REED FAMILY RANCH

GUIDELINES ADOPTED AT APRIL 19, 2008 HUNTING CLUB MEETING

1. club member electric pole - Terry Ratiliff will compute a dollar amount to be used to reimburse the owners of the club member electric pole for the electricity use of the cooler. This amount will be paid by Jim Reed for the 2008 year - however, in future years (beginning with the 2009 year), this amount will be added to the hunting club fee that each club member pays.

2. dove season - dove season (according to season dates) is now available on the ranch for use by club members (effective this year)

3. air compressor - Terry will do what's needed to purchase a air compressor and transport it to the ranch. Payment for half the cost of the air compressor will be paid out of the club member $$ pot, with the other half being paid by Jim Reed.

4. cull buck - For the 2008-09 deer season, the decision on the taking of cull buck will be made by each club member - based on his own judgment. The results of this decision will be talked about at the 2009 club member meeting - and then re-evaluated, if needed.

5. doe harvest - the opening up of doe tags to all club members will be moved from January 1st to Thanksgiving Day.

6. hog and varmint hunting - for 2009 hog and varmint hunting, the fees paid will be updated to (a) $100 for specific club member guests and (b) $200 for all others. The maximum number of paid hunting spots that can be scheduled out at a time is six. During these hunts, hunting club members have the ability to reserve their sleeping spot in the new cabin area. When this reservation is made, sufficient notice will be given to all concerned and this reservation will be added to the ranch calendar.

HOG AND VARMINT HUNTING - AND YEAR-ROUND ACCESS

Although there may be exceptions - generally - hunting club members are granted year-round access to ranch property. Also - during the period from February 1st through the end of June each year - guests of hunting club members are invited out for ranch hog and varmint hunting.

Each club member will host (at least) two guests during this five month period. The ranch fee is $100 for each guest. Nonrefundable deposits of $50 for each guest is owed before a guest can be scheduled out.

For the purpose of this type of hunting, only hunting guests can be invited out by a club member. A hunting guest is defined as one individual hunter. Upon approval by the landowner, a guest may also be defined as a parent and one other family member living under the same roof (youth under the age of 18 - or spouse).

Roughly speaking, unless otherwise approved, the time period for these hunting outings would normally include (a) arrival during the afternoon of one day - with a hunt that same evening/night (b) the following day at the ranch - with another hunt that same evening/night, and then (c) departure the following morning before noon.

Unless otherwise approved, there'd be a maximum of two overnight stays per outing. Host club members may schedule shorter outings; however, the same $100 fee structure will apply.

All hunting setups (that are used for this type of hunting) must be approved for use by the club member who maintains it - and use of any club member setups must be scheduled (and arranged for) prior to the outing.

All guests are the responsibility (and under the supervision) of the host club member - and each guest will sign a ranch waiver of liability form. This waiver form can be found on the ranch website and printed out for use each time a guest is scheduled out. It's the responsibility of the host club member to send the signed waiver form(s) to the landowner after each outing.

ITEMS ADDED AS A RESULT OF ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION

- any and all available antlerless deer tags will be released to the whole club membership as of the end of the day on December 31st of each year unless otherwise decided upon.

- a cull buck is defined as a 1-by (i.e. a spike on either side) - which is older than 1 1/2 yrs old. Also included in this definition are older buck with deformed antlers. All other buck are placed in the "trophy" category (with the exception of a 1 1/2 yr old 1-by), which has been mistakenly taken by an inaccurate "age on the hoof" estimation. Regarding the taking of spikes, club members are encouraged to take spikes that are older than 1 1/2 yrs.

In cases where there is a dispute or disagreement regarding the designation of either a "cull" or "trophy", the vote of a group of three randomly selected club members will make the final decision. A photo of the buck shall be taken for it to be designated as "cull". If there is not at least one clear and definable photo of the deer taken, the buck will be designated as "trophy".

- the mowing of any areas for shooting lanes will be responsibility of each club member.

