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Barry County, Missouri
Hunting land and deer rules around Shell Knob, MO
Hunting out of Shell Knob, Missouri: tracts by straight-line miles, county deer rules, MDC sunrise tables and the processors and taxidermists in range.
Photo: Taken on Table Rock Lake (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers), beside Shell Knob; a nearby stand-in, not the town. KTrimble (talk) (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Shell Knob sits in Barry County, a short drive from public ground in the Springfield Plateau, the western prairies and Table Rock and Stockton lakes. Its page exists because Table Rock Lake (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers) touches the town. The listing comes from Pilot Knob Conservation Area: its nearest edge is 3.5 miles out. Population for Shell Knob, a designated place, is not published in the 2024 series. Within 10 miles of the town point, MDC, Mark Twain, refuge, Corps and Riverways boundaries take in about 77,090 acres, with 4 listed areas in the ring. The county picture: 72,118 public acres in Barry County, made up of 4,463 acres of MDC land, 53,584 acres of Mark Twain National Forest, 10,417 acres of Corps fee land and 3,718 acres of state parks and historic sites. Ranked by miles, the list opens with Table Rock Lake (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers), which reaches into town.
Town point and land area from the Census 2024 Gazetteer; public acreage and boundary miles within 10 miles are a GIS measure over MDC, USFS, USFWS, Corps and NPS boundaries (places.json). MDC region from the MDC Regions layer. Checked October 29, 2026.
Nearby
Places to hunt and shoot around Shell Knob
Hunting tracts around Shell Knob
The deer column is MDC’s method rule for each conservation area (bow and gun, muzzleloader and bow, or archery only) and whether antlerless permits work there.
| Area | Distance | Type | Agency | Deer | Doe permits | Acres | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Table Rock Lake (Corps) anchor land | at town | Corps lake | Corps | Corps rules | – | – | Corps page unread |
| Mark Twain National Forest | 0.8 mi | National forest | USFS | Statewide rules | – | 1,510,740 | – |
| Pilot Knob CA anchor land | 3.5 mi SE | Conservation area | MDC | Bow and gun | Allowed | 1,360 | – |
| John Baumgardt Memorial CA | 9.9 mi W | Conservation area | MDC | Bow and gun | Allowed | 503 | – |
| Roaring River CA | 13 mi W | Conservation area | MDC | Bow and gun | Allowed | 439 | – |
| Jessie Hollow CA | 14 mi NE | Conservation area | MDC | Bow and gun | Allowed | 120 | – |
| Stubblefield Access | 15 mi NW | Public access | MDC | Muzzleloader, bow | Allowed | 56 | – |
| Hollister Towersite | 19 mi E | Towersite | MDC | Bow and gun | Allowed | 171 | – |
| Wire Road CA | 22 mi N | Conservation area | MDC | Muzzleloader, bow | Allowed | 1,003 | – |
| Boston Ferry CA | 23 mi E | Conservation area | MDC | Archery only | Allowed | 182 | – |
By acreage, Pilot Knob Conservation Area (1,360 acres) tops the 10-mile list. By kind, the ring holds 2 conservation and natural areas, 1 Corps lake tract and 1 federal area. The closest area with an MDC deer listing, Pilot Knob Conservation Area, allows archery and firearms; antlerless permits may be filled there. Table Rock Lake (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers) follows the Corps rule that hunting is allowed except where the District Commander bars it; the district page was not readable here. Mark Twain National Forest is hunted on MDC permits, though not within 150 yards of buildings, campsites or recreation sites.
From the MDC area pages
- Pilot Knob CA: Pilot Knob Conservation Area has a 6.6-mile out and back trail (slightly more than three miles one way) that is good for nature-viewing and nature photography.
- John Baumgardt Memorial CA: John Baumgardt Memorial Conservation Area consists of 503 acres in Southern Barry County.
- MDC directions to Pilot Knob CA: From Carr Lane, take Highway 39 north 2.60 miles to parking area on the east, or right side of the road.
