Public Lands Hunting (2024)

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​The Wildlife Management Area & Public Lands Search feature on our website is a go-to source for information about where to hunt, fish, hike and more in Kentucky.

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OVERVIEW

​During Quota Hunts

During a WMA deer quota hunt, and the open firearm deer hunts at Grayson Lake and West Kentucky WMAs, only participating hunters and accompanying non-hunting assistants (limit one per hunter) are allowed to be on those WMAs, except waterfowl hunters in some areas that may be open, or if a part of the WMA is otherwise open as noted in the following area listings. Non-hunting assistants must check in with the quota hunter they are accompanying and abide by hunter-orange requirements.

WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AREAS

Kentucky Fish and Wildlife owns, leases or manages more than 85 wildlife management areas (WMAs) for public use. In some areas, a user permit is required. It also has agreements to provide public access on certain privately owned lands, known as Hunting Access Areas. Many public-use areas have special regulations and hunting season dates that are different from statewide seasons. In some public-use areas, a user permit is required. Please refer to specific area listings for that information. The rest are open to hunting free of additional charge.

The information here applies to users of all WMAs owned or managed by Kentucky Fish and Wildlife. If you intend to hunt (or otherwise visit) public lands listed under “Wildlife Management Areas,” you must comply with the following guidelines.

1. For game listed in this guide, hunting seasons on the WMAs listed in this section are open only as stated.
2. County zonedeer bag limits apply to all WMAs unless otherwise noted under the area listing.
3. Quota deer hunters may take up to two (2) deer on a quota hunt in Zones 2, 3 and 4, only one of which may be antlered, unless otherwise noted under the area listing.
4. Squirrel, rabbit, quail, grouse and furbearer hunting is closed the first two days of modern gun deer season on WMAs, if gun deer hunting is permitted.
5. Unless otherwise noted, persons shall not allow unleashed dogs from March 1 until the third Saturday in August, except during department-authorized field trials, or when training a retriever or other water dog if the activity is authorized by a sign at the body of water. The dog must remain leashed except while training, or within 100 feet of the water, or as stated under the area listing or posted on the WMA.
6. Quota hunts for pheasant, deer, quail, upland bird, waterfowl and elk hunts require an advance application. (Refer to "Quota Hunts" and "Elk Hunting" sections.) Advance application is not required for other listed hunts.
7. Camping is permitted only in designated areas. Check WMA mapsby clicking here or call the WMA office for camping availability through Kentucky Fish and Wildlife or other campgrounds. Parking must be confined to designated parking areas if such areas exist. If no parking area is designated, parking is generally allowed alongside maintained roads in such a manner that does not block a road or gate or prevent access to a portion of the area. Unless otherwise authorized by the department, mechanized vehicles (excluding wheelchairs) are permitted only on maintained roads open to public use. It is unlawful to cut trees or fences, dump trash or litter, or damage any property or habitat in any fashion.
8. A Public Area Trapping Registration Formmust be completedbefore trapping on a WMA or Outdoor Recreation Area.
9. Hunters shall not enter or hunt in areas that have been designated closed by signs.
10. A person shall not discharge a firearm within 100 yards of a residence or occupied building located on or off the area.
11. A person shall not distribute or place the bait, hunt over bait or otherwise participate in baiting wildlife on a WMA.
12. A group of ten (10) or more people who gather for any event or organized activity on a WMA shallcomplete an application and submit to Kentucky Fish and Wildlife at least 30 days before the date of the event. The department shall retain the authority to deny events, or otherwise restrict, institute additional requirements for, or direct the rescheduling of, any event to avoid user conflicts or for other plausible reasons. Permit requests for events that do not meet WMA user guidelines shall be denied, and events may be canceled in progress if participants fail to comply with user guidelines or create hazards or disruption for others.
13. Horseback riding is permitted on some WMAs during certain times of the year and under certain restrictions. Unless hunting, horses shall only be ridden on designated horse riding trails or a maintained public road open to vehicular traffic. Horses may not be ridden on WMAs during firearms seasons for turkey, deer, bear or elk unless participating or assisting in a legal elk hunt.
14. On all WMAs, including the Otter Creek Outdoor Recreation Area and Daniel Boone National Forest, a person shall not use a nail, spike, screw-in device, wire, or tree climber to attach a tree stand or climba tree. A portable stand or climbing device that does not injure a tree may be used. Stands must be marked with the hunter’s name and address placed no more than two (2) weeks before the opening of the season and removed within one (1) week following the last day of each hunting period. A person shall not use an existing permanent tree stand.
    