RULES AND REGS

It's expected that all hunting club members will abide by all the rules and regulations of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

HAVING GUESTS OUT

1. Family member guests will not take up any of the sleeping quarters which are needed by hunting club members. Family member guests should come prepared to stay in a tent at all times, but they can stay in the cabins unless a club member needs the space.

2. Family member guests will not take up any hunting spots which are needed by hunting club members. Generally, if a family member guest goes out into the ranch hunting areas, he or she will accompany the hunter and will stay in the same stand as the hunting club member. However, based on the hunting club member's good judgement, family member guests - 16 and over (who are licensed by successfully completing the hunter education course) - are allowed to hunt in the same family hunting area - in a different stand - during periods when the parent is out and is hunting in the same hunting area.

3. Any deer taken by a family member guest will be charged against the 4 deer target goal.

4. For "non-family member" guests coming out, the landowner must be notified and it must be scheduled beforehand on the ranch calendar. Adequate notice must be given so it can be scheduled on the ranch calendar, and there shall be no last minute arrivals or surprises! Guest access consideration is based primarily on whether it's felt that the guest's presence will or will not infringe on the hunting and enjoyment rights of the club membership. Guests who do not fall into the category of "family member guests" must always be accompanied by the hunting club member.

A family member is defined as a person living under the same roof as the club member.

JUST SO YOU'LL KNOW

Here's a listing of what's considered "good club member" characteristics.

1. making good effort at setting up and maintaining hunting area

2. being outdoors savvy

3. contributing toward the ranch's deer harvest program, being responsible for providing complete records on deer taken, and exercising good judgment on taking buck and other animals

4. being respectful of wildlife and making good effort to locate animals that are shot

5. attending the hunting club meetings, communicating regularly with the landowner, and answering emails within a reasonable time period

6. maintaining good relations and being considerate of others, putting safety first, and helping out on club member projects

7. willingness to lend ideas, give opinions, help solve problems, and responding when ideas are asked for

8. helping keep the campsite area picked-up and maintained, not leaving stuff at the ranch that should be taken home, and making repairs when something has been broken

9. making $$ fee payments on time

10. using the hunter clipboard - signing-in, signing-out - and adhering to all the club member policies.

HUNTING ACCESS ISSUES

There's a hunter sign-in board underneath the shed of the first cabin. When you come to the ranch, sign the hunter board, so others will know where you are and what your plans are. There's a chance that, if you don't sign the hunter board, you may be hunted over. Signing in and signing out is the best way to prevent this.

When you leave, sign out, so everybody will know you've left for the day.

It's ok to take a coyote, hog, coon, or bobcat if you want. Use your own judgment about when to take other animals and when not to. Small game hunting just for the sake of killing something is discouraged. Also, respect the rights of other hunters. Just driving around, random shooting, and messin' around is not the way to get along with others on the ranch.

Plinking is shooting just to be shooting at something. For example, throwing an empty container out in the pasture and deciding to shoot it, is a type of plinking. It's dangerous and disrupts others.

CATTLE

There's a probability that cattle will always exist in some manner on the ranch. The cattle operator will be rotating the cattle through the various paddocks and an attempt will be made to manage things in a manner which does not disturb the hunting or wildlife nutrition program to any great extent.

Rotating the cattle through the paddocks on the ranch is good for wildlife. Having cattle on the ranch can improve wildlife habitat and can improve hunting if the cattle are managed properly.

THINGS LEFT AT THE RANCH

If you have permission from the landowner to leave or store something at the ranch, it's your responsibility to keep up with it. If it comes up missing, you're still responsible.

Leaving things laying around and letting things pile up ain't acceptable. It's recognized that there's some extra space around, but if all club members were allowed to do this, things would likely be a mess. The ranch is not to be used as a club member storage facility.

HARVESTING DEER AND RECORD KEEPING

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is the final approval authority on the issuance of deer permits and the extended season permit. The number of permits issued and whether we'll have an extended season is based on two things:

- the results of our annual deer census

- your cooperation in keeping records on the deer you take

Although the doe harvest is important to our overall deer management program, no one is required to take a doe, although you're encouraged to do so to help out.

