Secret Spots for Public Hunts
265 places to hunt you never knew existed.
By Larry D. Hodge, Kimberly Tilley and Garland Levit
I have the best hunting lease in Texas. It includes coastal marshes, South Texas brush country, Big Bend mountains, Pineywoods forests and Panhandle plains. On it I've hunted squirrels, rabbits, ducks, white-tailed deer, mule deer, geese, feral hogs, Rio Grande turkeys, eastern turkeys, mourning doves, white-winged doves, bobwhite quail, scaled quail and chachalacas. So far I've passed on hunts for alligators, furbearers, woodcock, snipe and bullfrogs, but I'm thinking about them.
You may be surprised that most of my hunts take place on public land.
Texas is 94 percent privately owned, but the opportunities for hunting on public land are rich and abundant. Besides 50-plus wildlife management areas owned or operated by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, hunting is available on more than 70 tracts owned by the Texas General Land Office, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Forest Service and a number of other government agencies and private entities. In addition, TPWD annually leases approximately 150 public dove hunting areas from private landowners. In all, more than 1.5 million acres are open to public hunting.
Hunting on public land appeals to me for a number of reasons. The most important is the challenge. It's difficult to bow hunt bucks in the scant cover around Lake Amistad or figure out the flight paths of doves on a sorghum field in South Texas you are seeing for the first time. However, when I succeed in bagging game under such conditions, I feel I've earned the right to do so.
Hunting on public land also enables me to hunt in many different parts of the state. I love scrambling up rocky Big Bend canyon walls in pursuit of scaled quail as much as I enjoy talking turkey with an eastern gobbler in a pine forest.
Low cost is also an attraction. The $40 Annual Public Hunting Permit from TPWD is all you need for access to most lands. Hunting is free on other public lands, while some agencies charge a small fee. The chart below gives the details. This chart does not include lands in TPWD wildlife management areas or public dove hunting areas. Purchasers of the Annual Public Hunting Permit receive a map book showing these lands. The WMAs are discussed in detail in the book Official Guide to Texas Wildlife Management Areas, available from the University of Texas Press by calling (800) 252-3206. The list below includes areas not covered in any TPWD publication.
If you have a hunting lease on private land but have itchy feet and would like to hunt more places and more kinds of game than can be found there, public land is for you, too. For less than the price of dinner and a movie you can add thousands of acres to your hunting lease - and untold amounts of fun to your hunting season.
Amistad National Recreation Area
National Park ServiceHCR 3, Box 5J
Highway 90 West
Del Rio, TX 78840
- Phone:
- (830) 775-6722
- Web site:
- www.nps.gov/amis
- County:
- Val Verde
- Acreage:
- 3,000
- Permit required:
- Free annual permit, by mail or in person
- Game:
- Doves, ducks, rabbits, turkeys, deer, quail, javelina, mouflon sheep
- Special regulations:
- Shotgun for doves, quail and ducks; archery only for deer, javelina, turkey, rabbits, mouflon sheep. Weapons must be unloaded and cased during transport.
Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge
P.O. Box 278Anahuac, TX 77514
- Phone:
- (409) 267-3337
- County:
- Chambers
- Acreage:
- 34,000
- Permit required:
- Free general permit may be obtained via phone, mail or in person; $10 fee for some areas. Permits must be obtained in person on the day of the hunt.
- Game:
- Waterfowl
- Special regulations:
- All shotguns must be unloaded and cased while in transit. Hunters entering by boat must have an Anahuac NWR annual permit. General permit must be carried at all times during hunt.
Angelina National Forest
111 Walnut Ridge RoadZavalla, TX 75980
- Phone:
- (936) 897-1068
- County:
- Jasper, San Augustine, Angelina, Nacogdoches
- Acreage:
- 150,000
- Permit required:
- Annual Public Hunting Permit in wildlife management area only; antlerless deer permits by drawing.
- Game:
- Deer, feral hogs, eastern turkeys, waterfowl, squirrels, rabbits, quail, doves
- Special regulations:
- Part of the forest is within the Bannister WMA, and Public Hunting Lands Program regulations apply there.
Aransas National Wildlife Refuge
P.O. Box 100Austwell, TX 77950
- Phone:
- (361) 286-3559
- County:
- Aransas
- Acreage:
- 35,000 (archery); 25,000 (firearms)
- Permit required:
- Gun permits by lottery, $100; 500 archery permits on first-come, first-served basis, $50
- Game:
- White-tailed deer, feral hogs
- Special regulations:
- No baiting, no alcohol
Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge
10711 Burnet Road, Ste. 201Austin, TX 78758
- Phone:
- (512) 339-9432, ext. 42
- (512) 339-9453 (fax)
- County:
- Travis, Williamson, Burnet
- Acreage:
- 41,000
- Permit required:
- $15 for dove hunts in September, $50 for deer/turkey hunts
- Game:
- Deer, feral hogs, bearded turkeys
- Special regulations:
- Hunters must be at least 12 years old. Game must be taken to a check station. Scouting before hunts is permitted.
