Breckinridge County Hunting Guide

Deer Zone 1 rules in Breckinridge County

Breckinridge County is in Deer Zone 1 for 2026-27, one of 68 counties KDFWR placed there under 301 KAR 2:172. Zone 1 is the most liberal zone: unlimited antlerless deer with the right permits, and still just one antlered deer statewide. Old guides show Breckinridge County in Zone 2, but the 2026-27 map has it in Zone 1.

KDFWR wording for Zone 1: “Unlimited antlerless deer with the statewide deer permit plus additional deer permits; 1 antlered deer statewide.” 301 KAR 2:172

The Zone 1 modern gun season runs November 14 to November 29, 2026, 16 days, and the late muzzleloader season follows from December 12 to December 20, 2026. Youth hunters get the woods to themselves October 10 to October 18, 2026, and early muzzleloader falls on October 17 to October 18, 2026. Archery runs statewide September 5, 2026 to January 18, 2027, and crossbow opens September 19, 2026 and ends the same January day.

Gun deer days mean orange for all: head, back and chest, archers and trappers too, unless you are hunting waterfowl or doves. On December 26 to December 27, 2026 youth under 16 need no license or deer permit, only an adult with them.

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

Zones and bags from 301 KAR 2:172 and the 2026-27 Kentucky Hunting & Trapping Guide; hunter orange from the guide. Checked November 10, 2026.

Breckinridge County bear, elk and bird rules

Black bear

No bear season reaches Breckinridge County. The nearest of the 47 bear counties is Adair County, roughly 78 miles off.

Elk

Outside the elk zone, as Breckinridge County is, the Out-of-Zone Elk Permit allows one elk during deer seasons. That elk does not count against the deer bag, and no deer permit is needed for it.

Follows deer season dates and methods; needs annual hunting license plus Out-of-Zone Elk Permit; no deer permit required. 1 elk of either sex per license year (not counted in deer bag) Guide p. 23

Small game and birds

Rabbit and quail follow the Eastern Zone calendar here: November 1 to November 13 and November 16 to January 31. Ruffed grouse are closed in Breckinridge County, which is outside the Grouse Zone. Breckinridge County falls in Otter Zone 1 for trapping and hunting otters.

The Western September goose zone, read from the map, puts the early goose season here at September 1 to September 15, 2026. Kentucky runs one duck zone, opening November 26 and closing January 31, 2027.

September goose zone counties are read from the KDFWR zone map; they agree with the 301 KAR 2:225 rule. Waterfowl guide p. 11

From the 2026-27 Kentucky Hunting & Trapping Guide, the Kentucky Hunting Guide for Migratory Birds and Waterfowl, bear zone rules, elk rules and small game zones. Checked November 10, 2026.

What hunters took in Breckinridge County

The 2025-26 deer harvest here came to 3,091, which places Breckinridge County 2nd statewide. Density-wise, 5.4 deer came off each square mile (24th statewide). Since 2016-17 (2,626 deer), harvest is up by 18%. Ten-season high: 3,291 in 2019-20; low: 2,626 in 2016-17.

1,505 does and 1,353 antlered bucks were checked, plus 233 button bucks. By method, modern firearms led with 2,333 deer; muzzleloaders took 187. Among the counties in today's Zone 1, Breckinridge County supplied 3% of the harvest.

Wild turkey

Spring turkey hunters checked 662 birds here in 2026, 3rd among counties. Fall 2025-26 brought 15 birds. The spring 2027 season dates were still unpublished at the last check.

Harvest from the KDFWR Harvest Results app (Telecheck; license years, 2025-26 = the latest); turkey from the same app. Checked November 10, 2026.

Breckinridge County offices, towns and shops

Reach the Green River Region through its coordinator at (270) 875-3586 or FW.GreenRiverRegion@ky.gov. Region offices have no published address, so the nearest KDFWR building to visit is the Northwestern Fisheries District Office, Calhoun, roughly 47 miles off.

Breckinridge County towns covered on this site:

• Hardinsburg2,487 people
• Cloverport1,144 people

Need a processor or a taxidermist near Breckinridge County? These are the closest listed, and it pays to call first.

Regional coordinator phone and e-mail from the KDFWR regional biologists map; offices from the KDFWR Contact Us page and fisheries district layer; services from the KDFWR taxidermist and processor list and directories. Checked November 10, 2026.

Explore past Breckinridge County

Neighbouring county guides and statewide pages for Breckinridge County hunters.