15. Whenever gun deer hunting is allowed in a wildlife management area, state parkor Otter Creek Outdoor Recreation Area, a person who will be hunting from inside a ground blind must first attach a hat or vest made of solid, unbroken hunter-orange material to the blind so it is visible from all sides. Hunter orange clothing requirements still apply to anyone inside the blind.
    
16. Hunters are not required to wear hunter orange clothing or display hunter orange on ground blinds during a firearms season on a ​state-owned or managed WMA where firearms hunting for deer, elk or bear is prohibited.
17. For information about migratory bird and waterfowl hunting on public lands, please visit ourhunting page.

MOBILITY-IMPAIRED HUNTER ACCESS TO WMAs

Kentucky Fish and Wildlife offers special exceptions to hunting and fishing regulations for mobility-impaired persons who want to hunt and fish on select WMAs. (Eligibility requirements appear in the Quota Hunts section.) Persons interested in applying for a Mobility-Impaired Access Permit should contact the department for an application or print one here.

Applicants for a Mobility-Impaired Access Permit shall fill out the required information on the application and obtain the attestation and signature from a licensed physician describing the mobility impairment.

A mobility-impaired individual shall have a completed Mobility-Impaired Access Permit application on his or her person at all times while participating in such activities, along with the appropriate hunting licenses and permits.

Mobility-impaired access areas have been designated on portions of the following WMAs: Barren River, Green River Lake, Griffith Woods, Kentucky River, Lake Cumberland, Mill Creek, Miller Welch-Central Kentucky, Mullins, Peabody (Sinclair Unit), Redbird, Taylorsville Lake, West Kentucky, Yatesville Lake and Yellowbank WMAs.

The Mobility-Impaired Access Permit allows the following activities by a mobility-impaired individual:

• Discharge of a firearm or other legal hunting device from a motor vehicle when the vehicle is motionless and has its engine turned off. The motor vehicle shall be used as a place to wait or watch for game and shall not be used to chase, pursue, or drive game.
  
• May operate electric wheelchairs, ATVs, and other passenger vehicles on or off gated, ungated or open-gated roads otherwise closed to vehicular traffic, but only on designated tracts of designated WMAs.
• Roads may be accessed from March 1 through the third Friday in August.
• Tracts designated as mobility-impaired access areas shall be posted with signs.
• Vehicular access shall not be permitted on fields, openings, roads, paths, or trails planted with annual grains or agricultural crops.
• It shall be permissible to access areas which are not roads the third Saturday of August until the end of February.
• ATV users shall adhere to manufacturer recommendations including wearing a helmet, wearing safety glasses, and restricting riding to one (1) person while using ATVs on WMAs.

A person with a Mobility-Impaired Access Permit may designate one (1) qualified assistant. The assistant may:

• Track and dispatch a wounded animal, retrieve an animal or render other assistance in accordance with all other Kentucky Fish and Wildlife and WMA laws and regulations.

A qualified assistant shall not:

• Operate his or her own ATV, or hunt or shoot from an ATV.
  

STATE PARK AND OTHER OPEN DEER HUNTS

Open deer hunts are offered in the following state parks on the following dates. Contact the host state park for complete details, including the number of available slots, equipment restrictions, bag limits and check-in and check-out procedures.​

• Yatesville Lake State Park and Lawrence County Recreation Area​ (606-673-1492): Muzzleloader starting the second Monday of December for three consecutive days.
  