Annual deer census surveys and harvest records help us determine if the deer population is on the up's or down's. Each of you are invited to help out with these surveys.

You're responsible for recording your own takes. There'll be paperwork in the tractor shed to record the weight and age of each deer taken, plus the antler measurements for all buck taken.

Good deer management says we should take only mature buck. Try to take only mature buck which are 4 ½ years of age or older. You're encouraged to learn how to age deer on the hoof.

The scales you'll use to weigh the deer are in the tractor shed. Deer are weighed after gutting. For jawbone aging, there's an aging board in the tractor shed which you can use to come up with the age.

The form for recording your antlerless information can be found HERE. The form for recording your buck information can be found HERE.

It's has been decided that each club member can have a goal of taking 4 deer. This goal being met is contingent on three things:

- the desire and/or skill of the hunter

- the timing of when deer are taken according to when the permits are available

- the results of our annual deer census and the resulting report from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department

Depending on the information needed and yearly conditions, each hunter may be asked to complete a hunter observation form after each hunt. If it's determined by the landowner that this hunter observation information needs to be tabulated, it'll be used to supplement or confirm the annual deer count data.

The goal of 4 deer may include two male deer (a trophy buck and a cull buck). For doe only hunters, these 4 deer includes antlerless deer only.

Also, all club members are encouraged to look closely at the animal when harvesting antlerless deer. It's possible that a killed button buck could have been somebody's future trophy buck.

Don't kill button buck or fawn!

Click HERE for a photo and more information about identification of fawns and button bucks.

SETTING YOUR STUFF UP

There will be no hunting spots (other than what is discussed and approved beforehand) established outside the hunter's primary wildlife habitat area. Exceptions may be allowed in cases where a hunting area has not been previously assigned to someone and the location of the stand is discussed and approved beforehand. Safety is of utmost concern in the establishment and location of stands. Hunting can be done in areas not being maintained by another club member and stands can be set up as long as it's discussed and ok'd beforehand.

Prior to Opening Day: Everybody's encouraged to get their stuff setup as early as possible. All deer hunting setups will be completed by Labor Day. Labor Day weekend and the weekend prior to it are designated as two "joint effort" weekends for hunting club members to help out other hunting club members that's needing help.

If anybody gets into a time crunch, you're expected to let others know, so problems can be addressed early on.

There will be no hunting spot set-ups done (or re-positioned) after Labor Day. If you don't have your setups established by Labor Day, you're out of luck as far as setups go. This doesn't mean that you can't hunt your own area. This does mean that you must hunt your area by using natural cover, knowledge of wildlife trails and bedding areas, and increased dependence on your own hunting skills. If you're not able to get your setup completed by Labor Day, you can hunt only your area. Other hunter's areas are not available for those not completing their setups by Labor Day.

During the Season: Feeder filling and maintenance stuff can be done in your own area during the below times:

- immediately prior to your morning hunt and your evening hunt

- immediately after your morning hunt and your evening hunt

- sundays between the times of 10:30 am and 3:00 pm

There will be no general ridin' around and looking around during deer season. Consideration will be given to fellow club members and their hunting enjoyment opportunities.

Everybody's expected to maintain their own spots for the entire deer season. No one's allowed to take advantage of other people's spots while their own spot is not being maintained.

For each trip out, everybody's expected to use the sign-in/sign-out clipboard that's hanging underneath the porch of the first cabin. This is one of the ways that all hunters know who's out, where they are, and whether their actions will disturb somebody else's hunting. Also, hunters are encouraged to keep others informed about their plans through emails and the ranch calendar.

September is a quiet month. No family tours of the ranch during September or during the entire deer season. Also, individual roaming and poking around during deer season is discouraged.

After the Season is Over: No hunting setups will be removed until deer season is over.

FEE PAYMENTS

Fee payments are negotiated and paid, and arrangements are made, depending on what type of hunting is desired, and how well a hunter fits into the overall ranch management program.

