Home › Missouri › Public land › Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area
Conservation area · Missouri 2026-27
Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area hunting
Seasons, methods and access for this conservation area in Clark County.
Photo: USFWS Midwest Region (Public Domain Mark 1.0)
Getting to Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area
Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area profile
Clark County is home to the 2,158 acres of Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area. In acreage it places 1st among 7 conservation areas in Clark County. Management sits with MDC: Fabius River district, Northeast Region.
When hunting is slow, Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area offers shooting range (archery, rifle or pistol), camping (open camping-walk/float/backpack(no deer/turkey), individual campsites), dog training and fishing (sunfish, catfish, crappie, black bass), per MDC.
In the agency's words: The 2,158-acre area is about 60 percent forested. The remaining 40 percent consists of grasslands, row crops, and idle fields. The forest consists mainly of oak-hickory in the uplands and mixed hardwood and softwood species in the bottomlands. The area includes a 108-acre fishing lake and a 13-acre constructed wetland. Over one-mile of unchannelized portion of the Fox River meanders along the area's eastern boundary. Because of its size and diversity, Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area is managed for a wide range of game and non-game wildlife species. The area is available to the public for a variety of outdoor activities. Portions of the area are managed for upland wildlife species such as quail, rabbits, and songbirds. Timbered portions are managed for deer, turkey, squirrel, and woodland songbirds. Wetlands provide waterfowl habitat. Management of the area includes farming, haying, discing, terracing, water manipulation, controlled burning, plus developing wildlife habitat by tree, shrub and grass plantings, food plots, and harvesting of timber.
Species on the record: Deer, Turkey, Rabbit, Squirrel, Dove, Quail, Waterfowl.
- White-tailed Deer
- Wild Turkey
- Eastern Cottontail
- Gray Squirrel
- Fox Squirrel
- Mourning Dove
- Northern Bobwhite Quail
- Ducks
From the agency record (Missouri Department of Conservation); checked October 29, 2026.
Nearby
Places to hunt and shoot around Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area
Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area methods and area rules
Methods for Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area come from the MDC area page and the deer quick view.
| Quarry | Methods | Permits |
|---|---|---|
| White-tailed Deer | Archery and firearms | Allowed |
| Wild Turkey | Archery and firearms | – |
| Eastern Cottontail | Statewide methods | – |
| Gray Squirrel | Statewide methods | – |
| Northern Bobwhite Quail | Statewide methods | – |
| Mourning Dove | Statewide methods | – |
| Ducks | Open Hunting | Nontoxic shot |
Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area: Code paragraphs
- An unstaffed range is located on this department area. Target shooting is not allowed anywhere on this area except for designated shooting range(s).
- Shooting hours are one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset. Ranges may be closed to public use at any time for maintenance or department sponsored events or programs.
- Possession of alcoholic beverages is prohibited on all ranges and associated parking lots.
- Groups of more than 10 people must obtain a special use permit prior to using the range. To obtain a special use permit, contact the area manager at the phone number listed for this area in the area details section.
Plan on archery and firearms for deer at Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area; antlerless permits may be used. For turkey, MDC allows archery and firearms on Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area. Antlerless code A applies to Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area, so antlerless permits allowed. MDC limits deer hunting on its areas to the listed ones, and Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area is listed.
Sources: area page, area regulations, deer quick view; booklet table: 2026 Fall Deer and Turkey booklet, pp. 42-55. Checked October 29, 2026.
Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area waterfowl hunting
Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area offers open waterfowl hunting outside the managed wetland system. The North Zone sets duck dates here, based on the older zone layer; hunters near a line should read the digest map. Federal rules require nontoxic shot for waterfowl and coots everywhere.
| Season | First day | Last day |
|---|---|---|
| Youth waterfowl days | Oct 24, 2026 | Oct 25, 2026 |
| Regular ducks | Oct 31, 2026 | Dec 29, 2026 |
2026-2027 Migratory Bird and Waterfowl Digest, managed areas; area page; checked October 29, 2026.
