Terrain: Moderate; Hill country, with steep ridges in places. Hunters must have an annual hunting license for hunting grouse in Kentucky. Some of these governments allow the use of hunting equipment such as firearms, crossbows, and bows within their boundaries. Hopkins leads the way with a recorded harvest of 2,542 deer during the 2013 season. (Author image) Sportsmen and women have it pretty good in my home state of Kentucky. Written by Mike Collins Kentuckians Cody Likins and Jakob Begley won the 2020 Quest Hunt Company Deer Hunting Competition. Kentucky Elk Guides Ask for Changes for 2022 Season, Curtis Gates Lloyd WMA Offers Great Hunting in Northern Kentucky, The only thing I find more fun than killing a gobbler each spring is getting my hands on all of the new products that I can take with me into the woods. Bring your knee boots to reach secluded areas: Fertile bottomlands dotted with the oak trees and row-crop agriculture that keep deer in top nutritional shape are broken up by many bald cypress sloughs. The Pennyrile State Forest is the largest public land area on this list and that is why it is at number one. It may not display this or other websites correctly. Signups will not be accepted once all slots have been filled. The archery areas on Campbell were like hunting in a park. Kind of an eerie place with all the nuclear signs and fall out shelters. Western Kentucky normally produces bigger bucks. You are using an out of date browser. Hardin County was the number one deer producing county in the entire state of Kentucky last season. Welcome to 2022-23 Louisiana Hunting What's New for 2022 Licensing changes ( Licenses & Fees ): Change to license fees; see fee tables for details. Last season, there were 30 deer harvested at Doug Travis, with 16 of them being bucks. Instead of in-person signups, registration will be by phone and email only. Timber Tract With Opportunities For Deer And Turkey Hunting, 21.5 acres in Graves County, Kentucky offered at $61,810. Kentucky Guided Hunting Trips Most of the SRO Crew Contact us today! "While continued slow growth in deer numbers in Appalachian Kentucky should lead to even more trophy entries being taken from the poor deer habitat in the eastern third of the state, our west-central counties should continue to be tried-and-true producers of trophy bucks into the foreseeable future.". Make sure your deer is 15in wide or it will cost you. JavaScript is disabled. The deadline to register by phone is 3:30 p.m. (CST) on Jan. 5. . Hunters may register for the hunt starting at 8 a.m. (CST) on Jan. 4 by calling the West Kentucky WMA office at 270-488-3233 or sending an email to weston.mason@ky.gov. Likely, youll find them with their backs to the water and their vantage points set to access areas or popular walking routes. The report *will be* updated to include results for bear-only and bear/deer hunts at a later date. http://fw.ky.gov/pdf/1112huntingguideentire.pdf, Food Preparation, Camp Cooking and Recipes. In Oklahoma, Osage county holds the record for most bucks harvested during the archery season with 681 bucks during the 2019-20 season . Rich WMA consists of ridge after ridge, with some low bottom areas where deer like to travel. good luck, Thanks guys for all your info. All stands are community so you get to hunt the full 16000 acres. Never hunted there, curious to see if anyone had any information on the place (what tract to hunt, what to setup on, etc.) they did close a bunch of areas due to 9-11, so maybe all the deer moved into those areas.. hope you have better luck than we did!! But a clearly defined chunk of Kentucky is a great place to start your search. They are categorized into high, moderate and low management levels. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. I'd think the WMA that lists incentives for killing a bunch of does would be the ones with the highest density. Eastern Kentucky is not known as the best part of the state to deer hunt, but there are some giants in that part of the state. The hunter tipped off his local game warden after tracking down the poached deer's gut pile deep in Idaho backcountry. Deer. I know nothing about this state and being this far away I would be going by your guys help. Any info would be greatly appreciated. I've been there a few times on quota hunts and there are alot of deer there, but it seems like there are always twice as many people as deer. Sept. 30. Access is available in all areas of Rich WMA. The grouse season in Kentucky runs from November to February, varying based on zone, with the permission of hunting ruffed grouse. According to the biologist, some biologists in the agency also believe the advent of affordable digital trail cameras has played a big role. While I often e-scout a public land area on OnX before Kentucky public land deer hunting, Doug Travis is so diverse, I think a person needs to see it first-hand before walking in with their bow. But, this will keep a lot of hunters away because they do not want to wade through the waise (or chest) high weeds and grasses to get to a prime hunting spot. With nearly a third of the area covered in water, you can bet that youll find bucks bedded near some swampy, nasty