HLRBO: Building Bridges Between Hunters and Landowners

Written by HLRBO| 9/1/2020

When you rent out a traditional hunting lease, you would never expect to really see the hunter much and you definitely wouldn’t expect to build a relationship with them and have them build a literal bridge on your property, but this is exactly what happened with HLBRO customers Everett McGee and Jeffrey Hayter. McGee owns a hunting lease in Sussex county Delaware. When Hayter came out to look at the property after finding it on HLRBO, he noticed a large ditch. This made things tough to get to the southern side of McGee’s property, especially after a heavy rainfall when it turned into a muddy mess. McGee told Hayter that he had two piles that he could lay across the ditch if Hayter wanted to supply construction materials and construct a bridge. McGee wasn’t expecting it, but Hayter said “Yes!” After supplies were collected, it took Hayter a couple of hours to construct the bridge.

“HLRBO connected me with a great landowner who was as interested in safety as I was,” said Hayter. “Together, we collaborated on a bridge over what he refers to as a ditch - but the word ditch does not provide justice to the span or the quantity of muck that would be difficult to cross in early mornings or late evenings.” McGee said he hadn’t been to the southern side of his property since 1987, as soon as the bridge was constructed, McGee took a monumental step. “I walked across it! Just to say, you know, I have been on the other side,” said McGee. Hayter made a few other personalizations to McGee’s property, including a deer feed- er close to the new bridge and some hunting cameras. “I am very thankful that I came across HLRBO and was successful in finding a great landowner to work with. I have always enjoyed hunting, but let work consume too much of my time in recent years and as my son became old enough and showed a keen interest in hunting, I wanted to find a safe lease within my home state,” said Hayter.

Since Hayter is a shot gun hunter, he’s limited on the dates he can hunt. This new bridge will allow him to make the most out of his hunting experience without having to worry about crossing a large muddy ditch. Something McGee calls “icing on the cake” in preparation for deer season.Hayter has already told McGee that he plans to rent his hunting lease year after year. “Certain people you seem to click with..he’s a great guy, easy to get along with,” said McGee. A gap between hunters and landowners, bridged forever. “It was a fun project that enabled me to get to know our land owner and truly build a new friendship while having a safe place to hunt. Thank you HLRBO for enabling this opportunity,” said Hayter.