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Georgia deer zone
Orange Deer Zone in Georgia
Doe days, counties and harvest for Georgia’s Orange zone, which takes in the north Georgia mountain counties from Dalton and Chatsworth east to Toccoa.
Photo: irio.jyske (CC BY 2.0)
Orange takes in 9 north Georgia counties: Dawson, Gilmer, Habersham, Lumpkin, Murray, Pickens, Stephens, White and Whitfield. The gun season here alternates: either sex Nov 6 to Nov 12, Nov 20 to Nov 26 and Dec 28 to Jan 10, bucks only between. That adds up to 28 either-sex gun days against 58 buck-only days. Chattahoochee National Forest land in these counties does not use the colour zone: east of I-75 it is buck only all season. Reported harvest in 2025-26: 10,590 deer, with does at 3,783.
Orange zone doe days, 2026-27
Read the bucks-only rows as “antlers visible above the hairline”; button bucks count as antlerless.
| Season type | Opening | Closing | Days | Right now |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Archery (Either-Sex) | Sep 12, 2026 | Oct 9, 2026 | 28 | |
| Primitive Weapons (Either-Sex) | Oct 10, 2026 | Oct 16, 2026 | 7 | |
| Firearms (Antlered Bucks Only) | Oct 17, 2026 | Nov 5, 2026 | 20 | |
| Firearms (Either-Sex) | Nov 6, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 | 7 | |
| Firearms (Antlered Bucks Only) | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 19, 2026 | 7 | |
| Firearms (Either-Sex) | Nov 20, 2026 | Nov 26, 2026 | 7 | |
| Firearms (Antlered Bucks Only) | Nov 27, 2026 | Dec 27, 2026 | 31 | |
| Firearms (Either-Sex) | Dec 28, 2026 | Jan 10, 2027 | 14 |
Deer seasons and either-sex days, big game seasons, checked October 13, 2026.
Orange counties and their deer harvest
Each county links to its own guide.
| County | Seat | Region | Late archery | Antler rule | Deer dogs | Game Check 2025-26 | Per sq mi |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dawson | Dawsonville | Gainesville | – | – | – | 874 | 4.1 |
| Gilmer | Ellijay | Armuchee | – | – | – | 1,417 | 3.3 |
| Habersham | Clarkesville | Gainesville | – | – | – | 1,338 | 4.8 |
| Lumpkin | Dahlonega | Gainesville | – | – | – | 1,172 | 4.1 |
| Murray | Chatsworth | Armuchee | – | – | – | 1,558 | 4.5 |
| Pickens | Jasper | Armuchee | – | – | – | 1,068 | 4.6 |
| Stephens | Toccoa | Gainesville | – | – | – | 646 | 3.5 |
| White | Cleveland | Gainesville | – | – | – | 1,092 | 4.5 |
| Whitfield | Dalton | Armuchee | – | – | – | 1,425 | 4.9 |
Either-sex zone map (read from the guide’s map image), deer regulations, Game Check by county, checked October 13, 2026.
Orange counties, deer checked by year
Sum of the zone’s whole counties; the best season in the series was 2024-25 with an estimated 14,560.
| Season | Reported | Bucks | Does | WRD estimate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 10,590 | 6,807 | 3,783 | 13,831 |
| 2024-25 | 11,060 | 6,947 | 4,113 | 14,560 |
| 2023-24 | 9,920 | 6,182 | 3,738 | 12,096 |
| 2022-23 | 8,811 | 5,818 | 2,993 | 11,740 |
| 2021-22 | 7,473 | 5,112 | 2,361 | 9,824 |
| 2020-21 | 7,322 | 5,017 | 2,305 | 9,459 |
| 2019-20 | 6,683 | 4,604 | 2,079 | 9,152 |
| 2018-19 | 6,838 | 4,211 | 2,627 | 9,871 |
| 2017-18 | 6,284 | 4,256 | 2,028 | 8,911 |
| 2016-17 | 6,010 | 3,824 | 2,186 | 8,188 |
WRD deer harvest by county (Game Check and compliance-adjusted estimates), checked October 13, 2026.
Public ground inside the Orange zone
20 public areas with deer seasons sit in Orange counties.
| Area | Type | County | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests | National Forest | Rabun, Fannin, Union | 869,017 |
| Blue Ridge Ranger District | National Forest Ranger District | Union, Lumpkin, Fannin | 302,238 |
| Chattooga River Ranger District | National Forest Ranger District | Rabun, White, Habersham | 261,439 |
| Conasauga Ranger District | National Forest Ranger District | Murray, Fannin, Gilmer | 188,617 |
| Cohutta WMA | Wildlife Management Area | Murray, Fannin, Gilmer | 92,647 |
| Chestatee WMA | Wildlife Management Area | Lumpkin, White | 27,123 |
| Dawson Forest WMA | Wildlife Management Area | Dawson | 25,658 |
| Chattahoochee WMA | Wildlife Management Area | White, Union, Towns | 25,150 |
| John's Mountain WMA | Wildlife Management Area | Gordon, Walker, Floyd | 23,710 |
| Blue Ridge WMA | Wildlife Management Area | Fannin, Union, Lumpkin | 20,900 |
| Rich Mountain WMA | Wildlife Management Area | Gilmer, Fannin | 20,674 |
| Lake Russell WMA | Wildlife Management Area | Stephens, Habersham, Banks | 17,300 |
| Dukes Creek – Smithgall Woods State Park | State Park | White | 4,500 |
| Carter's Lake WMA | Wildlife Management Area | Gilmer, Murray, Gordon | 3,300 |
| Coosawattee WMA | Wildlife Management Area | Murray | 2,714 |
| Tallulah Gorge WMA | Wildlife Management Area | Rabun, Habersham | 2,689 |
| Rich Mountain WMA: Cartecay Tract | Wildlife Management Area | Gilmer | 2,165 |
| Cochrans Creek WMA | Wildlife Management Area | Dawson | 2,057 |
| Buck Shoals WMA | Wildlife Management Area | White | 582 |
| Conasauga River WMA | Wildlife Management Area | Murray, Whitfield | 509 |
Public areas listing deer, from WRD’s area listings, retrieved 2026-10-13.
Orange deer zone FAQ
How many counties are Orange?
Dawson, Gilmer, Habersham, Lumpkin, Murray, Pickens, Stephens, White and Whitfield.
Which gun days are either sex in Orange?
Nov 6 to Nov 12, Nov 20 to Nov 26 and Dec 28 to Jan 10, 28 days in all.
Can I kill a doe with a bow in the Orange zone?
Yes, the archery season is either sex on private land. Even on buck-only gun days, a bow may take a doe.
What about public land in the Orange counties?
Only private land uses the Orange days; public areas have separate listings. Antlerless deer are off limits on the national forest east of I-75.
Biggest deer county in Orange?
Murray, with 1,558 deer reported in 2025-26.
How many deer can I take in Orange counties?
Orange hunters share the 12-deer statewide bag.
Must I wear orange in Orange counties?
During primitive and firearms seasons everyone hunting deer here, bow or gun, wears orange or blaze pink.
What source shows the Orange zone?
The colours were taken by eye from the guide’s zone map. The image is labelled 2025 but agrees with the current tables. Land on a county line deserves a look at the official map.
Other photos on this page: ShenandoahNPS (Public domain); colmmcsky (CC BY-SA 2.0); YellowstoneNPS (Public domain); YoungSue (Public Domain Mark 1.0); fishhawk (CC BY 2.0); NPS Photo (Public domain).