OTHER OPEN DEER HUNTS

• Jenny Wiley State Resort Park​ (1,415 acres, Floyd County, 1-800-325-0142): Open the first Saturday of January for two consecutive days, limit two deer, only one of which may be antlered. Limited to the first 15 mobility-impaired hunters who check in at the park Ranger’s Station on the day before the hunt. Hunters must meet the mobility-impaired eligibility requirements. (Mobility-Impaired Access Permit required at check-in.) Hunters mustcheck in and out on hunt days and telecheck alldeer taken. Hunters may be accompanied by another person, but that person will not be permitted to hunt.
  
• An open youth hunt is held at Grayson Lake WMA​ on the first Saturday in November for two consecutive days and is limited to youths ages 15 and under.

​PUBLIC HUNTING AREAS QUICK REFERENCE

The charts in this section should be used as a quick reference only. WMAs and other public lands may be open to hunting and trapping during statewide seasons or have different dates and regulations as determined by the managing agency. Go here for all the details on these public lands. Also note that some of these public lands may have areas that are off-limits to hunting or trapping, as noted by signs, and that units within these areas may have different season dates or regulations.

EXCEPTIONS:

1. Open under statewide archery/crossbow seasons through Oct. 14 only.
   
2. Open Aug. 19 - Nov. 13, 2023.
   
3. Open during the youth-only gun season; closed for free youth weekend.
4. Open for October muzzleloader season only.
5. Any weapon other than a modern gun that is legal to take deer may be used during the modern gun season.
6. Open shotgun/muzzleloader deer hunt from Jan. 13-15, 2024; Limited to 140 hunters; Check-in and check-out required.
7. Open only for youth-mentor quota hunt on "A" tracts. Closed for all other youth firearm seasons.
8. Tracts 1, 4, 5 and “A” tracts open Jan. 1-10 except if harvest limits are reached before Jan. 10; Tracts 2, 3, 6 and 7 open with statewide seasons and close Dec. 31.
9. During quota hunts, all deer hunting seasons on this WMA are closed, except to drawn hunters. Archery/crossbow quota hunt from the fourthMonday in October through Nov. 30, except when closed during the quota hunt that starts the first Saturday in November.

​OTHER RESTRICTIONS:

• Ballard WMA:​ The main unit is closed to unauthorized public access Oct. 15 - Mar. 15; The area west of Hwy 473 within the two-mile driving loop is closed to all hunting as marked by signs; The 400-acre tract located south of Sallie Crice/Terrell Landing Road is open under statewide regulations for hunting and trapping seasons.
• Boatwright WMA:​ Olmsted, Peal and all other units are open under statewide regulations for all hunting and trapping seasons, except some portions ​​may be closed to public access as marked by signs.
• Coil Estate WMA: Eastern portion is open under statewide regulations for all hunting and trapping seasons; the Western portion is closed to all hunting and trapping as marked by signs.
• Doug Travis WMA:​ Some areas are closed to public access as marked by signs Nov. 1 - Mar. 15.
• Lake Barkley WMA:​​ North Island Refuge is closed Nov. 1 - Feb. 15; Duck Island Refuge is closed Oct. 15 - March 15, with the exception of the October muzzleloader deer season; All non-refuge tracts open under statewide regulations.
• Ohio River Islands WMA:​​​ The remainder of WMA (Pryor, Rondeau and Sisters Islands) is open under statewide regulations for all hunting and trapping seasons.
• West Kentucky WMA:​ Check-in is required before entering any area marked with an “A”; Only shotguns may be used for small game or furbearer hunting; Hunters may not use centerfire rifles or handguns to take deer.

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EXCEPTIONS:

1. ​Rabbit and quail hunting seasons open Nov. 1 - Dec. 31.At Yellowbank WMA, no small game hunting is allowed on designated pheasant quota hunt units during the pheasant quota hunt period.
   