Regardless of what fees and arrangements are negotiated, all fees paid and services supplied are non refundable and cannot be applied to other fee arrangements unless agreed upon by the landowner.

SAFETY

All deer hunters are expected to wear blaze orange. We don't want nobody getting shot out there.

Be sure to keep the address of the ranch with you so you can get to it if you need emergency help. This address is likely to be needed if you have the need to call 911. If the EMT personnel are given this address, they'll know how to get to the ranch.

If you don't have the address, it's going to be tough to tell them how to get to where you are.

The ranch address is:

Reed Family Ranch
14207 NE County Road 3090
Kerens, Texas 75144

NO LIQUOR, BEER, OR DRUGS

Enuff said.

USE OF CAMPHOUSES

Each club member has the responsibility of scheduling when you'll be using the cabin(s) and working that out with the other hunters. You can check with the landowner or the ranch calendar to find out if anyone else has plans to use the cabin(s) when you plan on being out. But, it's your final responsibility to confirm with the other hunters that it's available for you to use.

It's suggested that you check the ranch calendar regularly to find out what's happening at the ranch. Also, emails to the landowner will help you keep abreast of any planned activities.

The ranch has no cleaning services. Be sure to clean up after you use the cabin(s). Burn trash in the burn barrels next to the small pond at the camp site. Don't leave any of the lights or electricity on when u leave.

OPERATION OF GATES

Whoever opens the front gate first during the day is the one that closes it. If you find the front gate open when you arrive, leave it open when you leave. If you find the front gate closed when you arrive, close it when you leave. The front gate is not to be left open after dark.

In terms of the other gates on the ranch, if you find a gate closed, leave it closed after you go through it. If you find a gate open, leave it open. This includes all gates; whether they are electric fence gates or otherwise.

RANCH CALENDAR AND WEATHER

There's a calendar on the ranch web site site that you can use to keep up with what's going on at the ranch. You can check to see what's scheduled for times when you're thinking about coming out. With the exception of oljim's and msjudy's (the Reed's) vacation days, this calendar is updated most every day, so check on it regularly if you want to know what's going on.

Also, there's a weather forecast for the ranch and a flood watch site that can be accessed from this web site.

EQUIPMENT LEFT AT RANCH

If a hunter (who's not returning) does not pick up his equipment by April 15th of the year the season ends (or does not take the initiative to make special arrangements), the equipment is considered abandoned and others are given permission to make use of it if they desire.

Although periodic notifications can be made when the landowner sees problems (or potential problems) with a hunter's equipment, the Ranch takes no responsibility for equipment owned by hunters and is not liable for damages, theft, or maintenance issues related to that equipment.

HUNTING CLUB MEMBER QUARTERS

1. All structures (intended to be used a temporary quarters) placed on Ranch property by hunting club members shall be attractive and well-maintained, pre-approved by the Ranch, and placed in an area designated by the Ranch.

2. The month of August of each year shall be the time-period in which structures can be established on Ranch property.

3. No Ranch equipment or tools (including electricity) are available for use on the structures.

4. In cases where the hunter does not continue to be a club member, April 1st of each year shall be the date that something must have already be done with the structure. Past that date, the structure becomes the property of the Ranch.

5. After the end of August of each year, all hunting club member structures - considered not satisfactory by the Ranch - will be removed prior to the beginning of deer season. If the structure is not made satisfactory by the end of August, all hunting access rights shall be forfeited.

6. These structures shall be considered only temporary quarters for hunting club members while on Ranch property, and shall not be considered living quarters.

SOME CLOSING THOUGHTS

The Reed Family Ranch is looking for club members who enjoy hunting and the outdoors, are habitat and management minded, and have compatible, fun personalities.

These Guidelines have been written with three thoughts in mind:

- to give each person good information about the priorities and goals of the ranch they're signing up for

- to try to clear up any possible misunderstandings before they happen

- and, last, to generate questions and issues for discussion from hunters who're considering signing up for hunting the Reed Family Ranch

If you are reading this, you are either a current club member or a person who has an interest in club membership hunting. We at the Reed Family Ranch appreciate your interest and wish you safe and happy hunting!