Doves on Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area
Dove fields on Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area: 1, covering 13.2 acres (sunflower). The field records say: open to all hunters. Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area is one of the 75 areas MDC manages for dove hunting. The 2026-27 dove season opens Sep 1, 2026 and closes Nov 29, 2026.
MDC 2026 dove field layer and Dove Management Areas; checked October 29, 2026.
Clark County rules on Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area
| County rule | Clark County |
|---|---|
| Firearms antlerless limit | 4 deer |
| Antlerless portions | Open |
| CWD sampling Nov. 14-15 | No |
| Feed and mineral ban | Yes |
| Share the Harvest CWD test | Required |
| Fall firearms turkey | Open |
| Dogs, November portion | No rule |
| Elk county | No |
| Bear zone | None |
| Duck zone | North |
For deer, Clark County sets the rules on Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area: firearms antlerless limit 4. Antlerless portions: open in October and December for Clark County. Leave the feeders home: Clark County bans feed and minerals all year. No CWD portion, no CWD Management Zone and no antler-point restriction this season.
2026 Fall Deer and Turkey booklet county rules, MDC CWD rules and 2026 bear digest; checked October 29, 2026.
Open dates on Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area
Open-now status is in the last column; 22 rows apply to Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area.
| Quarry | Season | Where | Opening | Closing | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White-tailed deer | Archery, first part | Statewide | Sep 15, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | Firearms, early antlerless | Antlerless county | Oct 9, 2026 | Oct 11, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | Firearms, early youth | Statewide | Oct 24, 2026 | Oct 25, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | Firearms, November | Statewide | Nov 14, 2026 | Nov 24, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | Archery, second part | Statewide | Nov 25, 2026 | Jan 15, 2027 | |
| White-tailed deer | Firearms, late youth | Statewide | Nov 27, 2026 | Nov 29, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | Firearms, late antlerless | Antlerless county | Dec 5, 2026 | Dec 13, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | Firearms, alternative methods | Statewide | Dec 26, 2026 | Jan 5, 2027 | |
| Wild turkey | Fall archery | Statewide | Sep 15, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 | |
| Wild turkey | Fall firearms | Open county | Oct 1, 2026 | Oct 31, 2026 | |
| Wild turkey | Fall archery, part 2 | Statewide | Nov 25, 2026 | Jan 15, 2027 | |
| Bobwhite quail | Youth quail | Statewide | Oct 24, 2026 | Oct 25, 2026 | |
| Bobwhite quail | Quail | Statewide | Nov 1, 2026 | Jan 15, 2027 | |
| Rabbits | Rabbit hunting | Statewide | Oct 1, 2026 | Feb 15, 2027 | |
| Squirrels | Squirrel season | Statewide | May 23, 2026 | Feb 15, 2027 | |
| Doves | Dove season | Statewide | Sep 1, 2026 | Nov 29, 2026 | |
| Teal | September teal | Statewide | Sep 12, 2026 | Sep 20, 2026 | |
| Youth waterfowl | Youth waterfowl days | North Zone | Oct 24, 2026 | Oct 25, 2026 | |
| Ducks and coots | Regular ducks | North Zone | Oct 31, 2026 | Dec 29, 2026 | |
| Early Canada goose | Early Canada goose | Statewide | Oct 3, 2026 | Oct 11, 2026 | |
| Geese | Regular geese | Statewide | Nov 11, 2026 | Feb 6, 2027 | |
| Light geese | Conservation order | Statewide | Feb 7, 2027 | Apr 30, 2027 |
Archery deer is closed during the November firearms portion, Nov. 14-24.
From the 2026 Fall Deer and Turkey booklet, the 2026-2027 waterfowl digest and the 2026 hunting and trapping summary (Missouri Department of Conservation); checked October 29, 2026. All Missouri seasons.
Clark County deer and turkey harvest near Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area
County-level data from MDC.
