European regulation, enter and post how is it in your country

[rik_uk3]

Thanks. Cyprus looks a cheap country if I needed to rent a flat, if hunting laws are permissive could be a good option.

Cyprus is not a cheap country anymore, not as cheap as Spain and as you must know property prices in Spain have dropped 50% or more in recent years buying or renting, stay in Spain.

 

[Haggis]

Hunting and gathering is not so easy, if it were, humans would not have moved on to herding and agriculture some 10,000 years ago. I hunt, trap, fish, and gather, but mostly because I prefer wild foods to commercially produced foods. The laws in Europe are much like the laws in the United States, they are very different each time one crosses a political border. Here in Minnesota the laws have become so complex that some folk have given up hunting, trapping, fishing, and even gathering wild rice. It has become almost impossible to abide by the laws as the laws often contradict each other, or are subject to the interpretation of conservation officers eager to write fines.

 

[Marijn]

Holland has quite a strict system in regard to hunting. That said, there is a clear legal split between hunting and countering crop damages and population controle. Legally it is only called hunting in season on the game species; duck, pheasant, rabbit, hare, pigeon and partridge. The last it legally still game however the season is closed due to waning numbers (ironically enough, decline started going faster the moment the hunt closed...) Countering crop damages is on permit only but basically the whole year round. Mainly on geese (multiple species, pigeon, jackdaw and blackcrow. And locally more species if they cause nuisance or damage. Population control is regulating the numbers of Roe, red and fallow deer and wild-boar. Red deer are limited to a small portion of Holland while Roe and fallow are more common. Wild-boar are alowed in only two places in Holland and are to be culled in other places.

To obtain an hunting licence you have to pass a examn following a 6 month course, you have to be able to provide proof of insurance and hunting opportunity. Meeting those demands you can apply for a hunting license and buy up to 6 hunting rifles/shotguns.

With regard to living off hunting. My main source of meat are geese with the addition of rabbit, pigeon, pheasant, hare, roe-deer and wild-boar. Although the deer and boar all come from Germany where I often hunt on invitation.
Geese make an excellent substitute for minced beef, especially when mixed with more fatty meat from wild boar.
The only meat i buy is chicken and the occasional steak.

 

[santaman2000]

Marijn, thank you for reminding me of the requirement for taking a course prior to getting a license. Florida (like most states) has a requirement for a Hunter Safety Course, but only for those born after 1975 (which is why I always forget about it, as I'm much older than that) Also like most states, Florida's course is approximately 3 days in duration unless you take it on-line, in which case you still need to show up in person for a half day of range time.

 

[British Red]

<Partridge is> legally still game however the season is closed due to waning numbers (ironically enough, decline started going faster the moment the hunt closed...) .

Nothing ironic about it, its certainly true in this country too - for many, many species - that hunting protects them, by providing food, habitat, predator protection etc.. Shooting here spends much, much more money on conservation than, for example the RSPB (the main bird protection charity).

 

[arnoldpredator]

How would you plan to cope if you became ill or injured arnold? Just lay down and die?

Well there are a lot of things you can do, and I plan to carry some pills in my pocket just in case.

Cyprus and Malta are currenty coming under pressure for their hunting laws and lack of enforcement over illegal hunting.

Posting for awareness:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ehOvfA6hls

Thanks for your message.

+1

It's extremely short sighted and naive to think you can just up and move to a country and live off the land, land that is in most cases owned by someone else.

Unless you are hunting big game like deer, boar etc it's going to be extremely difficult to kill and forage enough to keep you in sustenance.

You also have to think about purchasing ammunition, gun licenses, repairs, maintenance, getting to and from hunting grounds.
You'll also have to find some way of making the meat last.

You then have to think that there are very very few areas where you are allowed to hunt anything, all the time, so you will have to hunt only what is in season, so that'll often mean travelling to different areas.

There is also the time involved, it takes time to learn how a species acts, where they sleep or roost, where to find them at certain times of the day, where to aim to kill them quickly.

You'll also need to be a good marksman, and with lower powered guns or easily spooked game, a good stalker, this again needs time and patience.

