Home › Illinois › Public land › Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge
National refuge · public land
National wildlife refuge in Pulaski County and 3 more counties of roughly 16,758 acres in the source.
Photo: Jason Goldberg (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Midwest Region) (Public Domain Mark 1.0)
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.
The source page says this about access: Hunting only in designated areas shown on the refuge map; only portable blinds and stands; blinds removed at the end of each day.
Illinois-wide rules still bind you at Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge; the short list is below.
| Applies here | In brief |
|---|---|
| Firearm deer clothing | 400 square inches orange |
| Ground blinds, firearm season | 400 square inches orange |
| Hunter safety card | Born on or after 1980 |
| Habitat stamp | Required to hunt |
| Baiting or feeding deer | Illegal |
| Sunday hunting | Not stated in sources |
Digest rules from the 2026-27 Illinois Hunting and Trapping Digest (Illinois Department of Natural Resources); orange rule at IDNR hunter orange page; baiting at IDNR baiting page; Sunday rule: IDNR Sunday page. Site rules from the record source. Checked November 13, 2026.
Nearby
the Fish and Wildlife Service manages Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge, a national wildlife refuge. Refuge hunting follows the Fish and Wildlife Service rule in 50 CFR 32.32 plus the refuge page, and only part of a refuge may be open. Its published size is 16,758 acres, the figure from the Fish and Wildlife Service hunt-unit map. Look for it across Pulaski County, Union County, Alexander County and Johnson County; IDNR calls the area South.
"The refuge includes 15,000 acres open to hunting"; state seasons and regulations apply in the open area (deer archery, firearm, muzzleloader, youth); trailing hounds permitted during raccoon / opossum season; deer hunting with dogs, dog training and night hunting prohibited. Species on the source listing: deer, turkey, waterfowl, squirrel, rabbit, raccoon, opossum and upland birds.
Not all of Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge is open; the federal map marks 3 parts differently.
| Unit name | Huntable? | GIS acres |
|---|---|---|
| Bellrose | Special Regulations Apply | 1,179 |
| Closed | No | 238 |
| Open | Special Regulations Apply | 15,256 |
Fish and Wildlife Service Public Hunt Units layer (GIS acres, 2026) and 50 CFR 32.32 (eCFR); checked November 13, 2026.
Deer rules in Illinois are decided county by county, so each county touching Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge matters. These 4 counties have no confirmed CWD record this season.
| County | Shotgun deer | Either-sex permits | Chronic wasting | Turkey |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pulaski | Open | 0 | None found | South |
| Union | Open | 120 | None found | South |
| Alexander | Open | 287 | None found | South |
| Johnson | Open | 451 | None found | South |
More on each county: Pulaski County, Union County, Alexander County and Johnson County.
County rules from the Digest, IDNR CWD counties and the leftover permit list (IDNR permit page); checked November 13, 2026.
Next closest on the map: Cache River SNA, 7 miles east. Within reach: 3 natural areas, 2 fish and wildlife areas and 1 federal tract.
| Place | Type | Acres | County | Straight line | Which way |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cache River SNA | Natural area | 15,425 | Johnson | 7 miles | east |
| Cypress Pond SNA | Natural area | 1,047 | Johnson | 13 miles | north |
| Bluff Lakes Federal Lands | Federal land | 516 | Union | 14 miles | northwest |
| Deer Pond SNA | Natural area | 190 | Johnson | 14 miles | northeast |
| Mermet Lake SFWA | Fish and wildlife area | 2,000 | Massac | 16 miles | east |
| Union County SFWA | Fish and wildlife area | 6,202 | Union | 16 miles | northwest |
Point: FWS Public Hunt Units layer (point inside polygon (centroid falls outside) of the largest part). Straight-line distances. Statewide public land map.
IDNR also manages places near Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge where hunting is not offered; they are listed as closed in our records and never shown as open.
| Closed row | Type | Miles off | County |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chestnut Hills | Natural area | 8 miles | Pulaski |
| Berryville Shale Glade | Natural area | 14 miles | Union |
| Brown Barrens | Natural area | 15 miles | Union |
| Tunnel Hill | State trail | 18 miles | Johnson |
| Union State Tree Nursery | IDNR site | 19 miles | Union |
| Fort Defiance | State park | 21 miles | Alexander |
Closed rows are IDNR sites with no Hunt Illinois fact sheet and no hunting flag on the land-use layer; see the full closed list. Checked November 13, 2026.
