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Fernwood State Forest hunting guide for 2026-27
3,023 acres on record as a state forest in Jefferson County.
Photo: Nyttend (Public domain)
Getting to Fernwood State Forest
Parking, trailheads and gates near Fernwood State Forest
- Parking areaParking · 2.3 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 3.6 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 3.9 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 4.0 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 4.1 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 4.1 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 4.3 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 5.7 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 6.3 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 6.3 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 6.3 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 6.3 mi from the centreDirections
Parking, trailhead and gate locations come from OpenStreetMap contributors. Roads into public land can be gated or seasonal; check with the managing agency before you go.
What Fernwood State Forest allows and what it bans
The hunting-status layer shows Fernwood State Forest as open throughout.
- No bait, salt or feed for deer or birds.
- Antlerless cap: two per license year across public hunting areas.
- Signed or mapped closures are the only off-limits forest ground.
- No shooting on, from or across a road or driveway.
- Open 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.; legal hunters are exempt.
- Controlled lottery hunts run here too.
From the agency page, public hunting area rules, OAC 1501:3-6-03; checked November 6, 2026.
Nearby
Places to hunt and shoot around Fernwood State Forest
Fernwood State Forest at a glance for hunters
Fernwood State Forest: 3,023 acres in Jefferson County, classed as a state forest and managed by the ODNR Division of Forestry. Northeast Ohio is its home district; the district office sits in Akron. Besides hunting, people come for fishing and shooting range, on hiking trails. Ownership on file: owned outright by the state. Legal footing: OAC 1501:31-15-04(A)(3) ("Fernwood").
The agency describes it this way:
“The 3,023-acre Fernwood State Forest in Jefferson County was purchased in 1961.”
Mapping methods differ, so size ranges from 3,013 to 3,025 acres.
| Layer or document | Acres |
|---|---|
| State Forest Guide | 3,023 |
| Hunting-status layer | 3,025 |
| GIS parcel area | 3,013 |
From the ODNR property page, ODNR hunting-status layer, OAC; retrieved 2026-11-05, checked November 6, 2026.
2026-27 season dates for the game on Fernwood State Forest
Game on record for Fernwood State Forest: deer, turkey, small game and trapping. Turkey: spring rows are 2026 dates, 2027 to be announced.
| Species | Season | Opening | Closing | Bag |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deer | Archery | Sep 26, 2026 | Feb 7, 2027 | County limit |
| Deer | Youth gun | Nov 21, 2026 | Nov 22, 2026 | County limit |
| Deer | Gun | Nov 30, 2026 | Dec 6, 2026 | County limit |
| Deer | Bonus gun | Dec 19, 2026 | Dec 20, 2026 | County limit |
| Deer | Muzzleloader | Jan 2, 2027 | Jan 5, 2027 | County limit |
| Wild turkey | Fall | Oct 1, 2026 | Oct 25, 2026 | 1 turkey |
| Squirrels | Regular | Sep 1, 2026 | Jan 31, 2027 | 6 daily |
| Cottontail | Regular | Nov 6, 2026 | Feb 28, 2027 | 4 daily |
| Cottontail | Youth small game weekend | Oct 24, 2026 | Oct 25, 2026 | 4 daily |
| Cottontail | Youth small game weekend | Oct 31, 2026 | Nov 1, 2026 | 4 daily |
| Mink | Trapping | Nov 10, 2026 | Feb 28, 2027 | No limit |
| Muskrat | Trapping | Nov 10, 2026 | Feb 28, 2027 | No limit |
| Beaver | Trapping | Dec 26, 2026 | Feb 28, 2027 | No limit |
| River otter | Trapping | Dec 26, 2026 | Feb 28, 2027 | 3 per season |
Dates and limits from the 2026-27 hunting seasons list and the 2026-27 Ohio Hunting and Trapping Regulations; species from the record (ODNR property page hunting text); checked November 6, 2026.
Fernwood State Forest lottery hunts for 2026
Lottery hunts on Fernwood State Forest for 2026: 1 trapping. Applications are $3 apiece through wildohio.gov, the HuntFish OH app or by phone. Trappers draw in person at a district office on October 3, 2026.
| Number | Name | Kind | When to apply | Rules |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2815 | Fernwood State Forest beaver/otter trapping | Trapping | In person, Oct. 3 | packet |
Hunts from the ODNR controlled hunting access lotteries page and the 2026-27 regulations, pp. 26-27; checked November 6, 2026.