Even if you have the skill, knowledge, finances and permission to hunt on some land, how long do you think you can hunt before a certain species becomes wise or you've killed them all in that area?


Then there is your health to consider, if you are eating the same meat every day from the same area it's not going to be the healthiest way to live.

Even if you have money for medical care, what happens if you are laid up with flu for 2 weeks, who will supply you with food then?


No doubt that there are folks in areas of the world that do live off the land, so it is possible, these people have built up their knowledge and skills over many years though, they often have communities around to take up the slack when illness strikes.

I am aware about all those problems.

"No doubt that there are folks in areas of the world that do live off the land, so it is possible, these people have built up their knowledge and skills over many years though, they often have communities around to take up the slack when illness strikes."


Yep, and even these folk wouldn't live to be old men if they were doing it on their own

Arnold, how long were you thinking of doing this?...it comes accross as a life choice
I'm afriad mate that it would be a harsh, miserable, and relatively short one even if you possess the knowlage and skill set of a first nation dweller in the area you choose

Imagine that first winter. Or the winter that comes after the one that killed the last of you're nice modern gear. Brrrrr lol

Kudos for even considering it though. Truth be told its a fantasy for a lot of us on here
I'v been into "bushcraft" since before it was called that and I wouldn't have the balls to
Plan to permanently move into the wilderness and abandon all concept of money


......adam

I have been thinking about this for one year or more. At the moment is a fantasy for myself too, but we can learn, can't we?

With game such as rabbit, squirrel, dove, quail, turkey..... You just use a 12 or 20 gauge and aim center mass (or with a little lead if it's moving)

The rest of your arguments are pretty good though, and I agree. It's certainly possible to feed yourself by hunting and fishing alone. But that won't feed you well. It leaves out all the starches and vegetables, and you still need a freezer or some other way to keep your haul. And you need a place to live, access to medical care, ammo, fishing tackle, etc.

And to the OP; yes your posts after the OP seem to indicate you expect to live entirely off grid (with no economic ties at all to civilization) That is seriously more difficult than simply feeding yourself by hunting and fishing.

I also agree it is not easy, it is a kind of plan B just in case everything goes the wrong way.

My sleeping bag is a nice place to live, ammo is free since I will use stones, there are natural resources that can be used as tackle, also methods to maintain the meat... I know it is not easy.

Cyprus is not a cheap country anymore, not as cheap as Spain and as you must know property prices in Spain have dropped 50% or more in recent years buying or renting, stay in Spain.

Well Spain is very expensive, the petrol, accomodation... and the wages are ridiculous, not the best country to live at the moment. Thanks for the advice about Cyprus.

Hunting and gathering is not so easy, if it were, humans would not have moved on to herding and agriculture some 10,000 years ago. I hunt, trap, fish, and gather, but mostly because I prefer wild foods to commercially produced foods. The laws in Europe are much like the laws in the United States, they are very different each time one crosses a political border. Here in Minnesota the laws have become so complex that some folk have given up hunting, trapping, fishing, and even gathering wild rice. It has become almost impossible to abide by the laws as the laws often contradict each other, or are subject to the interpretation of conservation officers eager to write fines.

I have never said it is easy. Yes the laws are a mess, you can't do anything legally.

Holland has quite a strict system in regard to hunting. That said, there is a clear legal split between hunting and countering crop damages and population controle. Legally it is only called hunting in season on the game species; duck, pheasant, rabbit, hare, pigeon and partridge. The last it legally still game however the season is closed due to waning numbers (ironically enough, decline started going faster the moment the hunt closed...) Countering crop damages is on permit only but basically the whole year round. Mainly on geese (multiple species, pigeon, jackdaw and blackcrow. And locally more species if they cause nuisance or damage. Population control is regulating the numbers of Roe, red and fallow deer and wild-boar. Red deer are limited to a small portion of Holland while Roe and fallow are more common. Wild-boar are alowed in only two places in Holland and are to be culled in other places.

To obtain an hunting licence you have to pass a examn following a 6 month course, you have to be able to provide proof of insurance and hunting opportunity. Meeting those demands you can apply for a hunting license and buy up to 6 hunting rifles/shotguns.