THANKS!

Jim Reed (aka Ol Jim)
Reed Family Ranch


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	GUIDELINES ADOPTED AT APRIL 19, 2008 HUNTING CLUB MEETING 1. club member electric pole - Terry Ratiliff will compute a dollar amount to be used to reimburse the owners of the club member electric pole for the electricity use of the cooler. This amount will be paid by Jim Reed for the 2008 year - however, in future years (beginning with the 2009 year), this amount will be added to the hunting club fee that each club member pays. 2. dove season - dove season (according to season dates) is now available on the ranch for use by club members (effective this year) 3. air compressor - Terry will do what's needed to purchase a air compressor and transport it to the ranch. Payment for half the cost of the air compressor will be paid out of the club member $$ pot, with the other half being paid by Jim Reed. 4. cull buck - For the 2008-09 deer season, the decision on the taking of cull buck will be made by each club member - based on his own judgment. The results of this decision will be talked about at the 2009 club member meeting - and then re-evaluated, if needed. 5. doe harvest - the opening up of doe tags to all club members will be moved from January 1st to Thanksgiving Day. 6. hog and varmint hunting - for 2009 hog and varmint hunting, the fees paid will be updated to (a) $100 for specific club member guests and (b) $200 for all others. The maximum number of paid hunting spots that can be scheduled out at a time is six. During these hunts, hunting club members have the ability to reserve their sleeping spot in the new cabin area. When this reservation is made, sufficient notice will be given to all concerned and this reservation will be added to the ranch calendar. HOG AND VARMINT HUNTING - AND YEAR-ROUND ACCESS Although there may be exceptions - generally - hunting club members are granted year-round access to ranch property. Also - during the period from February 1st through the end of June each year - guests of hunting club members are invited out for ranch hog and varmint hunting. Each club member will host (at least) two guests during this five month period. The ranch fee is $100 for each guest. Nonrefundable deposits of $50 for each guest is owed before a guest can be scheduled out. For the purpose of this type of hunting, only hunting guests can be invited out by a club member. A hunting guest is defined as one individual hunter. Upon approval by the landowner, a guest may also be defined as a parent and one other family member living under the same roof (youth under the age of 18 - or spouse). Roughly speaking, unless otherwise approved, the time period for these hunting outings would normally include (a) arrival during the afternoon of one day - with a hunt that same evening/night (b) the following day at the ranch - with another hunt that same evening/night, and then (c) departure the following morning before noon. Unless otherwise approved, there'd be a maximum of two overnight stays per outing. Host club members may schedule shorter outings; however, the same $100 fee structure will apply. All hunting setups (that are used for this type of hunting) must be approved for use by the club member who maintains it - and use of any club member setups must be scheduled (and arranged for) prior to the outing. All guests are the responsibility (and under the supervision) of the host club member - and each guest will sign a ranch waiver of liability form. This waiver form can be found on the ranch website and printed out for use each time a guest is scheduled out. It's the responsibility of the host club member to send the signed waiver form(s) to the landowner after each outing. ITEMS ADDED AS A RESULT OF ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION - any and all available antlerless deer tags will be released to the whole club membership as of the end of the day on December 31st of each year unless otherwise decided upon. - a cull buck is defined as a 1-by (i.e. a spike on either side) - which is older than 1 1/2 yrs old. Also included in this definition are older buck with deformed antlers. All other buck are placed in the "trophy" category (with the exception of a 1 1/2 yr old 1-by), which has been mistakenly taken by an inaccurate "age on the hoof" estimation. Regarding the taking of spikes, club members are encouraged to take spikes that are older than 1 1/2 yrs. In cases where there is a dispute or disagreement regarding the designation of either a "cull" or "trophy", the vote of a group of three randomly selected club members will make the final decision. A photo of the buck shall be taken for it to be designated as "cull". If there is not at least one clear and definable photo of the deer taken, the buck will be designated as "trophy". - the mowing of any areas for shooting lanes will be responsibility of each club member. RULES AND REGS It's expected that all hunting club members will abide by all the rules and regulations of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. HAVING GUESTS OUT 1. Family member guests will not take up any of the sleeping quarters which are needed by hunting club members. Family member guests should come prepared to stay in a tent at all times, but they can stay in the cabins unless a club member needs the space. 