places. Mostly wooded but has some ag fields on the wma. Nevertheless, whenever this resident of western Kentucky has an opportunity to turn loose his pack of beagles in prime swamp rabbit habitat, deer hunting usually becomes a secondary priority. If I remember right, the WMA list on kdfwr has what you can kill, limitations etc. Do your own research and scout some of the places you come up with. . my father and i have been bowhunting for 7 years in Alabama. Its also home to the No. As the accompanying map illustrates, no single county has them to itself. "First, by capturing images of older and/or larger-antlered bucks in an area, they encourage local hunters to pass up younger/lesser animals. The man reportedly shot his wife in the chest then . We are located in Crofton, Ky, and have several beautiful properties that are the perfect home for big bucks. My group got picked for the West Kentucky WMA Quota Deer Hunt December 15-18. There are some WMA's, like the dam/Peninusula area at Barren River Reservoir that are primitive weapons only. While it's tempting to say the one-buck limit simply forced hunters to become more selective in buck harvest, that might not be the full answer. And the first of those reasons is the number of hunters. I'm looking to do a public land hunt traveling from New Jersey, so any help would be appreciated. i would go to lbl if u were u.its closest to bama and the biggest by far.over 100,000 acres..big bucks and less crowded simply due to its size. Total Harvest 2020: 79 Bucks: 56 Does: 23, Terrain: Moderate to Hard; Most hunting areas consists of hills and ridges. lol did not realize i didn't put the name of the wma but yes the one I was talking about is west kentucky wma. But I had so much property off base it was just easyer to hunt around Clarksville or Oak Grove. In the eastern half of Kentucky deer numbers tend to be much lower, with far less acreage devoted to row crops. In February, the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources bought nearly 1,200 acres along the Pond River to add to the Peabody Y outh Seasons and Youth Lottery Hunts. If you're going to hunt in November, one of those would be better due to no gun hunters. That's where i'd hide if I was a deer! Entrance GPS coordinates: Latitude N 37.1332, Longitude W -88.8139 Area Habitat: open land 34.74%, forest 46.58%, wetland 18.09%, open water 0.62%. For a long time it's been a consistent producer of quality bucks on both public and private land. Mike Clerkin heads to Buffalo County, Wisconsin to bowhunt whitetails. Ainsley Whitley is a contributing writer for various branded properties that together attract more than 280 million readers seeking influential content. These areas in which deer will travel and you may have some luck with buck movement during the mid-day. FRANKFORT, Ky. (Sept. 20, 2018) Apply for deer, waterfowl, pheasant and sandhill crane quota hunts offered by the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources at state wildlife management areas and other public lands now through the end of September. Lace your boots up and put some time in now. This year, we visited the National Wild Turkey Federation Convention in Nashville, and we were able to get a close-up, hands-on look at [], Photo by Ron Foltz Kentuckys spring squirrel season will be open May 15 June 18. You should have pretty good luck there. All Rights Reserved. Stalk Em Spring squirrel hunting in Kentucky can be [], Squirrel Hunting in Kentucky Opens May 15, Deer Hunting On Public Land Kentucky Outdoors Media, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFP-jOHTsc0&t=8s, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6ETHU_ypZY&t=5s, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYOoABQMAEI&t=4s. Within Cross Creeks National Wildlife Refuge, there are four designated hunt areas. It may not display this or other websites correctly. Kentucky is one of the premier deer hunting states in the country, with many regions experiencing a year-by-year increase in deer population and harvest. And that public land is found throughout the state, in areas big and small. You must log in or register to reply here. In fact, it is a well known wetland in far west Kentucky in Carlisle and Hickman Counties. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. Selected hunters may not exceed their personal bag limit or a total of 5 bears per hunting party during the hunt. Be safe hunting!! Hunters may only Good wma not much pressure and a lot of places for a big buck to hide. Several years back the population was much better than it is now. You are using an out of date browser. I would scout three spots in three different areas just in case they are useing it. Gordon Whittington heads north to his personal Missouri farm for some crossbow action. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Kentucky Hunting is the leading online community for outdoors enthusiasts to discuss hunting, fishing, archery, and life in Kentucky. Dog-Deer Therefore, this is perfect for hunters who like taking their kids hunting with them. Easy access in most areas. Rabbit and quail hunting seasons open Nov. 14 - Dec. 31. According to veteran biologist David Yancy, deer project leader for the Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources, there are reasons for the state's continued productivity on trophy bucks. It's a question a lot of wildlife biologists and trophy hunters in other states probably have asked themselves. "Be bear aware at all times, and never drag your game," Svoboda said. Change to senior hunt/fish licenses. I'd think I'd start there. Feb 16, 2015 #3 C Chadx1981 Senior Member Sweet what's the name lol I bowhunted 10 days in a row there last year and saw 4 deer. This will be some of the most difficult terrain to hunt in Kentucky. Total Harvest 2020: 30 Bucks: 16 Does: 14, Terrain: Diverse; Easy to moderate; Wetlands and open water make up 34% of land. Surrounded by private land, there are some pinch points along the fence lines where I have seen deer travel back and forth. Fee, advance application required of deer, waterfowl hunters. You must log in or register to reply here. Stan Potts doubles down in Montana and Wyoming. For more on record-class bow bucks from Kentucky and across North America, visit Pope and Young Club. The cards must be visible from the windshield of each hunters vehicle while hunting and returned to a drop box at a designated location on the WMA. All North American Whitetail subscribers now have digital access to their magazine content. If Kentucky public land deer hunting is on your list this fall, Rough River Lake WMA would not be a bad starting point. Find season dates and bag limits here. The shotgun and muzzleloader deer hunt for up to 140 hunters is scheduled Jan. 16-18, 2021. Most hunting and fishing opportunities align with Kentucky state seasons and bag limits. Rough River Lake WMA was not a top producing county for Kentucky public land deer hunting in 2020, but it is still a place where a hunter can get away from pressure and find nice deer. There will be pressure any where you go. My advice would be to get as close to the river as you can, in some of the more remote areas. Kentucky Hunting is the leading online community for outdoors enthusiasts to discuss hunting, fishing, archery, and life in Kentucky. No permanent stands, etc. Look forward to hearing how y'all do! (10) If a hunter has purchased the appropriate permits, a hunter may take unlimited antler-less deer in: (a) The West Kentucky WMA gun hunt; (b) WMA quota hunts in Zone 1; and (c) State Park quota hunts in Zone 1, except as established in Section 8 of this administrative regulation. At 195-inches there's good reason why. I didnt include Kleber WMA on this list because it is not underrated. Camp is setup in Kentucky! Im hoping those bucks made it through the season and they come back bigger and better, but its not likely when hunting public land. I haven't hunted the rest of the states in your list but I can tell you that most of the WMA's in Kentucky are going to be full of gun hunters during your chosen time period. They only ones I know anything about is in the bluegrass region! Thanks! JavaScript is disabled. Several counties in the Green River Region offer excellent deer hunting opportunities. But while there are approximately 1.8 hunters for each antlered buck, only around 35 percent of our hunters take a deer each year and nearly 50 percent of those are antlerless. Georgia Hunting Leases Available NOW!100 acres prime deer Oct 16 South Texas Dove Hunting/Lease San Antonio $60 Oct 16 South Texas .Louisiana - On July 19, 2022, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) released its 2022-23 hunting regulations pamphlet online. 8Z on Kodiak Island was second with 4,797. They monitor it closely. The shotgun and muzzleloader deer hunt for up to 140 hunters is scheduled Jan. 16-18, 2021. The refuge manages native grasslands to benefit white-tailed deer, turkey, quail, migratory songbirds and small mammals. Opportunities are abundant in this state, with a population of around 900,000 deer and about seven hunters per square mile. FRANKFORT, Ky. (Dec. 23, 2020) Hunters interested in the open firearms deer hunt at West Kentucky Wildlife Management Area (WMA) in McCracken County are advised that the sign-up process and some procedures will be different for the three-day opportunity in January. Under strict harvest restrictions since 1993 that allowed only 10 percent of hunters to harvest a buck, Ballard this year is one of two Kentucky public lands to newly adopt an outside spread minimum of 15 inches. Every year hunters from around the state enter their names into a draw to waterfowl hunt at Doug Travis, but based on conversations Ive had, I believe its an underrated spot for some early season deer hunting. They're well equipped to fill buck tags at the time of year when antlered deer are most vulnerable. Food Preparation, Camp Cooking and Recipes. I never saw another person when I was younger and hunted there. Good luck. The last time I was down there it was tore up with rubs and I saw probably a 140" buck. However, some counties in Kentucky have a very low deer population, so it's crucial to know where your best chances of bagging a buck in Kentucky are. According to Benton County Sheriff Kenny Christopher, 55-year-old. It may not display this or other websites correctly. View all 40 