Home › Kentucky
Built from the 2026-27 Kentucky Hunting & Trapping Guide, 301 KAR and the KDFWR Harvest Results app
Kentucky Hunting
144 public hunting places from the Mississippi River bottoms to Pine Mountain, among them 104 wildlife management areas, a guide to each of the 120 counties and 186 towns, the four deer zones, every one of the 79 season rows and all 50 KDFWR fee rows. Dates, fees and harvest figures come from KDFWR, 301 KAR or a federal land manager and were checked on November 10, 2026. The photo shows Haystack Rock at sunset in the Red River Gorge, inside the Cumberland Ranger District of the Daniel Boone National Forest.
Photo: sellers8847 (CC BY 2.0)
How Kentucky splits deer hunting by county
Archery runs September 5, 2026 to January 18, 2027 statewide; modern gun season is November 14 to November 29, 2026 in every zone.
| Deer season | Where | Dates | Now |
|---|---|---|---|
| Archery | Statewide | Sep 5, 2026–Jan 18, 2027 | |
| Crossbow | Statewide | Sep 19, 2026–Jan 18, 2027 | |
| Youth, senior crossbow | Statewide | Sep 5, 2026–Jan 18, 2027 | |
| CWD antlerless | CWD counties | Sep 25–28, 2026 | |
| Youth gun | Statewide | Oct 10–18, 2026 | |
| Early Muzzleloader | Statewide | Oct 17–18, 2026 | |
| Modern gun | All zones | Nov 14–29, 2026 | |
| Late Muzzleloader | All zones | Dec 12–20, 2026 | |
| Free youth weekend | Statewide | Dec 26–27, 2026 |
Kentucky sets its deer bag by county. Zone 1 takes in 68 counties and allows unlimited antlerless deer with the statewide permit plus additional deer permits; Zones 2 and 3 allow up to four deer, and Zone 3 hunters may take only one antlerless deer with a firearm or air gun; the 15 counties of Zone 4 allow two. Everywhere the cap is one antlered deer a year. For 2026-27 KDFWR moved 30 counties into a zone with a larger bag, and every county page shows the old and the new zone.
A January 9-11, 2027 antlerless-only firearms season in Zones 1-3 was adopted in 301 KAR 2:172 effective November 5, 2026; KDFWR's guide still lists it as pending. 301 KAR 2:172
Modern gun and late muzzleloader dates are the same in all four zones; the zones differ in bag. Sources: 301 KAR 2:172; 2026-27 Hunting & Trapping Guide, page 10; KDFWR deer page. Checked: Kentucky text reread November 10, 2026.
Where Kentucky public land lies
140 of the 144 places carry a map point, from the Mississippi River WMAs of Fulton County to the Fishtrap Lake and Big Sandy country of Pike County; places of 50,000 acres or more get the bigger dots. Muddygut and Crow Creek, the two WMAs KDFWR opened on November 4, 2026, have no boundary or point yet.
Kentucky public ground from LBL to the Daniel Boone
Measured on the map layers, the 120 counties hold about 1,732,052 acres open to hunting: roughly 799,087 acres of national forest and Land Between the Lakes, 618,616 acres of KDFWR wildlife management areas, 183,895 acres of Corps of Engineers lake land and 15,507 acres of national wildlife refuge.
| Land page | What it holds |
|---|---|
| Wildlife management areas | 104 WMAs by region |
| National forests | Daniel Boone, Jefferson, 4 districts |
| Federal lands | LBL, Big South Fork, three military posts |
| Wildlife refuges | 4 refuges under 50 CFR 32.36 |
| Parks and forests | 9 parks with hunts, 6 state forests |
| Hunting access areas | 5 access areas |
| Closed to hunting | 88 places closed |
| Land map | 140 pins |
88 further places allow no hunting: 46 state nature preserves, 35 state parks and historic sites without a hunt, and 6 National Park Service units including Mammoth Cave. 28 counties, among them Jefferson, Fayette, Warren and Daviess, hold no public hunting record at all, and their county pages point to the nearest land over the line.
Tile acres are the figure on each land record; statewide acres are GIS measures from the KDFWR, Forest Service and PAD-US layers, not official totals. Sources: eCFR; 301 KAR 2:178; 400 KAR 2:090. Checked: Kentucky text reread November 10, 2026.