With regard to living off hunting. My main source of meat are geese with the addition of rabbit, pigeon, pheasant, hare, roe-deer and wild-boar. Although the deer and boar all come from Germany where I often hunt on invitation.
Geese make an excellent substitute for minced beef, especially when mixed with more fatty meat from wild boar.
The only meat i buy is chicken and the occasional steak.

Thanks for explaining how it is made in Holland.

It is nice to know your source of meat is wild. :notworthy


I apologize for my very late reply.

 

[Kiwi Tim]

In theory you need a minimum of 200 people to live off the land. That is why the first Viking settlements in America failed. They never reached the sustainable no.

 

[mrostov]

If I had to move to that continent someplace, and I had a choice, I'd probably choose Finland or Russia.

A lot of Russian yuppies looking to get out of the rat race are homesteading in Siberia, often in small communities. Siberia is basically the same climate and environment as the boreal forest of Canada, only there is 5 million square miles of it. Russia certainly has some of the best hunting and fishing possible. The way the world is shaping up, more and more, Russia is going to be one of the prime places to live for a brighter future.

 

[Tengu]

But who would want to live that way?

 

[Laurentius]

You know what I think regulations be damned. There is no point hunting what will not be there when you are gone. There is no point hunting what only demonstrates your prowess as a hunter. There is no point hunting what you can't and never will find. There is no point hunting because you think it makes your penis bigger than it is.

 

[Tengu]

Um, there are good reasons for all this.

 

[santaman2000]

But who would want to live that way?

More people than you think.

You know what I think regulations be damned. There is no point hunting what will not be there when you are gone. There is no point hunting what only demonstrates your prowess as a hunter. There is no point hunting what you can't and never will find. There is no point hunting because you think it makes your penis bigger than it is.

The point is because it's fun. What more is needed?

 

[Dave]

It must have been quite something to live in a time where there were blank spaces on the map, [there wasnt even a map] and you could live your entire lifetime in your own little group in the forest and on the shoreline, and never see another soul, and you were not the apex predator. Quite quite something.

 

[Wayland]

An estate owner I know was horrified after a group of Spanish hunters booked in for a week. He thought they were after deer....it's a forestry estate and the deer are a problem, he was happy for them to help deal with it.
Instead they shot every wee bird in the place, from blackbirds to robins, because they said, "We do that in Europe".
Well, it didn't go down well in Scotland.
Is it true that they shoot the wee birds in Spain though ?

cheers,
Toddy

The taking of small birds by hunters around the Med. is often cited as one of the problems facing our migratory bird species.

I don't know how big the problem really is but a lot of twitchers get hot under the collar about it.

 

[cbr6fs]

The taking of small birds by hunters around the Med. is often cited as one of the problems facing our migratory bird species.

I don't know how big the problem really is but a lot of twitchers get hot under the collar about it.

Still insignificant compared to the amount birds irresponsible cat owners allow their pets to kill

 

[tim_n]

Still insignificant compared to the amount birds irresponsible cat owners allow their pets to kill

*Sigh* what a pointless trolling comment.

- An irresponsible cat owner (whose cats keep the rodent & bird population down so he gets to harvest what his wife sows)

 

[santaman2000]

*Sigh* what a pointless trolling comment.

- An irresponsible cat owner (whose cats keep the rodent & bird population down so he gets to harvest what his wife sows)

Sadly, the comment isn't trolling; it's very, very true. And yes, I like cats for the same reasons you do. Unfortunately, they don't discriminate between pests, gamebirds, or endangered. To them a bird, is a bird, is a bird.

 

[tim_n]

But nothing to do with hunting.

 

[sunndog]

Tis true, Cats are astonishingly good hunters

when I lived at home my sister got two cats and within a year or two the amount of songbirds and small mammals around dropped to levels i'v not seen before or since
Born killing machines

 

[santaman2000]

But nothing to do with hunting.

Oh but it does. Feral cats or pet cats allowed to roam decrease the population of game birds that would otherwise be available to hunt. That's why many hunters shoot them on sight, and state Fish & Wildlife Officers have programs to trap and/or poison them. That and they're a disease vector.