Ullin is the nearest town with a page here, 2 miles from Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge in a straight line. Jonesboro (1,655 people in 2024) is the larger service town in the list. Towns whose 10-mile circle takes in Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge: Dongola, Karnak and Ullin.
| Town | County | People (2024) | Distance | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ullin | Pulaski | 460 | 2 miles | west |
| Dongola | Union | 645 | 5 miles | north |
| Karnak | Pulaski | 403 | 9 miles | east |
| Unity | Alexander | – | 12 miles | southwest |
| Jonesboro | Union | 1,655 | 13 miles | northwest |
Towns from places.json (Census 2024 estimates); IDNR sites from the CWD sampling list and the IDNR contact page; businesses from services.json listings; straight-line miles. Checked November 13, 2026.
Picked for cornfields, creek bottoms and river backwaters; nothing loads until you tap.
Amazon links are affiliate links. We may earn a commission at no cost to you.
Cornfield edges give little cover, so most hunters climb into a hardwood draw in Illinois.
Regular duck and goose hours end at sunset, a full half hour earlier than deer hours, and the Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge columns show that gap on each date.
| Day | Note | Sunup | Sundown | Deer day | Goose day | Turkey day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1, 2026 | Bow season opens | 6:51 a.m. | 6:42 p.m. | 6:21 a.m. to 7:12 p.m. | 6:21 a.m. to 6:42 p.m. | Not in season |
| Oct 10, 2026 | Youth deer weekend | 6:59 a.m. | 6:28 p.m. | 6:29 a.m. to 6:58 p.m. | 6:29 a.m. to 6:28 p.m. | Not in season |
| Nov 7, 2026 | Pheasant and quail | 6:27 a.m. | 4:54 p.m. | 5:57 a.m. to 5:24 p.m. | 5:57 a.m. to 4:54 p.m. | Not in season |
| Nov 20, 2026 | Shotgun deer opens | 6:41 a.m. | 4:44 p.m. | 6:11 a.m. to 5:14 p.m. | 6:11 a.m. to 4:44 p.m. | Not in season |
| Dec 11, 2026 | Muzzleloader weekend | 7:00 a.m. | 4:39 p.m. | 6:30 a.m. to 5:09 p.m. | 6:30 a.m. to 4:39 p.m. | Not in season |
| Dec 21, 2026 | Year's shortest day | 7:07 a.m. | 4:42 p.m. | 6:37 a.m. to 5:12 p.m. | 6:37 a.m. to 4:42 p.m. | Not in season |
| Apr 5, 2027 | Spring turkey opens | 6:38 a.m. | 7:22 p.m. | 6:08 a.m. to 7:52 p.m. | 6:08 a.m. to 7:22 p.m. | 6:08 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. |
Hours rules from the 2026-27 Illinois Hunting and Trapping Digest (Illinois Department of Natural Resources); sunrise and sunset worked out for this location with the NOAA solar formula on Central Time; checked November 13, 2026. Legal hours for every county.
Trail of Tears Lodge and Sports Resort, 12 miles from Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge, heads the three nearest range cards.
From the IDNR archery and hand-trap page, the Sparta complex pages, club sites and directory listings, checked November 13, 2026.
Raccoon in the woodsPhoto: Juliana Chong (CC BY 2.0)
Raccoon portraitPhoto: Charles Patrick Ewing (CC BY 2.0)
No site permit or lottery is listed for Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge in the sources we read. You still need a license, the habitat stamp and the usual county deer or turkey permits.
IDNR or the federal source lists deer, turkey, waterfowl, squirrel, rabbit, raccoon, opossum and upland birds. Statewide limits apply.
We read no site-specific seasons for Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge; the Digest dates stand. Season calendar.
The record puts Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge in Pulaski County, Union County, Alexander County and Johnson County at 16,758 acres. IDNR region: South.
Details are published by the Fish and Wildlife Service. The record lists no phone or address. Official page.
We found no report row for Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge; the county pages carry county totals. County totals: Pulaski County.
Supplies are closest in Ullin, 2 miles off. Next: Dongola (5 miles) and Karnak (9 miles). Ullin hunting page.
In firearm deer seasons the Digest calls for a solid blaze cap and an upper garment with 400 square inches of orange or pink. Turkey hunters are not required to wear it. Source.
In Pulaski County, firearm deer is open to firearm deer; no confirmed chronic wasting disease finding is on the list. Leftover either-sex firearm permits after round 3: 0. Pulaski County page.
The sources we read state no Sunday rule, so we do not say it is allowed or banned. IDNR page.
Several are closed: 6 sites within 25 miles, Chestnut Hills among them. Do not hunt them.
Deer hours run from one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset; regular ducks and geese stop at sunset; spring turkey ends at 1 pm. Site rules can be tighter. Hours for every county.
Recheck your permit, county rules and season dates for Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge before packing up.
Sources: source 1 · source 2 · source 3 · source 4; statewide seasons from the 2026-27 Illinois Hunting and Trapping Digest. Checked November 13, 2026.
Other photos on this page: Logan Ward (CC BY 2.0).