2. Family member guests will not take up any hunting spots which are needed by hunting club members. Generally, if a family member guest goes out into the ranch hunting areas, he or she will accompany the hunter and will stay in the same stand as the hunting club member. However, based on the hunting club member's good judgement, family member guests - 16 and over (who are licensed by successfully completing the hunter education course) - are allowed to hunt in the same family hunting area - in a different stand - during periods when the parent is out and is hunting in the same hunting area. 3. Any deer taken by a family member guest will be charged against the 4 deer target goal. 4. For "non-family member" guests coming out, the landowner must be notified and it must be scheduled beforehand on the ranch calendar. Adequate notice must be given so it can be scheduled on the ranch calendar, and there shall be no last minute arrivals or surprises! Guest access consideration is based primarily on whether it's felt that the guest's presence will or will not infringe on the hunting and enjoyment rights of the club membership. Guests who do not fall into the category of "family member guests" must always be accompanied by the hunting club member. A family member is defined as a person living under the same roof as the club member. JUST SO YOU'LL KNOW Here's a listing of what's considered "good club member" characteristics. 1. making good effort at setting up and maintaining hunting area 2. being outdoors savvy 3. contributing toward the ranch's deer harvest program, being responsible for providing complete records on deer taken, and exercising good judgment on taking buck and other animals 4. being respectful of wildlife and making good effort to locate animals that are shot 5. attending the hunting club meetings, communicating regularly with the landowner, and answering emails within a reasonable time period 6. maintaining good relations and being considerate of others, putting safety first, and helping out on club member projects 7. willingness to lend ideas, give opinions, help solve problems, and responding when ideas are asked for 8. helping keep the campsite area picked-up and maintained, not leaving stuff at the ranch that should be taken home, and making repairs when something has been broken 9. making $$ fee payments on time 10. using the hunter clipboard - signing-in, signing-out - and adhering to all the club member policies. HUNTING ACCESS ISSUES There's a hunter sign-in board underneath the shed of the first cabin. When you come to the ranch, sign the hunter board, so others will know where you are and what your plans are. There's a chance that, if you don't sign the hunter board, you may be hunted over. Signing in and signing out is the best way to prevent this. When you leave, sign out, so everybody will know you've left for the day. It's ok to take a coyote, hog, coon, or bobcat if you want. Use your own judgment about when to take other animals and when not to. Small game hunting just for the sake of killing something is discouraged. Also, respect the rights of other hunters. Just driving around, random shooting, and messin' around is not the way to get along with others on the ranch. Plinking is shooting just to be shooting at something. For example, throwing an empty container out in the pasture and deciding to shoot it, is a type of plinking. It's dangerous and disrupts others. CATTLE There's a probability that cattle will always exist in some manner on the ranch. The cattle operator will be rotating the cattle through the various paddocks and an attempt will be made to manage things in a manner which does not disturb the hunting or wildlife nutrition program to any great extent. Rotating the cattle through the paddocks on the ranch is good for wildlife. Having cattle on the ranch can improve wildlife habitat and can improve hunting if the cattle are managed properly. THINGS LEFT AT THE RANCH If you have permission from the landowner to leave or store something at the ranch, it's your responsibility to keep up with it. If it comes up missing, you're still responsible. Leaving things laying around and letting things pile up ain't acceptable. It's recognized that there's some extra space around, but if all club members were allowed to do this, things would likely be a mess. The ranch is not to be used as a club member storage facility. HARVESTING DEER AND RECORD KEEPING The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is the final approval authority on the issuance of deer permits and the extended season permit. The number of permits issued and whether we'll have an extended season is based on two things: - the results of our annual deer census - your cooperation in keeping records on the deer you take Although the doe harvest is important to our overall deer management program, no one is required to take