Sports people are actively planning their next fishing and hunting excursions this fall season. Americans are lucky to have a myriad of options to choose from on both private and public lands.
While opportunities are plentiful, navigating the process can be challenging if you’re uncomfortable hunting public land or don’t own private land. Therein lies a dilemma: Plenty of land—public and private—is available to scout and traverse. Yet, access to both formats isn’t without challenges for experienced, lapsed, and new users.
For those seeking more private intimate excursions, companies like LandTrust aim to fill a void. Billed as the Recreation Access Network, LandTrust offers members custom outdoor experiences across 600 properties totaling 1.3 million private land acres.
An innovator in the outdoor marketplace space, LandTrust garnered financial backing from the likes of Mr. Wonderful, Kevin O’Leary. Launched in 2019, the start-up has been profiled in many outlets including Wall Street Journal and FOX & Friends.
I caught up with Taylor Moyer, LandTrust Landowner Marketing and Partnerships Manager, at his North Carolina ranch to chase some doves and see the LandTrust model at work.
Most Americans Hunt on Private Land: The Challenge of Enhancing Access
A renewed interest in hook and bullet activities surprisingly occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. Four years later, participation is growing—albeit slowly but surely—even in hunting. Hunting participation, though, has lagged behind fishing.
A 2016 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) hunting and fishing survey found 79% of Americans 16 and older hunted on private land. In comparison, only 19% of respondents said they hunt on public land. The 2022 survey, released in October 2023, didn’t extrapolate these figures. Yet, it can be surmised private land usage is the preferred choice for most American hunters.
Walk-in Areas (WIA) invite more private land opportunities by incentivizing landowners with “payments for land use, tax benefits, reduced fees for hunting and fishing licenses and liability protection.” The Farm Bill offers similar incentives to farmers and ranchers who open their land to hunters and anglers through their Voluntary Public Access and Habitat Incentive Program (VPA-HIP).
Outdoor marketplaces like LandTrust desire to innovate privately and make prime land accessible to more sportsmen and women.
LandTrust Wants to Stand Out From the Pack
LandTrust is fashioned in the style of Airbnb or VRBO, where members can pay to rent prime private land for their preferred outdoor excursions.
The self-described “Recreation Access Network” offers members custom outdoor experiences—from traditional hook and bullet activities to bird-watching, foraging, and RVing. Since launching five years ago, the company now features bookings in 37 states.
For interested users, membership levels vary. People can sign up for free, or opt for a LandTrust+ membership for $299 per year. Additional expenses are incurred for each individual property booking.
Landowners listing their properties with LandTrust typically generate a recreation income of $60,000 or more annually, according to the company’s website.
A testament to the firm’s success is who backs them. “Mr. Wonderful” and Shark Tank host Kevin O’Leary is a fan, awarding a $1.25-million investment in spring 2023.
Outdoor Marketplaces Aren’t in Conflict with Public Lands Access
LandTrust’s popularity has, no pun intended, exploded since launching five years ago. That has naturally attracted criticism from those threatened by their success—some fellow hunters, no less—who accuse the company of commodifying land access.
“Imagine a world in which LandTrust didn't exist, or no pay-to-play model existed like the perfect relationship between a sportsman and an ag operator,” said Taylor Moyer, a 36-year-old multigenerational rancher.
“You could get the sportsman side of things from an urban group of people that would pay. You can get their perspective. They can get the farmers' perspective. Maybe that helps everybody grow. I don't know. Those are just two really good examples of how folks could work together if they can reach a little common ground, versus battling, right?”
Mr. Moyer, who operates from Ridgeview Land and Cattle farm North Carolina, reiterated that sportsmen and landowners shouldn’t be pitted against one another since both are conservation-minded.
“We might just have two different paths on how that goal should be achieved," he said. "But I can confidently say I think private land ownership is generally the best steward[ship] of land, especially if you're in a production agricultural model like this. We literally rely on the land to survive."
Seeing the LandTrust Model at Work: My First Dove Hunt
I joined Moyer at his North Carolina ranch in mid-September to hunt doves on the first day of fall. He and his wife, Leah, acquired the century-plus-old farm several years ago after it sat abandoned for 30 years.
As the Moyers built up their farming operation, they discovered LandTrust and wanted to diversify their income just as other landowners have.
