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Hunting area in Meigs County, Ohio
Hunting AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area: what the ODNR record shows
A 3,740-acre Ohio public hunting area in Meigs County and Gallia County.
Photo: dok1 (CC BY 2.0)
Getting to AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area
Parking, trailheads and gates near AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area
- Parking areaParking · 1.8 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 3.3 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.
Inside the AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area record
At 3,740 acres, AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area is a public hunting area in Meigs County and Gallia County; the ODNR Division of Wildlife looks after it. The Division of Wildlife handles it from its Athens office (District 4, Southeast Ohio). The hunting layer shows the parcels as held under a cooperative agreement.
Pick your number: 2,298 acres at the low end, 3,740 at the high end, by source.
| Source | Acres |
|---|---|
| Hunting-status layer | 3,740 |
| GIS parcel area | 3,657 |
| GIS, open parcels only | 2,298 |
From the agency page, ODNR hunting-status layer; retrieved 2026-11-05, checked November 6, 2026.
Nearby
Places to hunt and shoot around AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area
AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area hunting rules, line by line
ODNR marks every parcel of AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area open to hunting. 1 of its 2 parcels are not open.
- Park in designated spots; off-road driving is illegal.
- No campsites on this property.
- Night closure (8 p.m. to 6 a.m. in fall and winter) does not apply to hunters and trappers.
- Plinking is not allowed outside the designated ranges.
- Leave the corn at home: no bait on public land.
- Stands: portable, no devices driven into the bark.
- Two antlerless deer at most from all public hunting areas in a license year.
- Hunting rights come from a cooperative agreement.
From the agency page, public hunting area rules; checked November 6, 2026.
Hunting calendar matched to AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area
The property page is silent on species, so the rows below are the usual statewide seasons. The spring turkey dates are from 2026, since ODNR had not published 2027.
| Quarry | Season | Start | End | Limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
| Pheasant | Regular | Nov 6, 2026 | Jan 10, 2027 | 2 roosters 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 |
| Pheasant | Youth small game weekend | Oct 24, 2026 | Oct 25, 2026 | 2 roosters daily |
| Pheasant | Youth small game weekend | Oct 31, 2026 | Nov 1, 2026 | 2 roosters daily |
| Raccoon | Hunting | Nov 10, 2026 | Jan 31, 2027 | No limit |
| Raccoon | Trapping | Nov 10, 2026 | Jan 31, 2027 | No limit |
Dates and limits from the 2026-27 hunting seasons list and the 2026-27 Ohio Hunting and Trapping Regulations; species from the record (No species named by ODNR for this area); checked November 6, 2026.
County limits that apply on AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area
Deer bag in Meigs County: 2, with a single antlered deer allowed across Ohio. Meigs County hunters checked 1,060 deer in 2025-26 (632 antlered). The 2026-27 count stood at 361 on November 3, 2026.
| County | Limit | DSA | Zone | Spring | Fall turkey | 2025-26 deer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Meigs County | 2 deer | No | C | South | Open | 1,060 |
| Gallia County | 3 deer | No | C | South | Open | 2,956 |
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.
Public hunting land within reach of AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area
Drive 5 miles southeast and the next public tract is Gavin Wildlife Area. Around it on the map: 5 wildlife areas and 1 state forest. Within 15 miles but not open to hunters: Miriam Walter Barrens State Dedicated Nature Preserve (nature preserve) and Wilson Wetland Wildlife Area (no open parcels).
| Area | Kind | Acres | County | Miles off | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gavin Wildlife Area | Wildlife area | 1,346 | Gallia | 5 miles | southeast |
| Samuels Wildlife Area | Wildlife area | 83 | Gallia | 7 miles | southwest |
| Tycoon Lake Wildlife Area | Wildlife area | 684 | Gallia | 10 miles | southwest |
| Vinton Furnace Wildlife Area | Wildlife area | 3,533 | Vinton | 12 miles | northwest |
| Jackson County Line WA | Wildlife area | 42 | Jackson | 12 miles | northwest |
| Vinton Furnace Experimental Forest | State forest | 12,331 | Vinton | 13 miles | northwest |
Point: ODNR DNR_Lands_Hunting_Status layer, 2 parcels (point inside polygon (centroid falls outside) of the largest part). Straight-line distances. Closed places from the lands.json closed list. Checked November 6, 2026. Statewide public land map.
AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area maps, address and officers
For permits and questions try the Wildlife District Four office, 740-589-9930. The Meigs County wildlife officer is Chris Gilkey, (614) 563-4492. Anonymous tip line: 1-800-POACHER.
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, 2 parcels (point inside polygon (centroid falls outside) of the largest part); checked November 6, 2026.
