Starting your own hunting club is kind of like having your cake and eating it too. By establishing a club, you still get to maintain your privacy, but you do not have to pay the price that usually accompanies it because the cost is shared amongst members. If you are looking to start a club, here is where to start:

Purchase/Lease a Plot of Land

The first step to forming your very own hunting club is purchasing or leasing a piece of property if you do not already have one. If you already know you are planning to have other hunters on the property alongside you, make sure to buy/lease a property that is large enough to accommodate all of the members and keep them safe. Establishing a hunting club can allow you to purchase/lease property that would have otherwise been out of reach, but don’t go overboard!

Decide on the Members

Membership is one of the key aspects that can make or break your hunting club. While you are starting out, it’s best to only allow four or five other members into the club so that it is easier to organize. If possible, only choose members with whom you have hunted before, so that you are not surprised by someone’s habits in a negative way. You can always add more members later, but it is significantly more difficult to kick members out.

Organize an Initial Meeting

It would probably be overkill to require members to attend a meeting every month, but you should at least require all members to attend the first meeting of the hunting club so that everyone can get on the same page. From there, key members of the club can handle most of the responsibilities, while the entire club meets a few times a year to make sure everyone is up to date.

Treat the Hunting Club Like a Business

If you want your hunting club to succeed, you need to treat it like a business. You will want to collectively decide on a name, keep records, elect officers, and discuss issues of legality and/or safety, and more. It is a smart idea to also write bylaws for the members of the group, so that the expectations and consequences are clear for every member. These do not have to be extremely in-depth, but you will want to make sure your bases are covered.

Get An Insurance Policy

Unfortunately, accidents happen at hunting clubs on a regular basis, so you need to ensure that you and your club are protected if anything were to happen. Set up a liability policy for your club and also insure the landowner. Even if all of the members in your club are family members or close friends, it does not mean they are incapable of filing a lawsuit against you if they happened to be the victim of an accident while at your hunting club.