Hey everyone, Im new to bowhunting and im tryin to find a place to hunt this year. Anyone know of any good public hunting land in IL/MO. I live about 20 mins southeast of St. Louis, Mo. but I actually live in Illinois. I would rather not mess with out of state liscence's but if I need to I will. Any Info is helpful. Thanks.
Got to the Illinois dnr web page and click on deer hunting and just follow the links to public land hunting it will tell you all of the areas near you and give you all of the info. You may need to hurry because some of them need your app in by Aug. 31st to go in to the drawing for some areas. Good luck and wlecome to BHC.
here is a link hope it works for ya. http://dnr.state.il.us/lands/landmgt/hunter_fact_sheet/index.htm
I'm not sure how far this for you, but the Siloam Springs SP has relatively low pressure (only IL residents allowed to bowhunt the property) with some monster bucks taken out of there each and every year. Otherwise, I would look at any of the land along the Mississippi River also!! Mike
If you have access to a small boat - the Mississippi has 1000's acres up and down it that's public land - but the best is only accessible by boat. I see some unreal bucks taken off these crappy desolate looking islands each year.
Unfortunately you are probably somewhere near Belleville or Freeburg I'm guessing. There is not a whole lot of public ground within a short drive of the area. If I were you I would look into Pyramid State Park down in Pinckneyville. Good hunting and a wide variety of hunting styles can apply. Pinch points, ground blinds, creeks, lakes, field edges. I have 2 private land locations to hunt and I still usually make a trip down there a couple times a year.
MO Department of Conservation website has all of it's lands listed as well. They also have a cool feature that allows you to use Google Earth to see each of its CA from the satellite. Here is a link to just the areas in St. Louis. http://mdc4.mdc.mo.gov/applications/moatlas/AreaList.aspx?txtUserID=guest&txtAreaNm=s Once you click on one area there are options to view map. And from there you can then download all areas through Google Earth. It does not outline Mark Twain National Forest Lands though. Anything that is listed in Google Earth as MTNF is huntable. It is mostly in southern MO and it much tougher to hunt than northern MO. As a general rule, north of Interstate 70 holds more and bigger deer. Reform Conservation Area near Fulton is supposed to be really good. I haven't been there but I have been seriously thinking of giving that place a go for a while now. During bow season, most of the areas aren't hit that hard. I got my first public land buck last year. Out of State tags in MO and over the counter and not as expensive as other states. But you're in a great deer state in IL. I was driving through southern IL (between Cape Giradau and Metropolis) a couple of years ago and I was dodging deer right and left. It's all farm land and I'm sure farmers wouldn't mind getting some deer out of there to save some crops. Hope I helped you out a little. Good luck!
I wish I could. But as usual, I am worthless... I hunt at Allerton Park in Monticello. I drive just over 60 miles one way to get there. It would be a long haul for Chevyman and he'd have had to already applied and then he'd have to put in 40 hours of volunteer time.
I have a sister and brother in law in Baldwin, IL and a buddy in Belleville, IL so I know some of the area. There are some land owners that will allow you to hunt. Get yourself a Plot Book and start asking for permission. The worst answer is NO and right now you already have that so it can not get any worse for you. Trust me there are some private lands down there you would be able to get due to all the woods down there. I am not sure on public lands down there though!
Sorry to go on a tangent here but the lake in Baldwin has some huge fish. It is not uncommon to catch 20-40+ lb. blue cats there. It is also supposed to be good for hybrid striped bass. It is a cooling reservoir for an electric plant, so the water is around 60 degrees in the middle of winter in some spots. Feb. and Mar. are great times to go there.
I appreciate all you guys help. Im am gonna start callin around and seein what i can figure out. My wife does have family up near Springfield, IL and there is Sangchris Lake Park up there. Anyone ever been/hunted there. I called them up and they said they have had a few big uns come outta there so I think I might give it a try one weekend. But ill let you guys know if I find anything and you guys keep the suggestions comin. Thanks again guys.
Chevyman1, I do know a guy that got a 135" there last year the weekend following the youth gun hunt (mid October?). He did tell us that although he did not see a lot of deer he did pass numerous bucks before releasing on that guy.
Chevyman, I just moved to the area myself. Feel free to send me a PM at [email protected] and I can share with you a few things I have found out.
