In what might be the most heated landowner vs trespasser (hounds) video we’ve seen to date, this one really raises some questions and debate. What would you do if you were the landowner in this situation? Would you have handled it the same way or differently? 

Granted, this involves black bear hunters who are running is hounds in the Northeast, the same situation is seen repeatedly across whitetail country. Watch the video first, then check in with your comments on our Facebook post by clicking here.

Clash of Cultures

Problems with hounds crossing property lines isn’t the only common complaint among today’s landowners. It’s really boiling down to a clash of cultures: old school hunting traditions vs new-age hunters and even, sadly, wealthy people who are buying up traditional hunting grounds and closing them down to all types of hunting.

The whole idea of public resources vs private land rights is explored by Will Staats, who worked for both Vermont and New Hampshire for 40 years as a wildlife biologist. He’s also a passionate hunter. He knows the back country of the Kingdom right up through Maine and into Labrador. One day in October he took me bird hunting deep in the unorganized town of Ferdinand. We talked about birds. And we talked about the growing divide between traditional hunting culture and people who don’t like certain kinds of hunting here in Vermont. But it was more interesting than that…it was also about how people harden against each other then alienate each other…something we do a lot of these days.

In an interview with VPR, Statts provided his insights for RumpleStripVermont. You can listen to that interview HERE.