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Wildlife area · District 1 ground
Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1 for Buckeye State hunters
112 acres managed as a state wildlife area in Pickaway County.
Photo: WorldIslandInfo.com (CC BY 2.0)
Getting to Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1
Parking, trailheads and gates near Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1
- Parking areaParking · 3.3 mi from the centreDirections
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.
Access and conduct rules at Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1
Status check: open, with no parcel restricted on Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1.
- Vehicles stay on marked roads and in parking areas.
- Overnight camping is off the table on this ground.
- Closing hours apply to hikers, not to legal hunting or trapping.
- Shooting outside a hunt or a designated range is illegal.
- Hunting deer over bait is illegal here.
- No screw-in steps or nails in trees.
- Only two antlerless deer may come from public hunting areas each year.
From the agency page, public hunting area rules; checked November 6, 2026.
Nearby
Places to hunt and shoot around Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1
Inside the Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1 record
This state wildlife area in Pickaway County spans 112 acres under the ODNR Division of Wildlife. It belongs to ODNR Wildlife District 1 (Central Ohio), whose office is in Columbus. Land tenure in the ODNR layer: owned outright by the state. Ohio rule 1501:31-15-04(A)(1) names it ("Pickaway county wildlife area 1") as land open to public hunting.
The acreage runs from 111 to 112 depending on the layer; the headline figure is 112.
| Source | Size (ac) |
|---|---|
| Area map PDF | 112 |
| Hunting-status layer | 112 |
| GIS parcel area | 111 |
From the agency page, ODNR hunting-status layer, OAC; retrieved 2026-11-05, checked November 6, 2026.
Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1: open seasons for its listed game
ODNR names no particular game for Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1, so the statewide seasons apply; the table shows the common ones.
| Species | Hunt | First day | Last day | Bag |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deer | Archery | Sep 26, 2026 | Feb 7, 2027 | County limit |
| Deer | Youth gun | Nov 21, 2026 | Nov 22, 2026 | County limit |
| Deer | Gun | Nov 30, 2026 | Dec 6, 2026 | County limit |
| Deer | Bonus gun | Dec 19, 2026 | Dec 20, 2026 | County limit |
| Deer | Muzzleloader | Jan 2, 2027 | Jan 5, 2027 | County limit |
| Squirrels | Regular | Sep 1, 2026 | Jan 31, 2027 | 6 daily |
| Cottontail | Regular | Nov 6, 2026 | Feb 28, 2027 | 4 daily |
| Pheasant | Regular | Nov 6, 2026 | Jan 10, 2027 | 2 roosters daily |
| Cottontail | Youth small game weekend | Oct 24, 2026 | Oct 25, 2026 | 4 daily |
| Cottontail | Youth small game weekend | Oct 31, 2026 | Nov 1, 2026 | 4 daily |
| Pheasant | Youth small game weekend | Oct 24, 2026 | Oct 25, 2026 | 2 roosters daily |
| Pheasant | Youth small game weekend | Oct 31, 2026 | Nov 1, 2026 | 2 roosters daily |
| Raccoon | Hunting | Nov 10, 2026 | Jan 31, 2027 | No limit |
| Raccoon | Trapping | Nov 10, 2026 | Jan 31, 2027 | No limit |
Dates and limits from the 2026-27 hunting seasons list and the 2026-27 Ohio Hunting and Trapping Regulations; species from the record (No species named by ODNR for this area); checked November 6, 2026.
Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1: deer limits and zones by county
Pickaway County is a 3-deer county for 2026-27. 2025-26 harvest, Pickaway County: 1,153 deer. So far in 2026-27 (through November 3, 2026) the county shows 216.
| County | Deer limit | DSA | Duck zone | Spring turkey | Fall turkey | Deer 2025-26 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pickaway County | 3 deer | No | C | South | Closed | 1,153 |
From the deer bag limit map, DSA, waterfowl zones, turkey zones, 2025-26 deer harvest report, harvest to date (ODNR Division of Wildlife); checked November 6, 2026.
Ohio hunting ground a short drive from Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1
The nearest other public hunting ground is Charles O. Trump Wildlife Area, 3 miles off to the northwest. The six nearest places include 5 wildlife areas and 1 public access area. Closed to hunting nearby: Stages Pond State Nature Preserve (nature preserve), Floyd Bartley Natural Area (natural area) and Betsch Fen State Nature Preserve (nature preserve).
| Name | Kind | Size (ac) | County | Away | Bearing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charles O. Trump WA | Wildlife area | 128 | Pickaway | 3 miles | northwest |
| Pickaway County WA 2 | Wildlife area | 95 | Pickaway | 4 miles | southeast |
| Pickaway County WA 7 | Wildlife area | 55 | Pickaway | 6 miles | southwest |
| Elmon Richards Scioto River Conservation Area | Access area | 10 | Pickaway | 6 miles | east |
| Pickaway County WA 9 | Wildlife area | 67 | Pickaway | 6 miles | south |
| Circleville Canal Wildlife Area | Wildlife area | 4 | Pickaway | 6 miles | southeast |
Point: ODNR DNR_Lands_Hunting_Status layer, 1 parcel (polygon centroid). Straight-line distances. Closed places from the lands.json closed list. Checked November 6, 2026. Statewide public land map.