Lands from MDC area pages and GIS layers, USFS, USFWS, NPS, Corps and Missouri State Parks records (lands.json; each land page cites its own source). Boundary miles from places.json, other miles to each mapped point. Deer methods and antlerless permit status from the 2026 Fall Deer and Turkey booklet area table and the MDC area deer quick view. Checked October 29, 2026.
Antlerless limits and CWD near Shell Knob
Each row is one county’s 2026 rule set; the tag marks Barry County, and the other rows are counties where the land in the table above lies.
| County | Antlerless fill | Antlerless portions | CWD sampling | Feed ban | Fall turkey | Bear, elk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barry County town county | 4 | Open | No | Yes | Open | Zone 1 |
| Stone County | 4 | Open | No | Yes | Open | Zone 1 |
| Taney County | 4 | Open | No | Yes | Open | Zone 1 |
| Oregon County | 4 | Open | Nov. 14-15 | Yes | Open | Zone 2, Zone 1 |
| Ripley County | 4 | Open | Nov. 14-15 | Yes | Open | Zone 2 |
Barry County allows 4 antlerless deer on firearms antlerless permits. It is one of the 100 counties open for the early and late antlerless portions. Grain, salt and minerals for deer are banned year-round in Barry County, one of 85 feed-ban counties. Barry County deer must be tested to be donated to food pantries. Barry County belongs mostly to bear zone 1, where permits come by drawing. For ducks, the 2021-2025 zone layer puts Barry County in the South Zone (100%); the lines changed for 2026-2030, so check the digest map near a boundary. Barry County no longer sits in a CWD Management Zone: MDC removed it for 2026.
County rules from the 2026 Fall Deer and Turkey booklet county table; CWD sampling counties and stations from the MDC CWD pages; bear zones from the 2026 Black Bear Hunting Digest; elk from the 2026 Elk Hunting Digest; duck zones from the 2026-2027 waterfowl digest and the 2021-2025 MDC zone layer. Checked October 29, 2026.
Shell Knob season calendar
24 species and 37 dated windows apply in Barry County; the last column checks each against today.
| Species | Window | Reach | From | Through | Today? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | |
| Black bear | Bear, zone 1 | Bear zone 1 | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 30, 2026 | |
| 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 | |
| Pheasant | Youth pheasant | Statewide | Oct 24, 2026 | Oct 25, 2026 | |
| Pheasant | Pheasant | 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 | |
| Woodcock | Woodcock season | Statewide | Oct 18, 2026 | Dec 1, 2026 | |
| 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 | South Zone | Nov 21, 2026 | Nov 22, 2026 | |
| Ducks and coots | Ducks, split 1 | South Zone | Nov 26, 2026 | Nov 29, 2026 | |
| Ducks and coots | Ducks, split 2 | South Zone | Dec 7, 2026 | Jan 31, 2027 | |
| 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 | |
| Coyote | Coyote hunting | Statewide | Jan 1, 2026 | Dec 31, 2026 | |
| Groundhog | Groundhog | Statewide | May 11, 2026 | Dec 15, 2026 | |
| Bullfrogs and green frogs | Frogging | Statewide | Jun 30, 2026 | Oct 31, 2026 | |
| Raccoon, opossum, skunk | Hunt and trap, early | Statewide | Aug 1, 2026 | Oct 15, 2026 | |
| Rails | Rail season | Statewide | Sep 1, 2026 | Nov 9, 2026 | |
| Snipe | Snipe season | Statewide | Sep 1, 2026 | Dec 16, 2026 | |
| Crow | Crow season | Statewide | Nov 1, 2026 | Mar 3, 2027 | |
| Badger and foxes | Hunting and trapping | Statewide | Nov 15, 2026 | Jan 31, 2027 | |
| Bobcat | Hunting and trapping | Statewide | Nov 15, 2026 | Feb 28, 2027 | |
| Raccoon, opossum, skunk | Hunt and trap, main | Statewide | Nov 15, 2026 | Feb 28, 2027 |
From the 2026 Fall Deer and Turkey Hunting Regulations, the 2026-2027 Migratory Bird and Waterfowl Digest and the 2026 hunting and trapping summary (Missouri Department of Conservation), checked October 29, 2026.