Fernwood State Forest counties, limits and harvest
Hunters on this ground follow the Jefferson County limit of 3 deer. Jefferson County hunters checked 3,691 deer in 2025-26 (1,837 antlered). Running total to November 3, 2026: 738.
| County | Deer | Surveillance | Ducks | Spring zone | Fall season | Deer checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson County | 3 deer | No | C | South | Open | 3,691 |
From the deer bag limit map, DSA, waterfowl zones, turkey zones, 2025-26 deer harvest report, harvest to date (ODNR Division of Wildlife); checked November 6, 2026.
Fields, dogs and ranges on Fernwood State Forest
Practice range on Fernwood State Forest
Fernwood State Forest has range class CO listed. No fee at class D.
| Range | Class | Type or contact | Supervised trap/skeet |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fernwood State Forest | CO | (330) 339-2205 | No |
From the range list; checked November 6, 2026.
Fernwood State Forest and the open ground around it
When parking fills at Fernwood State Forest, Jefferson Lake State Park waits 10 miles to the northwest. Close by are 3 state forests, 2 wildlife areas and 1 state park.
| Area | Kind | Acres | County | Miles off | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson Lake State Park | State park | 962 | Jefferson | 10 miles | northwest |
| Harrison State Forest | State forest | 1,345 | Harrison | 14 miles | west |
| Brush Creek Wildlife Area | Wildlife area | 4,142 | Jefferson | 16 miles | north |
| Willow Grove State Forest | State forest | 350 | Belmont | 20 miles | south |
| Yellow Creek State Forest | State forest | 756 | Columbiana | 20 miles | north |
| Jockey Hollow Wildlife Area | Wildlife area | 3,469 | Harrison | 21 miles | southwest |
Point: ODNR DNR_Lands_Hunting_Status layer, 1 parcel (polygon centroid of the largest part). Straight-line distances. Closed places from the lands.json closed list. Checked November 6, 2026. Statewide public land map.
What the managers say about Fernwood State Forest
In the agency's own words about Fernwood State Forest:
“Hunt, or fish one of the many ponds in the forest.”
“Is the forest open for hunting and fishing?”
Quoted from the agency page; checked November 6, 2026.
Where to fuel up and grab ice near Fernwood State Forest
The handiest town is Wintersville, 4 miles off. Of the five, Steubenville is the biggest with 18,029 residents (2024 estimate). ODNR Highlandtown Wildlife Area headquarters is the nearest Division office, roughly 23 miles away.
| Town | County | People (2024) | Distance | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wintersville | Jefferson | 3,672 | 4 miles | north |
| Steubenville | Jefferson | 18,029 | 5 miles | northeast |
| Jewett | Harrison | 532 | 15 miles | west |
| Cadiz | Harrison | 2,950 | 15 miles | west |
| Irondale | Jefferson | 318 | 17 miles | north |
Towns from places.json (Census 2024 estimates); ODNR offices and businesses from services.json listings; straight-line miles. Checked November 6, 2026.
Contact and map files for Fernwood State Forest
Wildlife District Three: 912 Portage Lakes Dr, Akron, OH 44319, tel. 330-644-2293. Wildlife officer for Jefferson County: Craig Porter ((330) 245-3050). See a violation? 1-800-POACHER takes calls day and night. From the map sheet: General location map of Fernwood State Forest. From the map sheet: Map does not include some local roadways.
- Area map PDF · legend: headquarters, parking, shooting range, latrine, camping, campground, no hunting, no hunting zone
- Fernwood State Forest Map [Archived PDF]
- Driving directions
Address and phone from the agency page and the ODNR Property Details layer; district offices from the ODNR Districts layer; officers from the officer list; point from ODNR DNR_Lands_Hunting_Status layer, 1 parcel (polygon centroid of the largest part); checked November 6, 2026.