2. On the Peninsula Unit, including Narrows, Goose and Grass islands, hunters may use a muzzleloading shotgun or crossbow during the fall firearm season and may use a crossbow during the fall archery season.
3. All deer hunting seasons on this WMA are closed during quota hunts except to drawn hunters. Archery/crossbow quota hunt from the thirdMonday in October through Nov. 30, except when closed during the quota hunt that starts the first Saturday in November.
4. Rabbit and quail hunting seasons open from Nov. 14- Dec. 31.
5. Wild turkeys may not be harvested with a firearm. Archery only: Sept. 2-30 and Jan. 1-15, 2024. Archery and crossbow: Oct. 1-22, Oct. 28 - Nov. 3,and Dec. 1-31.
6. Open Dec. 1-31, except during deer quota hunts.
7. Open under statewide regulations for 10 consecutive days starting the second Saturday in November.
8. On the Sinclair Unit, quail hunting is allowed between 7:30 a.m. - 3 p.m. on Thursdays and Sundays; On the Ken Unit, quail hunting is allowed between 7:30 a.m. - 3 p.m. on Wednesdays and Saturdays. On either unit, the daily bag limit for quail is four.
9. Sauerheber Unit closes to public access from Nov. 1 through March 15, as designated by signs, except for waterfowl quota hunt permittees.​​
10. Open for December muzzleloader season only.
11. Pheasant quota hunts, either sex, limit two, Dec. 1,2and 3; Open Dec. 4.only to drawn pheasant quota hunters, either sex, limit three; Open Dec. 5-31, either sex, daily limit three.
12. Open only in the ​bear zone.

OTHER RESTRICTIONS:

• Barren River Lake WMA:​​​ On the Peninsula Unit, including Narrows, Goose and Grass islands, hunters shall not use a modern firearm to take game.
• Otter Creek Outdoor Recreation Area:​​​​​ User permit required. A person shall not enter the area during the deer quota hunt without a valid quota hunt confirmation. All small game and turkey seasons closed during the quota deer hunt. Hunters may not use rifles, or ball or slug ammunition to take furbearers and may not use a rimfire gun to take small game unless participating in a deer quota hunt. Trapping season opens Jan. 1 through the last day in February.
• Peabody WMA:​​ Any person ages 16 and older entering the area must obtain and carry a Peabody WMA user permit. Individual permits may be obtained through any license agent. An event permit is available from Kentucky Fish and Wildlife to any organization to use the area for any allowable activity. Permits are non-transferable. Rabbit and quail hunters on the Sinclair and Ken units must check in and check out at a self-service kiosk and clearly display a department-provided vehicle hang-tag in a vehicle. Hang-tags are available in advance through the department’s website.
• Sloughs WMA:​ Ash Flats, Grassy Pond, Powells Lake, Jenny Hole, Highland Creek, and Cape Hills units are open for all hunting and trapping seasons.
  

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EXCEPTIONS:

1. Open for December muzzleloader season only.
2. Open Nov. 1 - Dec. 31.
3. Open archery hunt, either sex, Monday through Thursday only, from the first Saturday in September through Dec. 17 and daily from Dec. 18 through the third Monday in January; Open crossbow hunt, either sex, Monday through Thursday only, Sept. 16, 2023through December 17 and daily from Dec. 18 through third Monday in January; Closed during scheduled field trials as posted on bulletin board at WMA office.
4. Open for furbearer trapping; Closed for furbearer hunting.
5. Check-insand check-outs are required at the John A. Kleber WMA office.

OTHER RESTRICTIONS:

• Curtis Gates Lloyd WMA:​​ Unleashed dogs are prohibited from April 1 until the third Saturday in August,except during department-authorized field trials and the spring squirrel season.
  
• Miller Welch-Central Kentucky WMA:​​​ Unleashed dogs are prohibited from April 1 until the third Saturday in August, except during department-authorized field trials and the spring squirrel season. At other times of the year, unleashed dogs are permitted on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays.
• Veterans Memorial WMA:​​​ Access within the WMA may be restricted due to construction.