pictures. The Bluegrass State's production of older bucks quickly began to rise. 2022 Commonwealth of Kentucky. View 40 photos, read details, and contact the seller. Be sure to always check regulations before an adventure Kentucky public land deer hunting. While some places around the lake are limited, there are sizable parcels of land that offer land features that attract deer. Location: Breckinridge, Grayson & Hardin Counties, Total Harvest 2020: 39 Bucks: 24 Does: 15, Terrain: Moderate;; Most hunting areas consists of hills and ridges. Write, email or call Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources for additional information. Deer hunts offered include a shotgun-only, youth-mentor hunt at the West Kentucky Wildlife Management Area (WMA) Dec. 15-18. Kentucky Hunting Features Forums List Deer Hunting Forum Kentucky Community Forum Waterfowl Hunting Forum Turkey Hunting Forum While some hunting is allowed, some animals are protected, including turtles, crawfish and bullfrogs. That makes the hunting tougher for with bow or gun. I will once again be maintaining a report detailing the results for WMA Deer hunts for the 2022/2023 season. Ask Perry (PBeyer). Like another said just head to nearest wma and scout. If I had a choice of hunting Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri or IllinoisKentucky would be my last pick. Stan Potts heads to Montana with his rifle in search of a Big Sky buck. Either way..we'll give it 110% effort and just maybe see a good deer come bythanks again and I wish all of you the best this year! There is a lot that can be said about the Rough River Lake WMA. Christian, Graves, Trigg and Livingston rounded out the top five counties with between 1,737 and 2,910 deer taken in each. Check kdfwr website for harvest results over several years. Similar hunts are held on West Kentucky WMA each year. Killed the biggest deer I have "ever" killed there on a quota hunt. Sprawling across Ohio, Muhlenberg and Hopkins counties, this rolling, brushy upland habitat with many wooded creek bottoms has no antler restrictions, and hunters can take up to four deer. Asking that question in an open forum is problematic for two reasons: (1) any answer is likely to draw otherwise unwanted attention to a public WMA hunter's spots (even accidentally), and (2) there is likely no one on this forum who has hunted every WMA and can give an honest answer (I know which WMAs that I have hunted and prefer--I have taken deer on six different WMAs, Ft Knox and DBNF--but it is a far cry from every WMA) How do you ask such a question and not check in lol, posted at 10:32 am not seen since 10:32 am. The majority of Ballard WMA is closed to visitation Oct. 15-March 15. The Kentucky buck Heath Buchanan calls "Joker" is a Bluegrass State phenomenon. Kentucky Hunting is the leading online community for outdoors enthusiasts to discuss hunting, fishing, archery, and life in Kentucky. Horseback riding allowed on maintained roads. Photo Gallery See all Photos Whatever the reason, Kentucky has indeed managed to find the "sweet spot" of hunting opportunity for trophy deer. Parts of Doug Travis are closed from November 1-March 15. i would come sooner if possible. Therefore, it seems only fitting that his pursuit of a particular giant buck actually began during a rabbit hunt in November 2012. Some hunts are mentored hunts for youth and accompanying adults. Missouri's metropolitan areas are a complex mix of municipal and county governments, each with its own jurisdiction and set of laws. I did see an absolute monster on a quota hunt but did not get a shot at him. David Yancy, a wildlife biologist for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR), refers back to the white-tailed deer restoration efforts between 1946 and 1999. For one thing, the state doesn't limit buck tags in any way. Kentucky public land deer hunting can be rewarding and Rich WMA is where I spent a lot of time last year, and I saw a lot of deer. ", Game and Fishing Magazine: Kentucky Deer Hunting Forecast for 2014, Game and Fishing Magazine: Best Counties for Hunting Deer in 2013, Game and Fishing Magazine: Best Places for Trophy Bucks in Kentucky in 2013, Outdoor Life: Best Deer Hunting State: Kentucky Takes Top Spot in New Whitetail Scale. I also missed 1 of the 2 bucks I have shot at with a bow in that small strip of woods. First, I would look for pull-offs on these roads that dont lead to easy-to-walk trails, but may give you an access down a ridge to where you can get into thicker woods. Regulations And get this: Nearly all of the hunters heading afield then are carrying scoped centerfire rifles. JavaScript is disabled. Give a Gift If you really want to be different, you can access more remote parts of Pennyrile if you access it through Lake Beshear. The end result is that we only harvest about 49 percent of the available antlered deer each year.". So how can Kentucky keep cranking out Pope & Young bucks? However, there's one rule that we've noticed is active in almost every country. This will allow you to hunt areas of Pennyrile that are nearly impossible to get to by foot and should open up a good opportunity to hunt a more mature buck on the property. Scott Bestul