What is “Do-it-Yourself” Hunting?
If you want to purchase a Kentucky deer hunt, but maybe the services of Kentucky hunting outfitter sounds too expensive, you may select a “do-it-yourself” hunt. This can mean a few different things.
First, I believe it to mean that you are leasing land X number of days during the Kentucky hunting season to try and harvest a deer on your own. You won’t be with a Kentucky hunting guide, you’ll arrive to the hunting grounds on your own and be in charge of yourself. You will be arriving to a place you know is well-managed for deer and even set up to go hunting on with very little preparation. There should be stands hung and options to quickly start hunting without any work, however, this isn’t necessarily the case. My Kentucky deer hunting ground is set up to begin hunting right away, but I tell my hunters to bring an extra stand or two so they can set up a few places of their own I may have not placed a stand.
There could be a lodge or cabin to have a “base” out of, but that is an amenity that usually exists under the “Kentucky hunting outfitter” slogan. My hunting property I permit my hunters to use my cabin. The problem is hoping people don’t steal any of the equipment or items in the hunting cabin. You won’t have anyone to help you drag out the deer or have someone to help you field dress the deer. Now at my place you have the option of shooting your Kentucky whitetail trophy and taking it right to the deer processor. For $10 extra they will field dress your deer.
This type of property would have food plots, auto-feeders, basically everything a Kentucky hunting outfitter or a Kentucky hunting guide would offer, but the actual real-time services of their expertise.
On the other end of the spectrum, the do-it-yourself hunt might mean you are leasing the land from a person for X number of days. The land won’t have any food plots on it at all and likely isn’t baited for deer either. The land owner would hopefully let you bring out some corn and other bait a few days prior to your hunt if it’s a Kentucky bow hunt. If it’s a gun hunt and the property isn’t managed much, chances are you’ll have leased it for the entire 10 day gun hunt season and you’ll get to bait it in advance. This way the Kentucky deer hunt is much cheaper and the prices vary greatly. Most of the time in today world of hunting being mainstream, deer hunting is reserved for the entire family unless you happened to know the 1 in 1,000 farm owners that will give you the Kentucky hunting lease rights for the entire year for around $2,000.
With Kentucky deer hunting property becoming as well known as Iowa deer hunting, the farms are being bought up and managed for a higher-end commercialized cliental who make a few extra bucks in the city that can spend a little more on this ancient "hobby".