Kentucky harvest totals from Telecheck
Telecheck logged 145,525 deer in the 2025-26 license year, 105,476 of them taken with a modern gun. The highest deer count in the app since 1999 is 155,724, in 2015-16.
Harvest figures are Telecheck counts by license year; spring turkey years are calendar springs. Sources: KDFWR Harvest Results app; 2025-26 Kentucky White-tailed Deer Report. Checked: Kentucky text reread November 10, 2026.
Open in Kentucky right now
Counted from all 79 KDFWR season rows on November 10, 2026. Spring 2027 turkey and spring squirrel dates were not yet published, so those rows show no dates anywhere on this site.
Open in Kentucky on November 10, 2026
| Game | Rows open | Open until |
|---|---|---|
| Deer | 3 | Jan 18, 2027 |
| Elk | 1 | Jan 6, 2027 |
| Turkey | 1 | Jan 18, 2027 |
| Squirrel | 1 | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Rabbit | 1 | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Quail | 1 | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Grouse | 1 | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Groundhog | 1 | Feb 28, 2027 |
| Turtles | 1 | Feb 28, 2027 |
| Exotic hoofed | 1 | Feb 28, 2027 |
| Woodcock | 1 | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Raccoon, opossum | 1 | Feb 28, 2027 |
| Coyote | 1 | Feb 28, 2027 |
Next Kentucky openers
| Game | Season | Zone | Opens | Now |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deer | Modern gun | All four zones | Nov 14, 2026 | |
| Turkey | Fall Crossbow | Statewide | Nov 14, 2026 | |
| Woodcock | Woodcock | Statewide | Nov 16, 2026 | |
| Rabbit | Rabbit | Eastern Zone | Nov 16, 2026 | |
| Furbearers | Trapping | Statewide | Nov 16, 2026 | |
| Squirrel | Fall Squirrel | Statewide | Nov 16, 2026 | |
| Other furbearers | Hunting | Statewide | Nov 16, 2026 | |
| Quail | Quail | Eastern Zone | Nov 16, 2026 | |
| River otter | Hunting | Statewide | Nov 16, 2026 | |
| Grouse | Grouse | Grouse Zone | Nov 16, 2026 |
Falconry rows stay on the species pages; split seasons count as open only inside one of their segments. Sources: 2026-27 Hunting & Trapping Guide, page 10; Migratory Bird and Waterfowl Guide, page 8; KDFWR Season Dates app. Checked: Kentucky text reread November 10, 2026.
120 Kentucky counties in five KDFWR regions
From west to east the regions run Purchase (14 counties), Green River (25), Bluegrass (31), Northeast (21) and Southeast (29). Tile counts are land records and town pages in each region.
Purchase Region
Ballard · Caldwell · Calloway · Carlisle · Christian · Crittenden · Fulton · Graves · Hickman · Livingston · Lyon · Marshall · McCracken · Trigg
Green River Region
Allen · Barren · Breckinridge · Butler · Daviess · Edmonson · Grayson · Hancock · Hardin · Hart · Henderson · Hopkins · LaRue · Logan · McLean · Meade · Metcalfe · Monroe · Muhlenberg · Ohio · Simpson · Todd · Union · Warren · Webster
Bluegrass Region
Anderson · Boone · Bourbon · Boyle · Bullitt · Campbell · Carroll · Clark · Fayette · Franklin · Gallatin · Garrard · Grant · Harrison · Henry · Jefferson · Jessamine · Kenton · Madison · Marion · Mercer · Nelson · Oldham · Owen · Pendleton · Scott · Shelby · Spencer · Trimble · Washington · Woodford
KDFWR headquarters is at #1 Sportsman's Lane, Frankfort ((502) 564-3400; toll free (800) 858-1549). KDFWR publishes no street address for its five wildlife region offices, so each region is reached through its regional coordinator line, and each county page names the nearest KDFWR building that has an address.
Sources: KDFWR regional coordinators map; KDFWR Contact Us page; KDFWR map layer. Checked: Kentucky text reread November 10, 2026.
34 pages on Kentucky wildlife
29 pages cover game with a season or a rule of its own, from bullfrogs to elk, and 5 explain protected animals such as the eastern spotted skunk and the alligator snapping turtle. Wild pig has a page too: KDFWR closed pig hunting in June 2024 and traps them instead.
