New Hampshire hunting regulations

New Hampshire Hunting Regulations

The New Hampshire hunting regulations are easy to read for most purposes. This is a deer and turkey state with some upland, a moose draw and waterfowl. Hunters can access Wildlife Management areas, state lands, state forests, the White Mountains national forests and a number of other public access zones. Topo maps for the entire state are found here – http://www.wildlife.state.nh.us/maps/topo.html. This is an impressive resource for anyone looking to access and hunt public lands.

New Hampshire Hunting License Fees

Resident:

  • Hunting/Freshwater Fishing Combo – $56
  • Senior Combo – $7
  • Hunting – $32
  • Archery – $32
  • Senior archery – $3
  • Special deer archery – $26
  • Muzzleloader – $16
  • Senior muzzleloader – $3
  • Pheasant – $31
  • Bear – $16
  • Wild turkey – $16
  • Migratory waterfowl – $11
  • Trapper – $36

Nonresident:

  • Hunting/Freshwater Fishing Combo – $151
  • Hunting – $113
  • Archery – $83
  • Special deer archery – $26
  • Muzzleloader – $41
  • Pheasant – $31
  • Bear – $48
  • Wild turkey – $31
  • Migratory waterfowl – $11
  • Small game hunting – $53
  • Small game 3-day – $25

New Hampshire Hunting Season Dates

Turkey:

  • Youth hunting weekend – April 29-30
  • Spring gobbler season – May 3-31
  • Fall archery – Sept 15 – Dec 15
  • Fall shotgun – Oct 16-22 (not statewide, only some Wildlife Management Areas)

Black Bear:

  • Starts on September 1, subject to change

Deer:

  • Archery – Sept 15 – Dec 15
  • Muzzleloader – Oct 28 – Nov 7
  • Firearm – Nov 8 – Dec 3
  • Youth weekend – Oct 21-22

Waterfowl:

  • The state is divided into several zones. The Northern, Inland and CT river Zone, and Coastal zone all have different season dates for each waterfowl species. It’s a good idea to carry a species guide and date chart for quick reference on bag limits. You can view the 2017 dates here – New Hampshire waterfowl regulations. They will be relative year to year but changes are always possible. Tentative are often announced well in advance, sometimes with a public comment period.

There are more than 100k deer in the state. Archery hunters have a huge advantage with longer seasons than muzzeloader and rifle. Archery also has more public land and urban opportunity. Tree stand hunters can bag some really large bucks in this state. Ground blinds are also a great approach for deer and turkey. Get after the big bucks, gobblers, upland birds, small game and waterfowl to make the most of hunting in New Hampshire.

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