How many deer come out of Barry County
The bars are Barry County totals as MDC printed them in each year’s harvest summary. In 2025 the county gave up 2,538 deer, compared with 2,169 in 2015. Antlered bucks made up 1,345 of the 2025 total and does 1,007. That is 3.4 deer per square mile of county in 2025. Spring turkey in Barry County: 189 birds in 2026, against 207 in 2016. The fall firearms turkey harvest was 6 in 2025, with 5 more by archery. Sampling has covered 4,081 deer in Barry County; CWD was first found there in 2021-2022.
| Season | Deer | Bucks | Buttons | Does |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 2,428 | 1,279 | 193 | 956 |
| 2023 | 2,855 | 1,375 | 250 | 1,230 |
| 2024 | 2,446 | 1,174 | 221 | 1,051 |
| 2025 | 2,538 | 1,345 | 186 | 1,007 |
| Portion | Deer, 2025 |
|---|---|
| Archery | 453 |
| Early youth | 186 |
| November | 1,378 |
| Late youth | 22 |
| Alt. methods | 80 |
| Managed hunts | 0 |
| Spring | Turkeys | Public land |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 189 | 79 |
| 2024 | 196 | 60 |
| 2025 | 252 | 106 |
| 2026 | 189 | 48 |
| Year | Samples | Positive |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 574 | 1 |
| 2024 | 79 | 0 |
| 2025 | 83 | 1 |
| 2026 | 2 | 0 |
Deer from the MDC 2025-2026 deer harvest summary and earlier summaries (harvest.json; 2017-2019 county totals exclude managed hunts); density from the MDC 2025 deer season report; turkey from the MDC turkey harvest summaries; CWD from the MDC CWD dashboard. Checked October 29, 2026.
Butchers and mounts, Shell Knob
Listings come from Barry County and its neighbouring counties, ranked by miles from Shell Knob; national chains are dropped. Triple E. Processing, 33 mi away, accepts donated deer under Share the Harvest. J&K Meats collects CWD samples under MDC’s partner program. Shoulder mounts and euro skulls start with Ozark Mountain Outdoors LLC, 13 mi out. Forgot the hunter orange? Ptg Gunsmithing in Golden is 3.4 mi away. Crazy Neighbor INC, 20 mi away, heads the preserve and guide list.
| Service | Within 15 mi | Within 35 mi | Nearest | Miles | Town |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Processors | 1 | 7 | Gone Processing (first) | 14 mi N | Cape Fair |
| Mounts | 1 | 4 | Ozark Mountain Outdoors LLC (first) | 13 mi NE | Branson West |
| Gun and bow shops | 1 | 8 | Ptg Gunsmithing (first) | 3.4 mi S | Golden |
| Hunting preserves | 0 | 6 | Crazy Neighbor INC (first) | 20 mi W | Exeter |
Processors
Mounts
Gun and bow shops
Hunting preserves
Processors from the MDC Share the Harvest processor lookup, MDC CWD sampling partners, the MDC commercial permit listing and Yellow Pages; taxidermists, shops and preserves from MDC permits, chain store locators and Yellow Pages (services.json). Checked October 29, 2026; hours were not checked.
Shell Knob MDC offices
For Barry County, MDC’s closest public office is Shepherd of the Hills Conservation Education Center (Branson), 30 miles from the county centre. Springfield hosts the MDC Southwest regional office. Staff are often in the field, so call ahead before visiting an office.
MDC Shepherd of the Hills Conservation Education Center lies 16 mi east
MDC Shepherd of the Hills Annex Field Office, a 16 mi drive east
Offices from the MDC offices open to the public, the MDC regional offices page and the MDC field office layer (services.json, counties.json). Checked October 29, 2026.
Shell Knob: gun clubs and MDC lines nearby
Bass Pro Shops Shooting Academy heads the Shell Knob list (19 miles), and two more follow.