a doe, although you're encouraged to do so to help out. Annual deer census surveys and harvest records help us determine if the deer population is on the up's or down's. Each of you are invited to help out with these surveys. You're responsible for recording your own takes. There'll be paperwork in the tractor shed to record the weight and age of each deer taken, plus the antler measurements for all buck taken. Good deer management says we should take only mature buck. Try to take only mature buck which are 4 ½ years of age or older. You're encouraged to learn how to age deer on the hoof. The scales you'll use to weigh the deer are in the tractor shed. Deer are weighed after gutting. For jawbone aging, there's an aging board in the tractor shed which you can use to come up with the age. The form for recording your antlerless information can be found HERE. The form for recording your buck information can be found HERE. It's has been decided that each club member can have a goal of taking 4 deer. This goal being met is contingent on three things: - the desire and/or skill of the hunter - the timing of when deer are taken according to when the permits are available - the results of our annual deer census and the resulting report from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Depending on the information needed and yearly conditions, each hunter may be asked to complete a hunter observation form after each hunt. If it's determined by the landowner that this hunter observation information needs to be tabulated, it'll be used to supplement or confirm the annual deer count data. The goal of 4 deer may include two male deer (a trophy buck and a cull buck). For doe only hunters, these 4 deer includes antlerless deer only. Also, all club members are encouraged to look closely at the animal when harvesting antlerless deer. It's possible that a killed button buck could have been somebody's future trophy buck. Don't kill button buck or fawn! Click HERE for a photo and more information about identification of fawns and button bucks. SETTING YOUR STUFF UP There will be no hunting spots (other than what is discussed and approved beforehand) established outside the hunter's primary wildlife habitat area. Exceptions may be allowed in cases where a hunting area has not been previously assigned to someone and the location of the stand is discussed and approved beforehand. Safety is of utmost concern in the establishment and location of stands. Hunting can be done in areas not being maintained by another club member and stands can be set up as long as it's discussed and ok'd beforehand. Prior to Opening Day: Everybody's encouraged to get their stuff setup as early as possible. All deer hunting setups will be completed by Labor Day. Labor Day weekend and the weekend prior to it are designated as two "joint effort" weekends for hunting club members to help out other hunting club members that's needing help. If anybody gets into a time crunch, you're expected to let others know, so problems can be addressed early on. There will be no hunting spot set-ups done (or re-positioned) after Labor Day. If you don't have your setups established by Labor Day, you're out of luck as far as setups go. This doesn't mean that you can't hunt your own area. This does mean that you must hunt your area by using natural cover, knowledge of wildlife trails and bedding areas, and increased dependence on your own hunting skills. If you're not able to get your setup completed by Labor Day, you can hunt only your area. Other hunter's areas are not available for those not completing their setups by Labor Day. During the Season: Feeder filling and maintenance stuff can be done in your own area during the below times: - immediately prior to your morning hunt and your evening hunt - immediately after your morning hunt and your evening hunt - sundays between the times of 10:30 am and 3:00 pm There will be no general ridin' around and looking around during deer season. Consideration will be given to fellow club members and their hunting enjoyment opportunities. Everybody's expected to maintain their own spots for the entire deer season. No one's allowed to take advantage of other people's spots while their own spot is not being maintained. For each trip out, everybody's expected to use the sign-in/sign-out clipboard that's hanging underneath the porch of the first cabin. This is one of the ways that all hunters know who's out, where they are, and whether their actions will disturb somebody else's hunting. Also, hunters are encouraged to keep others informed about their plans through emails and the ranch calendar. September is a quiet month. No family tours of the ranch during September or during the entire deer season. Also, individual roaming and poking around during deer season is discouraged. After the Season is Over: No hunting setups will be removed until deer season is over. FEE PAYMENTS Fee payments are negotiated and paid, and arrangements are made, depending on what type of hunting is desired, and how well a hunter fits into the overall ranch management program. Regardless of what