MDC reports deer harvest by county, not by area: Clark County checked 2,750 deer in the 2025 permit year, 0% more than in 2024. Public land gave up 26 of the 401 spring 2026 turkeys in Clark County. CWD samples from Clark County turned up 7 positives in recent years (first found 2023-2024).
| Season | Antlered bucks | Button bucks | Does | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,243 | 233 | 1,274 | 2,750 |
| 2024 | 1,235 | 232 | 1,283 | 2,750 |
| 2023 | 1,278 | 227 | 1,202 | 2,707 |
| 2022 | 1,292 | 192 | 1,141 | 2,625 |
| 2021 | 1,160 | 186 | 913 | 2,259 |
| 2020 | 1,246 | 190 | 1,004 | 2,440 |
| Year | Spring | Public land | Youth | Fall firearms | Fall archery |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 401 | 26 | 56 | – | – |
| 2025 | 366 | 30 | 54 | 3 | 10 |
| 2024 | 367 | 26 | 40 | 4 | 6 |
| 2023 | 331 | 33 | 24 | 2 | 21 |
| 2022 | 305 | – | 36 | 8 | 17 |
| 2021 | 256 | – | 23 | 2 | 21 |
| Year | Deer tested | Positive |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 16 | 0 |
| 2025 | 522 | 2 |
| 2024 | 715 | 4 |
| 2023 | 205 | 1 |
| 2022 | 608 | 0 |
| 2021 | 510 | 0 |
MDC 2025 deer harvest summary, MDC turkey harvest summaries and MDC CWD dashboard; earlier years from the yearly reports. Checked October 29, 2026.
Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area and nearby public land, mapped
Clark Conservation Area (5.6 mi, southwest) tops the neighbor list for Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area, measured as the crow flies.
| Neighbor | Category | Acreage | County | Distance | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clark CA | Conservation area | 626 | Clark | 5.6 mi | southwest |
| Charlie Heath Memorial CA | Conservation area | 1,636 | Clark | 8.2 mi | northwest |
| William E. Crawford CA | Conservation area | 88 | Clark | 9.4 mi | east |
| Neeper CA | Conservation area | 315 | Clark | 11 mi | south |
| Frost Island CA | Conservation area | 1,233 | Clark | 13 mi | east |
| Ella Ewing Lake CA | Conservation area | 60 | Scotland | 15 mi | southwest |
| Rose Pond CA | Conservation area | 382 | Clark | 18 mi | southeast |
| Great River NWR (Missouri portion) | Wildlife refuge | 2,786 | Clark, Pike | 19 mi | southeast |
Points: MDC Conservation Area Centroids layer (https://gisblue.mdc.mo.gov/arcgis/rest/services/Discover_Nature/MDC_Administrative_Areas/FeatureServer/4). Straight-line distances. Statewide public land map.
Getting supplies near Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area
Nearest town with its own page: Medill, 3.8 mi. For a hardware store or a motel, Kahoka (1,973 people) is 5.6 mi away. Getting there, per MDC: From Kahoka, take Highway 81 north 4.75 miles, then Route NN west 2.50 miles to the area. The closest MDC office on file is Northeast Regional Office, about 47 mi from Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area.
| Place | County | Population | Distance | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medill | Clark | – | 3.8 mi | south |
| Kahoka | Clark | 1,973 | 5.6 mi | southeast |
| St. Francisville | Clark | – | 12 mi | east |
| Wayland | Clark | 417 | 13 mi | southeast |
| Williamstown | Lewis | – | 17 mi | south |
Towns from places.json (Census 2024); offices and businesses from services.json (MDC offices and business listings, chain stores and permit vendors left out); straight-line miles. Checked October 29, 2026.
Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area hunting hours on key dates
MDC prints one sunrise and sunset table for Jefferson City and tells hunters to adjust it by 1 minute for every 13.5 miles east or west. For Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area that means subtract 2 minutes.
| Date | Opener or close | Sunrise | Sunset | Deer | Migratory |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 1, 2026 | Dove opener | 6:36 a.m. | 7:37 p.m. | 6:06 a.m. to 8:07 p.m. | 6:06 a.m. to 7:37 p.m. |
| Sep 15, 2026 | Archery opener | 6:48 a.m. | 7:15 p.m. | 6:18 a.m. to 7:45 p.m. | 6:18 a.m. to 7:15 p.m. |
| Oct 1, 2026 | Fall firearms turkey | 7:03 a.m. | 6:49 p.m. | 6:33 a.m. to 7:19 p.m. | 6:33 a.m. to 6:49 p.m. |
| Nov 7, 2026 | Middle Zone ducks | 6:40 a.m. | 5:00 p.m. | 6:10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. | 6:10 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. |
| Nov 14, 2026 | November firearms opener | 6:48 a.m. | 4:54 p.m. | 6:18 a.m. to 5:24 p.m. | 6:18 a.m. to 4:54 p.m. |
| Dec 26, 2026 | Alternative methods | 7:23 a.m. | 4:52 p.m. | 6:53 a.m. to 5:22 p.m. | 6:53 a.m. to 4:52 p.m. |
| Jan 15, 2027 | Archery close | 7:23 a.m. | 5:10 p.m. | 6:53 a.m. to 5:40 p.m. | 6:53 a.m. to 5:10 p.m. |
Hours rule and the Jefferson City sunrise and sunset table from the MDC Migratory Bird and Waterfowl Digest (same table in the Fall Deer and Turkey booklet), adjusted 1 minute per 13.5 miles east or west as MDC directs; checked October 29, 2026. Legal hours for every county.
Range time at Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area
There is a shooting range on Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area itself, public, free; the rest of the area is closed to target practice.
From MDC area pages and the MDC Shooting Ranges layer, the operators’ pages and directory listings, checked October 29, 2026; target shooting rule from MDC area rule 3 CSR 10-11.150 on the area page.
Photo strip for Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area
Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area hunter FAQ
What waterfowl rules apply at Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area?
Waterfowl here is open hunting, with North Zone dates.
Does MDC plant dove fields on Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area?
The 2026 dove layer shows 1 fields here.
Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area shooting hours for the November opener?
Roughly 6:18 a.m. until 5:24 p.m., worked out for this spot.
Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area crowded: where next?
In order of distance: Clark Conservation Area (5.6 mi), Charlie Heath Memorial Conservation Area (8.2 mi) and William E. Crawford Conservation Area (9.4 mi).
Nearest town with services to Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area?
Medill (Clark County), about 3.8 mi away.
Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area: size and manager?
The record lists 2,158 acres; Missouri Department of Conservation is in charge.
Can hunters camp on Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area?
Hours are 4 a.m. to 10 p.m.; campsites are listed.
Is there an area permit for Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area?
Missouri permits for the game you hunt; deer need an Archer's or Firearms permit, migratory birds a Migratory Bird permit.
May the public hunt at Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area?
Open for deer, turkey, rabbit, squirrel, dove, quail and waterfowl, with the methods shown in the rules section.
What deer methods are allowed on Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area?
The deer rule is archery and firearms. Antlerless permits are allowed.
Which antlerless rule covers Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area?
Missouri sets it by county; Clark County allows 4 on firearms permits. Antlerless portions are open.
Is deer feeding banned near Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area?
CWD rules in Clark County: sampling not mandatory, feed ban yes.
Is Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area good for fall turkey?
Turkey is archery and firearms; fall firearms is open.
Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area final checklist
Signs on the ground outrank any web page; look for posted refuge and closed zones on Fox Valley Lake Conservation Area.
Sources: source · source · source · source · source · source; regulations from the 2026 Fall Deer and Turkey booklet. Checked October 29, 2026.
Other photos on this page: David Wilson (CC BY 2.0); Jacob Norlund (CC BY 2.0); U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Midwest Region (Public domain).