Kentucky hunting regulations

Kentucky Hunting Regulations

The Kentucky hunting regulations covers all the dates, fees and rules for pursuing game in the state. Kentucky is loaded with deer and turkey hunting opportunities. They also have great birds, limited elk hunts, and bear. The state has a combination of agricultural lands, river bottoms with great habitat and rolling hills with hardwoods.

The turkey seasons are great here. The spring season allows for 2 birds and the fall season 4 birds. If you love chasing gobblers, Kentucky is the place to be in spring and fall.

Kentucky Hunting License Fees

Resident:

  • Annual hunting – $27
  • 1-day hunting – $7
  • Annual youth hunting – $6
  • Shooting hunting area license – $5
  • Annual trapping – $20
  • Youth trapping – $5
  • Fish and hunt combo – $42
  • Sportsman’s License (hunt, fish, deer, spring and fall turkey, migratory bird, waterfowl, trout) – $95
  • Statewide Deer (2 total) – $35
  • Youth deer – $10
  • Additional deer – $15
  • Spring turkey – $30
  • Fall turkey – $30
  • Migratory bird, waterfowl – $15
  • Pheasant quota hunt (draw) – $25
  • Sandhill Crane – $3
  • Elk application – $10
  • Quota bull elk (draw) – $100
  • Quota cow elk (draw) – $60
  • Youth elk – $30
  • Bear – $30
  • Youth bear – $10

Non-resident:

  • Hunting – $140
  • 1-day hunting – $15
  • 7-day hunting – $55
  • Youth hunting – $10
  • Trapping – $130
  • Statewide deer (limit 2) – $120
  • Youth deer – $15
  • Additional deer – $15
  • Spring turkey (2 turkeys) – $75
  • Fall turkey (4 turkeys) – $75
  • Migratory game bird, waterfowl – $15
  • Pheasant quota hunt permit – $25
  • Elk application – $10
  • Quota bull elk (draw) – $550
  • Quota cow elk (draw) – $400
  • Bear – $250

Point Systems – Kentucky has a preference point system for deer quota hunts. Demand for elk permits is extremely high and the state does a straight lottery draw for these. The majority of licenses are set aside for residents with a small percentage available for non-residents. The odds are not great but it’s worth applying for this hunt of a lifetime. As herds grow, opportunities will expand.

Kentucky Hunting Season Dates

Elk application deadline – April 30

Coyotes – Year-round, no bag limit

Deer:

  • Archery zones 1, 2 and 3 – Sept 1 – Jan 21
  • Archery zone 4 –
  • Crossbow zones 1, 2 and 3 – Oct 1 – Oct 21
  • Modern gun zone 1 and 2 – Nov 10-25
  • Modern gun zone 3 and 4 – Nov 10-19
  • Muzzleloader zone 1, 2 and 3 – Oct 20-21, Dec 8-16

Elk:

  • Bull elk Archery – Sept 16-29, Oct 14 – Dec 8 , Dec 23-31
  • Bull elk crossbow – Sept 23-29, Oct 14 – Dec 8, Dec 23-31
  • Bull elk modern gun – Sept 30 – Oct 6, Oct 7 – 13

Fall Turkey:

  • Shotgun – Oct 28 – Nov 3, Dec 2-8
  • Archery – Sept 2 – Jan 15
  • Crossbow – Oct 1-22, Nov 11 – Dec  31

You can view a full list of the 2017 dates and Kentucky hunting regulations here – https://fw.ky.gov/Hunt/Documents/1718huntingguideentire.pdf. This page was last update spring 2018 however many of the 2018 season dates are not yet announced. We will look for changes as they are released. In the meantime, check the state site for information not found on this page.

In addition to the big game and turkey seasons, Kentucky has great small game along with furbearer and waterfowl.

Return to the Hunting Regulations main page.