Towns and outfitters a short drive from Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1
Count on Circleville, about 7 miles out, for supplies. Grove City tops the list at 44,019 people. The nearest ODNR office sits in Mount Sterling, 11 miles from the point.
| Community | County | Residents | Straight line | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Circleville | Pickaway | 14,433 | 7 miles | east |
| Pancoastburg | Fayette | – | 11 miles | west |
| Andersonville | Ross | – | 14 miles | south |
| Grove City | Franklin | 44,019 | 18 miles | north |
| Washington Court House | Fayette | 14,446 | 20 miles | west |
Towns from places.json (Census 2024 estimates); ODNR offices and businesses from services.json listings; straight-line miles. Checked November 6, 2026.
Phone numbers and maps for Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1
Wildlife District One staff work from 1500 Dublin Rd, Columbus, OH 43215; phone 614-644-3925. County wildlife officer: Josh Elster, (614) 203-3406. Turn in a poacher at 1-800-POACHER (762-2437).
- Area map PDF (published 5/13/2022) · legend: parking area, parking
- Google Maps pin
Address and phone from the agency page and the ODNR Property Details layer; district offices from the ODNR Districts layer; officers from the officer list; point from ODNR DNR_Lands_Hunting_Status layer, 1 parcel (polygon centroid); checked November 6, 2026.
Photo strip: land and game around Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1
Sun-up to sundown hunting clock for Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1
Furbearers have no hour limit in Ohio, but in the deer gun and muzzleloader weeks coyote hunting near Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1 keeps to deer hours.
| Date | Why it matters | Sunrise | Sunset | Deer window | Ducks and squirrels | Sunrise birds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 26, 2026 | Archery deer opens | 7:22 a.m. | 7:25 p.m. | 6:52 a.m. to 7:55 p.m. | 6:52 a.m. to 7:25 p.m. | 7:22 a.m. to 7:25 p.m. |
| Nov 6, 2026 | Rabbit and pheasant | 7:05 a.m. | 5:27 p.m. | 6:35 a.m. to 5:57 p.m. | 6:35 a.m. to 5:27 p.m. | 7:05 a.m. to 5:27 p.m. |
| Nov 30, 2026 | Deer gun week | 7:33 a.m. | 5:10 p.m. | 7:03 a.m. to 5:40 p.m. | 7:03 a.m. to 5:10 p.m. | 7:33 a.m. to 5:10 p.m. |
| Dec 12, 2026 | Second duck split | 7:43 a.m. | 5:09 p.m. | 7:13 a.m. to 5:39 p.m. | 7:13 a.m. to 5:09 p.m. | 7:43 a.m. to 5:09 p.m. |
| Dec 21, 2026 | Shortest day | 7:49 a.m. | 5:11 p.m. | 7:19 a.m. to 5:41 p.m. | 7:19 a.m. to 5:11 p.m. | 7:49 a.m. to 5:11 p.m. |
| Jan 2, 2027 | Muzzleloader | 7:53 a.m. | 5:18 p.m. | 7:23 a.m. to 5:48 p.m. | 7:23 a.m. to 5:18 p.m. | 7:53 a.m. to 5:18 p.m. |
Hours rules from the 2026-27 Ohio Hunting and Trapping Regulations; sunrise and sunset worked out for this location with the NOAA solar formula (Eastern Time); checked November 6, 2026. Legal hours for every county.
Zeroing a slug gun on the way to Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1
The closest ODNR-listed range to Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1 is Deer Creek Wildlife Area Shooting Range, about 11 miles off as the crow flies. The other cards show clubs a 30-mile drive or less away.
From ODNR’s public range list and range pages, ranges’ own pages and directory listings, checked November 6, 2026.
Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1, answered one question at a time
Is there a campground at Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1?
Camping is prohibited.
Can I hang a stand on Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1?
Stands must be portable; bait and feed are prohibited.
When is hunter orange required on Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1?
In gun and muzzleloader seasons: an orange garment, unless you hunt waterfowl.
When is legal shooting light for deer at Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1?
On the gun opener (November 30, 2026): 7:03 a.m. to 5:40 p.m.
Which number reaches the Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1 managers?
Call 614-644-3925.
Which town on this site is nearest to Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1?
Circleville sits 7 miles from the point.
Which parts of Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1 allow hunting?
It is open throughout.
What is the deadline to report a deer from Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1?
Deer and turkeys go through the electronic game check by noon the next day.
Do Sunday rules limit hunting at Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1?
Yes; Ohio sets no Sunday ban.
What licenses and permits cover a hunt on Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1?
Your Ohio license and the right permit. First-time buyers need hunter education or an apprentice license.
What acreage do the sources give for Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1?
Roughly 112 acres all told. Other sources differ a little; see the acreage table.
What is the deer limit at Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1?
The county limit of 3 applies. The statewide limit is six, one antlered; public land adds a two-antlerless cap.
Does Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1 have lottery hunts?
Not in 2026: hunt it during the open seasons without a draw.
Last checks before loading up for Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1
Use this page to plan, then reread the official page for Pickaway County Wildlife Area 1 the week before the trip.
Sources: source 1 · source 2 · source 3 · source 4; seasons from the 2026-27 Ohio Hunting and Trapping Regulations. Checked November 6, 2026.
Other photos on this page: USFWS Mountain Prairie (Public domain); grendelkhan (CC BY-SA 2.0); U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Midwest Region (Public domain).