No club dues at Flag Spring CA range, 26 miles from Shell Knob. Range page
Straight-line miles from the town centre; ranges checked October 29, 2026.
Shell Knob sunrise and sunset
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 Shell Knob that means add 6 minutes.
| Day | Moment | First sun | Last sun | Deer hours | Bird hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 1, 2026 | Dove opener | 6:45 a.m. | 7:46 p.m. | 6:15 a.m.–8:16 p.m. | 6:15 a.m.–7:46 p.m. |
| Sep 15, 2026 | Archery opener | 6:57 a.m. | 7:24 p.m. | 6:27 a.m.–7:54 p.m. | 6:27 a.m.–7:24 p.m. |
| Oct 1, 2026 | Fall firearms turkey | 7:12 a.m. | 6:58 p.m. | 6:42 a.m.–7:28 p.m. | 6:42 a.m.–6:58 p.m. |
| Nov 7, 2026 | Middle Zone ducks | 6:49 a.m. | 5:09 p.m. | 6:19 a.m.–5:39 p.m. | 6:19 a.m.–5:09 p.m. |
| Nov 14, 2026 | November firearms opener | 6:57 a.m. | 5:03 p.m. | 6:27 a.m.–5:33 p.m. | 6:27 a.m.–5:03 p.m. |
| Dec 26, 2026 | Alternative methods | 7:32 a.m. | 5:01 p.m. | 7:02 a.m.–5:31 p.m. | 7:02 a.m.–5:01 p.m. |
| Jan 15, 2027 | Archery close | 7:32 a.m. | 5:19 p.m. | 7:02 a.m.–5:49 p.m. | 7:02 a.m.–5:19 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.
Shell Knob hunting FAQ
How large is the public land within a short drive of Shell Knob?
GIS puts it near 77,090 acres; the land table lists 4 tracts.
Which tract on MDC’s map lies nearest Shell Knob?
On the map it is Table Rock Lake (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers), which reaches into town. After that: Mark Twain National Forest, its closest boundary under a mile out.
Can I hunt the October antlerless days near Shell Knob?
Yes; Barry County is on the open list.
How does MDC limit antlerless deer in Barry County?
With a county fill limit of 4 for firearms antlerless permits.
Is a drawn bear permit needed near Shell Knob?
Yes; residents apply in May for one zone. Zone 1 had 1,000 permits.
What CWD measures apply to deer from Barry County?
The statewide carcass rule plus the feed and mineral ban.
What is the check-in routine for a deer shot near Shell Knob?
Notch the permit, then Telecheck online, in the MO Hunting app or by phone before processing, before leaving the county or by 10 p.m., whichever comes first.
What are the November opener hours for Shell Knob?
6:26 a.m. to 5:32 p.m. at Shell Knob, by MDC’s table and longitude rule.
Which deer processor is the shortest drive from Shell Knob?
Gone Processing in Cape Fair, about 14 mi away, is the closest listed.
Which orange garments are mandatory in the firearms portions near Shell Knob?
An orange hat plus an orange shirt, vest or coat.
Which neighbouring towns does this site cover?
Eagle Rock, Branson West and Blue Eye, then Indian Point.
Can Shell Knob hunters buy permits at an MDC office?
Yes; MDC offices sell permits, and the closest to the county centre is Shepherd of the Hills Conservation Education Center in Branson.
Answers from places.json, lands.json, counties.json, services.json and the 2026 Fall Deer and Turkey Hunting Regulations; Telecheck from the booklet, hunter orange from booklet p. 4. Checked October 29, 2026.
Before leaving Shell Knob
Distances on this page are straight lines from Shell Knob; each conservation area, access and federal tract has its own rules, so read the land page and the 2026-27 booklets before you go.
Other photos on this page: Jeff Weese (CC BY 2.0); J L (CC BY-SA 2.0); Shelby L. Bell (CC BY 2.0); LeeAnne Adams (CC BY 2.0); USFWS Midwest Region (Public Domain Mark 1.0); Heath Cajandig (CC BY 2.0); Jeff Meyer (CC BY 2.0); Heath Cajandig (CC BY 2.0).