fees and arrangements are negotiated, all fees paid and services supplied are non refundable and cannot be applied to other fee arrangements unless agreed upon by the landowner. SAFETY All deer hunters are expected to wear blaze orange. We don't want nobody getting shot out there. Be sure to keep the address of the ranch with you so you can get to it if you need emergency help. This address is likely to be needed if you have the need to call 911. If the EMT personnel are given this address, they'll know how to get to the ranch. If you don't have the address, it's going to be tough to tell them how to get to where you are. The ranch address is: Reed Family Ranch 14207 NE County Road 3090 Kerens, Texas 75144 NO LIQUOR, BEER, OR DRUGS Enuff said. USE OF CAMPHOUSES Each club member has the responsibility of scheduling when you'll be using the cabin(s) and working that out with the other hunters. You can check with the landowner or the ranch calendar to find out if anyone else has plans to use the cabin(s) when you plan on being out. But, it's your final responsibility to confirm with the other hunters that it's available for you to use. It's suggested that you check the ranch calendar regularly to find out what's happening at the ranch. Also, emails to the landowner will help you keep abreast of any planned activities. The ranch has no cleaning services. Be sure to clean up after you use the cabin(s). Burn trash in the burn barrels next to the small pond at the camp site. Don't leave any of the lights or electricity on when u leave. OPERATION OF GATES Whoever opens the front gate first during the day is the one that closes it. If you find the front gate open when you arrive, leave it open when you leave. If you find the front gate closed when you arrive, close it when you leave. The front gate is not to be left open after dark. In terms of the other gates on the ranch, if you find a gate closed, leave it closed after you go through it. If you find a gate open, leave it open. This includes all gates; whether they are electric fence gates or otherwise. RANCH CALENDAR AND WEATHER There's a calendar on the ranch web site site that you can use to keep up with what's going on at the ranch. You can check to see what's scheduled for times when you're thinking about coming out. With the exception of oljim's and msjudy's (the Reed's) vacation days, this calendar is updated most every day, so check on it regularly if you want to know what's going on. Also, there's a weather forecast for the ranch and a flood watch site that can be accessed from this web site. EQUIPMENT LEFT AT RANCH If a hunter (who's not returning) does not pick up his equipment by April 15th of the year the season ends (or does not take the initiative to make special arrangements), the equipment is considered abandoned and others are given permission to make use of it if they desire. Although periodic notifications can be made when the landowner sees problems (or potential problems) with a hunter's equipment, the Ranch takes no responsibility for equipment owned by hunters and is not liable for damages, theft, or maintenance issues related to that equipment. HUNTING CLUB MEMBER QUARTERS 1. All structures (intended to be used a temporary quarters) placed on Ranch property by hunting club members shall be attractive and well-maintained, pre-approved by the Ranch, and placed in an area designated by the Ranch. 2. The month of August of each year shall be the time-period in which structures can be established on Ranch property. 3. No Ranch equipment or tools (including electricity) are available for use on the structures. 4. In cases where the hunter does not continue to be a club member, April 1st of each year shall be the date that something must have already be done with the structure. Past that date, the structure becomes the property of the Ranch. 5. After the end of August of each year, all hunting club member structures - considered not satisfactory by the Ranch - will be removed prior to the beginning of deer season. If the structure is not made satisfactory by the end of August, all hunting access rights shall be forfeited. 6. These structures shall be considered only temporary quarters for hunting club members while on Ranch property, and shall not be considered living quarters. SOME CLOSING THOUGHTS The Reed Family Ranch is looking for club members who enjoy hunting and the outdoors, are habitat and management minded, and have compatible, fun personalities. These Guidelines have been written with three thoughts in mind: - to give each person good information about the priorities and goals of the ranch they're signing up for - to try to clear up any possible misunderstandings before they happen - and, last, to generate questions and issues for discussion from hunters who're considering signing up for hunting the Reed Family Ranch If you are reading this, you are either a current club member or a person who has an interest in club membership hunting. We at the Reed Family Ranch appreciate your interest and wish you safe and happy hunting! THANKS! Jim Reed (aka Ol Jim) Reed Family Ranch