Taylor and Leah Moyer. (Photo: Gabriella Hoffman)
“It's a turnkey service to monetize agritourism or monetize anything monetizable on your land, outside of your production agriculture model,” Moyer said. “I stumbled upon LandTrust trying to find a service such as this for our farm that I didn't have to add any overheads to bring that enterprise on.”
An Angus-based herd, the cows on the cattle farm were founded on the progeny of cattle that existed on the land before the Moyers purchased it. (Photo: Gabriella Hoffman)
The Moyers are true believers in the system, and list their property for photography sessions and regenerative farm tours. Moyer said he takes media members, including yours truly, onto the dove plant, currently a “proof of concept” for dove hunting, that could be available to LandTrust members in the future.
On the way to the dove hunt. (Photo: Gabriella Hoffman)
“I actually had no hope for the sunflowers. I planted them because they're pretty …” Moyer said of sunflowers, a natural dove attractant. “I planted that, expecting that would be the bumper crop of what the doves would eat. And we had the opposite. We have historic grain and the millets pretty much drown out, and sunflowers just did great.”
The Vermont native invested a mere $500 into the dove plot. A neighbor even offered to pay him $1,000—a 100% return-on-investment—to lease his plot for the North Carolina dove opener, but he relented.
I saw, for myself, why Moyers' hunting plot boasts great appeal for bird hunters. The former cow pasture, lined with dead sunflowers and top millet, feels surprisingly wild, low-pressured, and is untouched. Not to mention, birds—doves—flock here.
On the morning of Sept. 21, a dense fog blanketed Moyer’s prized dove plot. Low visibility conditions persisted until 8:30-8:45 a.m. While waiting for fog to dissipate, I cradled Moyer's 12-gauge Remington 870-pump shotgun in my lap and nursed my coffee intently listening to Moyer discuss his love of ag, conservation, and LandTrust.
After some gabbing and time passed, doves started to descend down from electrical lines. Our patience would soon pay off. Moyer immediately dove in his sights and made perfect shots. I took some shots but missed some that flew out of a comfortable shooting range.
A dove decoy. (Photo: Gabriella Hoffman)
A little before 9 a.m., my luck started to turn around. The sun began to penetrate the fog, resulting in more birds flying down towards us.
I saw a dove flying above us 50 yards or so to my right. I recalled the three Bs I learned from my first-ever hunt: butt, bead, and bird. Once I aligned the three Bs and got good shotgun placement, I aimed toward my target and pulled the trigger.
“Did I shoot it?” I asked. I looked to Moyer for confirmation and he nodded.
We marched to the section of the plot where I took my shot and looked for traces of my harvest. Scanning the thick brush, I went into bloodhound mode searching for my lot. Once I reached the outer edge of this plot section, I noticed a few feathers that matched a mourning dove’s plumage. And right below, I find my bird.
Who knew one little bird could provide one so much excitement? I wouldn’t leave North Carolina empty-handed or skunked after all.
Gabriella with her bird. (Photo: Taylor Moyer)
(Photo: Gabriella Hoffman)
After our thrilling morning, I had a responsibility to fulfill: pluck and gut our dove haul. I’ve always been hands-on in my hunting journey, so I had no problem getting my hands dirty to extract some dove breast.
(Photo: Gabriella Hoffman)
The entire harvest. (Photo: Gabriella Hoffman)
(Photo: Gabriella Hoffman)
In the event we got skunked, Moyer planned to send me home to Virginia with some doves. I was determined to make a popular dish: bacon-wrapped jalapeño and cream cheese poppers.
(Photo: Gabriella Hoffman)
(Photo: Gabriella Hoffman)
LandTrust might not be the first outdoor marketplace, but it’s morphed into a leader in the space—with users and landowners alike.
Some critics are quick to deride its model, but it’s more than a mere payday. There’s a greater purpose to listing properties with the company, according to Moyer.
(Photo: Gabriella Hoffman)
“I've witnessed it when those ranchers list their land and people come to the ranch. It's not the kids [and] it's not the wife that is talking to people. It's those old farmers and ranchers. They just want to tell their story.”
For more information about LandTrust visit https://landtrust.com.
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Gabriella Hoffman is an award-winning outdoor writer, outdoorswoman, and policy analyst working in conservation issues. Her writings and musings have appeared in some of the nation’s leading sporting magazines and newspapers. She credits her father for hooking her on fishing—the gateway activity that led her to pick up shooting sports and hunting as a young adult. Gabriella currently resides in Northern Virginia. Learn more about her work at https://gabriellahoffman.com.