Ohio
Top-tier Boone & Crockett whitetail destination, public Wayne National Forest access, and over-the-counter tags.
Public Lands to Hunt in Ohio
Official Regulatory Authority
Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife (ODNR)
Wayne National Forest
Spanning 12 counties across southeastern Ohio's Appalachian plateau. Rugged sandstone hollows, deep hardwood ravines, and reclaimed grasslands support heavy-antlered whitetail deer, eastern wild turkey, ruffed grouse, and gray squirrels.
Killdeer Plains Wildlife Area
Located in north-central Ohio, featuring flat agricultural terrain, managed wetland impoundments, and native prairie grass. A major waterfowl refuge offering premier controlled duck and goose hunting, alongside ring-necked pheasant and whitetail deer.
Magee Marsh & Pickerel Creek Wildlife Areas
Situated along Lake Erie's southwest shore in Ottawa and Sandusky counties. World-renowned coastal marshes offering premier lottery blind hunting for mallards, black ducks, and teal along the Mississippi and Atlantic flyway junction.
Zaleski & Shawnee State Forests
Zaleski (28,000 acres) in Vinton County and Shawnee (63,000 acres) in Scioto County—known as the 'Little Smokies of Ohio'—offer steep, contiguous oak-hickory wilderness for free-ranging trophy whitetail deer, wild turkey, and squirrel hunting.
Woodbury Wildlife Area
The largest contiguous state wildlife area in Ohio, located in Coshocton County. Reclaimed rolling grasslands, hardwood timber, and brushy hills produce some of the largest Boone & Crockett whitetail bucks taken on public land in the state.