What the cover looks like around Fernwood State Forest
Fernwood State Forest: shooting minutes for each Ohio opener
Three sets of hours apply in Ohio: deer, then waterfowl, squirrel and turkey, then the sunrise-to-sunset upland and dove rule. The table shows all three for Fernwood State Forest.
| Day | Moment | First sun | Last sun | Deer light | Marsh light | Field light |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 26, 2026 | Archery deer opens | 7:13 a.m. | 7:15 p.m. | 6:43 a.m. to 7:45 p.m. | 6:43 a.m. to 7:15 p.m. | 7:13 a.m. to 7:15 p.m. |
| Oct 1, 2026 | Fall turkey | 7:18 a.m. | 7:07 p.m. | 6:48 a.m. to 7:37 p.m. | 6:48 a.m. to 7:07 p.m. | 7:18 a.m. to 7:07 p.m. |
| Nov 6, 2026 | Rabbit and pheasant | 6:57 a.m. | 5:16 p.m. | 6:27 a.m. to 5:46 p.m. | 6:27 a.m. to 5:16 p.m. | 6:57 a.m. to 5:16 p.m. |
| Nov 30, 2026 | Deer gun week | 7:25 a.m. | 4:59 p.m. | 6:55 a.m. to 5:29 p.m. | 6:55 a.m. to 4:59 p.m. | 7:25 a.m. to 4:59 p.m. |
| Dec 12, 2026 | Second duck split | 7:36 a.m. | 4:57 p.m. | 7:06 a.m. to 5:27 p.m. | 7:06 a.m. to 4:57 p.m. | 7:36 a.m. to 4:57 p.m. |
| Dec 21, 2026 | Shortest day | 7:42 a.m. | 5:00 p.m. | 7:12 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. | 7:12 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. | 7:42 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. |
| Jan 2, 2027 | Muzzleloader | 7:46 a.m. | 5:07 p.m. | 7:16 a.m. to 5:37 p.m. | 7:16 a.m. to 5:07 p.m. | 7:46 a.m. to 5:07 p.m. |
Hours rules from the 2026-27 Ohio Hunting and Trapping Regulations; sunrise and sunset worked out for this location with the NOAA solar formula (Eastern Time); checked November 6, 2026. Legal hours for every county.
The range on Fernwood State Forest, plus clubs nearby
Before a hunt on Fernwood State Forest, the range on the property (Fernwood State Forest Shooting Range) is the obvious place to check a gun or bow.
From ODNR’s public range list and range pages, ranges’ own pages and directory listings, checked November 6, 2026.
Straight answers on Fernwood State Forest for this season
What orange garment do I need on Fernwood State Forest?
Yes in the deer gun and muzzleloader seasons: a solid or camouflage orange vest, coat, jacket or coveralls (waterfowl hunters excepted).
Are tree stands and bait allowed at Fernwood State Forest?
Portable stands are fine; baiting deer is not.
What office handles Fernwood State Forest for ODNR?
Try (740) 266-6021.
Shooting hours for deer on Fernwood State Forest this season?
For the gun opener: 6:55 a.m. until 5:29 p.m.
Can I hunt anywhere on Fernwood State Forest, or only parts?
Yes, open land.
Which town do I aim for when driving to Fernwood State Forest?
Wintersville is the nearest, 4 miles off.
Is Sunday hunting legal on Fernwood State Forest?
Yes, Sundays are open in season.
When must I check game taken on Fernwood State Forest?
Game check closes at noon the next day; use the app, the website or the phone line.
How many acres of hunting land is Fernwood State Forest?
3,023 acres is the headline figure used on this page. Other measures appear in the table.
What paperwork must I carry on Fernwood State Forest?
No entry pass: the Ohio hunting license and the species permit are enough, such as an either-sex deer permit ($31.20 resident). Some hunts here are by lottery permit.
Which lottery hunts include Fernwood State Forest?
Trapping: 1 lottery hunt(s). $3 per entry.
Deer bag limit for Fernwood State Forest?
Up to 3, by the county rule. Statewide, only one antlered deer, and no more than two antlerless deer may come from public hunting areas.
Overnight stays at Fernwood State Forest?
The listed campground is the place to stay.
Sign-off notes for Fernwood State Forest hunters
Confirm the county limit, the zone and the open dates for Fernwood State Forest before you load the truck.
Sources: source 1 · source 2 · source 3 · source 4 · source 5; seasons from the 2026-27 Ohio Hunting and Trapping Regulations. Checked November 6, 2026.
Other photos on this page: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Public Domain Mark 1.0); Ligocsicnarf89 (CC BY 4.0); James St. John (CC BY 2.0).