Where to fuel up and grab ice near AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area
From the point, Rutland sits 6 miles away. Of the five, Wellston is the biggest with 5,493 residents (2024 estimate). For face-to-face help, the Oak Hill ODNR office lies 16 miles away as the crow flies.
| Place | County | Population | Distance | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rutland | Meigs | 412 | 6 miles | east |
| Pomeroy | Meigs | 1,505 | 11 miles | east |
| Gallipolis | Gallia | 3,282 | 16 miles | south |
| Wellston | Jackson | 5,493 | 17 miles | west |
| Hamden | Vinton | 717 | 17 miles | northwest |
Towns from places.json (Census 2024 estimates); ODNR offices and businesses from services.json listings; straight-line miles. Checked November 6, 2026.
Gun-week light and other opener times on AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area
ODNR prints no sunrise table and points hunters to its app, the NOAA calculator and the Naval Observatory; the times for AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area below are worked out with the NOAA solar formula for its own location.
| Date | Opener | Sunrise | Sunset | Big game | Duck window | Pheasant window |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 26, 2026 | Archery deer opens | 7:19 a.m. | 7:22 p.m. | 6:49 a.m. to 7:52 p.m. | 6:49 a.m. to 7:22 p.m. | 7:19 a.m. to 7:22 p.m. |
| Oct 1, 2026 | Fall turkey | 7:24 a.m. | 7:13 p.m. | 6:54 a.m. to 7:43 p.m. | 6:54 a.m. to 7:13 p.m. | 7:24 a.m. to 7:13 p.m. |
| Nov 6, 2026 | Rabbit and pheasant | 7:01 a.m. | 5:24 p.m. | 6:31 a.m. to 5:54 p.m. | 6:31 a.m. to 5:24 p.m. | 7:01 a.m. to 5:24 p.m. |
| Nov 30, 2026 | Deer gun week | 7:28 a.m. | 5:08 p.m. | 6:58 a.m. to 5:38 p.m. | 6:58 a.m. to 5:08 p.m. | 7:28 a.m. to 5:08 p.m. |
| Dec 12, 2026 | Second duck split | 7:38 a.m. | 5:07 p.m. | 7:08 a.m. to 5:37 p.m. | 7:08 a.m. to 5:07 p.m. | 7:38 a.m. to 5:07 p.m. |
| Dec 21, 2026 | Shortest day | 7:44 a.m. | 5:10 p.m. | 7:14 a.m. to 5:40 p.m. | 7:14 a.m. to 5:10 p.m. | 7:44 a.m. to 5:10 p.m. |
| Jan 2, 2027 | Muzzleloader | 7:48 a.m. | 5:17 p.m. | 7:18 a.m. to 5:47 p.m. | 7:18 a.m. to 5:17 p.m. | 7:48 a.m. to 5:17 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.
Field and woods views near AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area
Public range and clubs on the road to AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area
Cooper Hollow Wildlife Area Shooting Range is 17 miles from AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area and is the nearest public range on ODNR’s list. Next to it: the nearest club ranges, all inside 30 miles.
From ODNR’s public range list and range pages, ranges’ own pages and directory listings, checked November 6, 2026.
AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area: what Buckeye hunters keep asking
Can AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area be hunted all seven days?
No statewide Sunday limit applies.
Is any special pass needed to hunt AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area?
An Ohio hunting license ($19 resident, $180.96 nonresident) plus the permit for your game: deer or turkey permit, fur taker permit, or HIP and stamps for waterfowl.
What size is AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area on the ODNR books?
About 3,740 acres by the main source; other layers are in the acreage table. Different layers give slightly different totals.
Deer bag limit for AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area?
Each county sets its own: Meigs 2; Gallia 3. Statewide: 6 deer, 1 antlered; public hunting areas: 2 antlerless at most.
Is any hunting at AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area by permit only?
No; the 2026 lottery list does not include it.
Which zone sets the waterfowl calendar at AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area?
Zone C. Splits: Oct 17 to Oct 25, 2026; Dec 12, 2026 to Jan 31, 2027.
Overnight stays at AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area?
No. Camping is banned on wildlife areas except at Appalachian Hills, Simco and Woodbury.
Can I leave a tree stand or use bait on AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area?
No bait, and stands must be portable.
Must I wear orange while hunting AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area in winter?
During the youth gun, gun, bonus gun, DSA early gun and muzzleloader seasons, every hunter except waterfowl hunters wears a hunter orange vest, coat, jacket or coveralls.
When does legal deer light start on AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area?
6:58 a.m. to 5:38 p.m. on November 30, 2026.
What office handles AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area for ODNR?
Try 740-589-9930.
Nearest town for supplies near AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area?
Rutland is the nearest, 6 miles off.
Is every part of AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area open to hunting?
The whole area is open.
Sign-off notes for AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area hunters
Gravel lanes and parking lots can flood or close in wet weather; check access to AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area before the drive.
Sources: source 1 · source 2; seasons from the 2026-27 Ohio Hunting and Trapping Regulations. Checked November 6, 2026.
Other photos on this page: Raul654 (CC BY-SA 3.0); U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Midwest Region (Public domain); Charles Patrick Ewing (CC BY 2.0).