I’ve had luck just getting out and talking with people in the area. One spot I have was from a lead from an Implement Dealer. I have another spot from a mechanic changing the oil in my truck. If you’re in a service organization at home (Kiwanis, VFW, Elks), look those organizations up in the area you want to hunt. If you go to a church, say Baptist or Lutheran (I’m Nazarene), stop and talk to someone on staff at the church in the area. The possibilities really are endless. I haven’t knocked on a door for 20 years without having some kind of a lead.
I lived in Oregon for several years and the best place I had was a ranch I had all to myself just for changing a flat tire for an older woman. The woman ask me where I lived and what I was doing in the area and I said I was bird hunting. She took me to the family ranch, introduced me to her son’s, and told them he can bird hunt anytime he wants. That contact led to the best place I ever elk hunted.
You never really know when and where that door will open. Good luck.