Black bear · Eastern cottontail rabbit · Northern bobwhite · Ring-necked pheasant · Raccoon and opossum · Coyote · Bobcat · River otter · Other furbearers · Mourning dove · Virginia and sora rail · Common and purple gallinule · American woodcock · Wilson's snipe · Sandhill crane · American crow · Geese and brant · Bullfrog · Groundhog · Snapping and softshell turtles · Exotic hoofed wildlife · Small game · Wild pig · Eastern spotted skunk · Alligator snapping turtle · King rail · Birds of prey songbirds · Endangered species
Kentucky hunting paperwork, rules and lists
| Kentucky page | What it holds |
|---|---|
| License fees | 44 hunting rows, 6 fishing |
| Hunting laws | Weapons, methods, KRS 150.990 |
| Elk and quota draws | Elk draw, 38 quota hunts |
| Shooting hours | 122 county seats |
| Telecheck | Report by midnight |
| Youth and veterans | Free youth weekend |
| Records and harvest | Top Bucks, harvest |
| Hunting services | 687 listings |
| Events | Banquets, trials |
| Shooting ranges | KDFWR ranges and clubs |
A resident annual hunting license costs $28.54 and the statewide deer permit $37; nonresidents pay $169.12 and $248.40. Hunters born on or after January 1, 1975 need hunter education, and every deer, turkey, elk and bear goes through Telecheck by midnight on the day it is recovered.
Sources: 2026-27 Hunting & Trapping Guide, page 5; 2026-27 Hunting & Trapping Guide, page 7; 2026-27 Hunting & Trapping Guide, page 6. Checked: Kentucky text reread November 10, 2026.
Kentucky hunting questions
Which counties make up the 23-county CWD zone this season?
23 counties: Ballard, Breckinridge, Calloway, Carlisle, Casey, Fulton, Graves, Hardin, Henderson, Hickman, Laurel, Lincoln, Marshall, McCracken, McCreary, Meade, Pulaski, Rockcastle, Russell, Union, Wayne, Webster and Whitley.
What phone line answers Kentucky hunting questions?
The Information Center at (800) 858-1549 or the regional coordinator for your county; violations go to 1-800-25-ALERT.
What did the 2025-26 Kentucky deer harvest come to?
145,525 in the 2025-26 license year by the Harvest Results app. The 2025-26 Kentucky White-tailed Deer Report prints 145,433 deer; the KDFWR Harvest Results app (live Telecheck) counts 145,525.
When does Kentucky modern gun deer season open in 2026?
November 14 to November 29, 2026 in all four deer zones; late muzzleloader follows from December 12 to December 20, 2026.
How many deer does one Kentucky hunter get in a year?
It depends on the county's deer zone. Unlimited antlerless deer with the statewide deer permit plus additional deer permits; 1 antlered deer statewide. Zone 4 allows up to two deer with only one antlerless.
Do I need a separate permit for deer in Kentucky?
Yes. The statewide deer permit costs $37 for residents and $248.40 for nonresidents, and it is included in the Sportsman's License.
What acreage do the map layers count as public hunting ground in Kentucky?
This site lists 144 public hunting places; the GIS layers measure about 1,732,052 acres across the 120 counties.
Is elk hunting limited to the eastern Kentucky elk zone?
Inside the 16-county elk zone only with a drawn permit (500 for 2026); outside the zone an Out-of-Zone Elk Permit covers one elk of either sex during deer seasons.
Kentucky rules at the source
Rules for doves, ducks, geese, woodcock and cranes come from the migratory bird and waterfowl guide, which KDFWR prints apart from the main hunting guide.
Other photos on this page: Cindy Stuntz (CC BY 2.0); Emily Cleaver (posted by Land Between The Lakes National Recreation Area) (Public Domain Mark 1.0); Larry Syverson (CC BY-SA 2.0); Brian Stansberry (CC BY 3.0); John Beagle (CC BY 2.0); Andy Eller (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) (CC BY 2.0); Deborah Freeman (CC BY-SA 2.0); Joe Haupt (CC BY-SA 2.0); the real Kam75 (CC BY-SA 2.0); ilouque (CC BY 2.0); James St. John (CC BY 2.0); Mary Ellen Urbanski (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) (CC BY 2.0); Russ (CC BY 2.0); U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Midwest Region (Public domain); USFWS Mountain Prairie (Public domain); DaPuglet (CC BY-SA 2.0); GlacierNPS (Public domain).