, especially if you aren’t fortunate enough to own or lease some high-quality hunting land. However, public land is another good option that doesn’t cost much to hunt on.
While the quantity and quality of public land varies from state to state, the fact remains that there are millions of acres of land all over the United States on which you can hunt. You’ve just got to find them first. Read on to find out how to find a place to hunt.
While the quantity and quality of public land varies from state to state, the fact remains that there are millions of acres of land all over the United States on which you can hunt. You’ve just got to find them first. Read on to find out how to find a place to hunt.
1. State wildlife agencies
One of the first places you should look on your quest for finding a good place to hunt is the website of your state wildlife agency. Not only will virtually every state wildlife agency provide a good listing of all state-owned public land parcels, but it will also let you know if any special permits are needed or if there are any special seasons that must be followed when hunting on state land.
Unfortunately, the quality of information on public land varies from state to state, so you may have to look elsewhere to get all of the information that you need.
2. Recreation.gov
After checking out public land administered by your home state, the next place you should look is for land owned by the federal government. Fortunately, the website Recreation.gov allows you to search for a place to hunt all over the country on land administered by the National Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management land, and the Bureau of Land Reclamation (among others).
In addition to finding a good place to hunt, you may also use this website to find places to fish, camp or hike.
3. U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
When you’re looking for a place to hunt on public land administered by the federal government, don’t forget about the national wildlife refuges that are located all over the country. The United States Fish & Wildlife Service administers millions of acres of public land, and there may be one near you that you didn’t even know about.
Though some wildlife refuges have specific hunting regulations and may require a special hunting permit to use, fortunately, the Department of Fish & Wildlife also runs an excellent website that is user-friendly and provides all of the necessary information in one place.
4. Powderhook
Powderhook is a new resource dedicated to connecting hunters with good places to hunt. They have a comprehensive directory of public land, as well as private land that may be hunted for a fee, all over the United States.
The idea was to compile all of the available hunting land into one single resource. Though they are still building their list of private land, Powderhook’s list of public land is mostly complete. All of their listings (public and private) are compiled on a searchable map.
5. onXmaps
Another method of finding a good place to hunt is to purchase an overlay for your global positioning system that contains property boundaries. onXmaps sells maps for every U.S. state that are easy to use and show every piece of public (as well as private) hunting land located in that state.
These maps may be used on your computer as well as your GPS and are extremely beneficial if you’re looking for a place to hunt. In addition to showing the exact boundaries (and ownership) of all tracts of land in the state, they also contain the location of many small parcels of public land that aren’t widely known.
One-handed shooting seems to be a lost art.
It is common to train with handguns using two hands. Two-handed shooting offers stability, increased precision and comfort. Shooters achieve their greatest accuracy with shooting while using both of their hands.
However, there are several scenarios where one-handed shooting is required. One may find themselves protecting a loved one with one hand and defending themselves with the other. Imagine walking down a staircase while standing on an uneven surface. Using an off-hand to grab a rail for stability and defending oneself with the other hand is a real possibility.
Worse yet, getting injured from a shot may leave the defender no choice but to engage using only one hand. The hypothetical defensive situations are endless. Therefore, it is imperative to train and gain confidence when shooting with the use of one hand.
Cant or No Cant
When shooting with only one hand, it is best to model similar mechanics used with two-handed shooting. There is no need to reinvent the shooting wheel; however, there are slight differences worth considering.
Thrusting the shooting hand forward while stepping with the same leg offers a stable, clear vision of the target. Some shooters turn sideways when shooting one-handed. I like to extend my right arm and my right leg while keeping my chest angled toward the target. I also prefer to slightly cant the pistol to align the sights. Some people may find it best to keep the handgun in a vertical position.
With practice, each shooter will determine which works best for them. I find that a slight cant of the pistol feels natural and aligns my sights, which gives me my best one-handed accuracy.
Get a Grip
A strong and tight grip on the handgun is essential for shooting accurately one-handed. While keeping a secure wrist, drop the shooting hand thumb to offer the most support around the entire grip.
This concept goes against two-handed shooting where the thumbs are forward and raised. By dropping the thumb combined with a secure grasp, the pistol is solidly supported. Not only will a strong grip help with accurate shooting, but it will also prevent a system failure.
In a perfect world, we will use two hands to shoot. But, we will use one hand when we are forced to do so. Since we do not live in a perfect world, the last thing we need is a system failure.
Don’t be a Groupie
I think that too many shooters concern themselves with tight groups. I admit that a tight group will boost self-esteem. In defensive shooting, how much does it really matter?
Some shooters believe a 3” group from 10 yards is a successful round of shooting. Although tight groups are great for bragging rights, they are not a necessity for defensive shooting. Any shot impacted on a silhouette target can be considered effective.
One-handed shooting will rarely achieve the same groupings compared to using both hands. Give yourself some grace and work up to precision. For those willing to put forth committed effort and energy, they will eventually see positive results.
Get Close and Personal
Now that we understand that we may never achieve the same accuracy with one-handed shooting, where do we begin? I feel it is best to begin training within five to seven yards of the target.
Without transitioning between targets, begin firing a full magazine at one stationary target. Then, evaluate the impacts and make the proper sight adjustments. Once the shooter becomes consistent, they should back up.