Bardwell Lake
4000 Observation DriveArmy Corps of Engineers, Bardwell Project Office
Ennis, TX 75119
- Phone:
- (972) 875-5711
- County:
- Ellis
- Acreage:
- 2,528
- Permit required:
- Corps permit for feral hogs only
- Game:
- Doves, quail, rabbits, waterfowl, feral hogs, squirrels
- Special regulations: F
- eral hog hunting only permitted west of Texas 34 by archery or shotgun with slugs; no hunting within 200 yards of parks or houses; no dogs for feral hogs; permit only for feral hogs.
Belton Lake
3740 FM 1670Belton, TX 76513
- Phone:
- (254) 939-2461
- County:
- Bell, Coryell
- Acreage:
- 3,900
- Permit required:
- Corps permit for waterfowl only
- Game:
- Doves, quail, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl
- Special regulations:
- Free waterfowl permit must be obtained at lake office. Muzzleloaders and crossbows prohibited.
Benbrook Lake
P.O. Box 26619Fort Worth, TX 76126-0619
- Phone:
- (817) 292-2400
- County:
- Tarrant
- Acreage:
- 1,400
- Permit required:
- Free Corps permit for small game; deer permits by drawing
- Game:
- Doves, quail, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl, deer
- Special regulations:
- Archery only for deer; muzzleloaders and crossbows prohibited.
Big Boggy National Wildlife Refuge
1212 N. Velasco, Suite. 200Angleton, TX 77515
- Phone:
- (979) 849-6062
- County:
- Matagorda
- Acreage:
- 4,526
- Permit required:
- None
- Game:
- waterfowl
- Special regulations:
- No permanent blinds; hunting in designated areas only.
Big Thicket National Preserve
3785 MilamBeaumont, TX 77701
- Phone:
- (409) 839-2689, ext. 228
- County:
- Hardin, Jasper, Tyler, Polk
- Acreage:
- 47,400
- Permit required:
- Obtain in person in July; first-come, first-served basis
- Game:
- Deer, squirrels, rabbits, feral hogs, waterfowl
- Special regulations:
- Display Big Thicket Hunting Permit on dash of vehicle. No centerfire weapons; no hunting within 500 feet of trails, roads or residences.
Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge
1212 N. Velasco, Suite. 200Angleton, TX 77515
- Phone:
- (797) 849-6062
- County:
- Brazoria
- Acreage:
- 43,388
- Permit required:
- None
- Game:
- Waterfowl
- Special regulations:
- No permanent blinds; hunting in designated areas only.
Canyon Lake
601 COE RoadCanyon Lake, TX 78133
- Phone:
- (830) 964-3341
- County:
- Comal
- Acreage:
- 620
- Permit required:
- Corps permit by drawing
- Game:
- Deer
- Special regulations:
- Archery only; proficiency test and hunter safety certification required.
Coleto Creek Reservoir
P.O. Box 68Fannin, TX 77960
- Phone:
- (361) 575-6366
- County:
- Goliad, Victoria
- Acreage:
- 500
- Permit required:
- $80, by drawing in August
- Game:
- Deer, feral hogs
- Special regulations:
- Archery only
Davy Crockett National Forest
Route 1, Box 55 FSKennard, TX 75847
- Phone:
- (936) 655-2299
- County:
- Houston, Trinity
- Acreage:
- 162,012
- Permit required:
- Antlerless permits by drawing; call (936) 639-8569
- Game:
- Doves, quail, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl, deer
Georgetown Lake
500 Cedar Breaks RoadGeorgetown, TX 78628
- Phone:
- (512) 930-5253
- County:
- Williamson
- Acreage:
- 1,200
- Permit required:
- Corps permit
- Game:
- Doves, quail, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl, deer
- Special regulations:
- Archery only for deer; proficiency test and hunter certification required for deer hunts.
Grapevine Lake
110 Fairway DriveGrapevine, TX 76051
- Phone:
- (817) 481-4544
- County:
- Denton
- Acreage:
- 900
- Permit required:
- Drawings for quail, dove, feral hog and deer hunts; apply mid-July through November. Waterfowl permits first-come, first-served.
- Game:
- Doves, quail, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl, deer, feral hogs
- Special regulations:
- Archery only for deer and feral hogs; no muzzleloaders or crossbows. All hunters must have a hunter safety course certificate.
Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge
6465 Refuge RoadSherman, TX 75092
- Phone:
- (903) 786-2826
- County:
- Grayson
- Acreage:
- 3,000
- Permit required:
- Self-registration for small game hunts. Drawing for deer hunts; fee required.
- Game:
- Doves, quail, feral hogs, squirrels, rabbits, deer
- Special regulations:
- Completion of IBEP classes and score of 80 percent on IBO 3-D course required only for deer hunt.
Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge
P.O. Box 450Rio Hondo, TX 78583
- Phone:
- (956) 748-3607
- County:
- Cameron
- Acreage:
- 3,000
- Permit required:
- Obtain by mail or in person in August. $40 user fee for each hunt.
- Game:
- Deer, feral hogs, nilgai
- Special regulations:
- Archery, muzzleloader, and modern firearms hunts
Lake Meredith National Recreation Area
P.O. Box 1460Fritch, TX 79036
- Phone:
- (806) 857-3151
- County:
- Potter, Moore
- Acreage:
- 40,000
- Permit required:
- None
- Game:
- Turkeys, doves, quail, pheasants, rabbits, white-tailed deer, mule deer
Lake O' the Pines
2669 FM 726Jefferson, TX 75657
- Phone:
- (903) 665-2336
- County:
- Camp, Marion, Morris, Harrison, Upshur
- Acreage:
- 4,500
- Permit required:
- None
- Game:
- Doves, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl, feral hogs, deer
- Special regulations:
- Muzzleloaders and rifles are permitted. Antlerless deer may be taken during archery season only. No feral hog hunting May 15 through Aug. 31.
Lavon Lake
3375 Skyview DriveWylie, TX 75098
- Phone:
- (972) 442-3141
- County:
- Collin
- Acreage:
- 6,500
- Permit required:
- None
- Game:
- Doves, quail, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl, feral hogs
- Special regulations:
- Archery only for feral hogs; no rifles
LBJ National Grasslands
1400 N. Hwy. US 81/US 287P.O. Box 507
Decatur, TX 76234
- Phone:
- (940) 627-5475
- County:
- Wise, Montague
- Acreage:
- 20,000
- Permit required:
- None
- Game:
- Feral hogs, deer, doves, quail, squirrels, rabbits, turkey
- Special regulations:
- Shotgun, muzzleloader and archery only
Lewisville Lake
1801 N. Mill St.Lewisville, TX 75057
- Phone:
- (972) 434-1666
- County:
- Denton
- Acreage:
- 8,000
- Permit required:
- Corps permit
- Game:
- Doves, quail, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl, feral hog s
- Special regulations:
- Archery only for feral hogs; no hunting within 600 feet of the boundary line.
Livingston Lake
P.O. Box 60Arlington, TX 76004
- Phone:
- (817) 467-434 3
- County:
- Polk, San Jacinto, Walker, Trinity, Houston, Madison
- Acreage:
- Varies with lake level
- Permit required:
- None
- Game:
- Waterfowl
- Special regulations:
- Hunting permitted 200 yards or more waterward from the boundary line at 131 feet mean sea-level elevation.
Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge
Route 2, Box 202AAlamo, TX 78516
- Phone:
- (956) 784-7500
- County:
- Hidalgo, Willacy
- Acreage:
- 4,000
- Permit required:
- Lower Rio Grande Valley NWR Special Use Permit. $25 for doves; $40 for big game.
- Game:
- Deer, feral hogs, nilgai, doves
- Special regulations:
- Big game gun hunts for youths only.
McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge
P.O. Box 609Sabine Pass, TX 77655
- Phone:
- (409) 971-2909
- County:
- Chambers, Jefferson
- Acreage:
- 21,000
- Permit required:
- $10 fee for some units
- Game:
- Waterfowl
- Special regulations:
- Hunters must be off the area by 12:30 p.m.
Navarro Mills Lake
1175 FM 667Purdon, TX 76679
- Phone:
- (254) 578-1431
- County:
- Hill, Navarro
- Acreage:
- 3,500
- Permit required:
- None
- Game:
- Doves, quail, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl, feral hogs
- Special regulations:
- Dogs may be used to hunt feral hogs only on the Hill County portion of the lake.
O.C. Fisher Lake/ASU Area
3900-2 Mercedes Ave.San Angelo, TX 76901
- Phone:
- (915) 947-2687
- County:
- Tom Green
- Acreage:
- 4,645
- Permit required:
- By drawing; apply to Deer Hunt Research Project, Box 10888, ASU Station, San Angelo 76909
- Game:
- Deer, turkeys
- Special regulations:
- Season as set by Angelo State University
Proctor Lake
2180 FM 2861Comanche, TX 76442
- Phone:
- (254) 879-2424
- County:
- Comanche
- Acreage:
- 2,500
- Permit required:
- Corps permit
- Game:
- Doves, quail, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl
Sabine National Forest
P.O. Box 227Hemphill, TX 75948
- Phone:
- (409) 787-3870
- (866) 235-1750 (toll-free)
- County:
- Sabine, San Augustine, Shelby, Newton
- Acreage:
- 160,650
- Permit required:
- Annual Public Hunting Permit on WMA only; antlerless permits by drawing (not required during bow season); youth hunts available; call (936) 639-8569.
- Game:
- Deer, feral hogs, eastern turkeys, waterfowl, doves, squirrels, rabbits
- Special regulations:
- Part of the forest is within the Moore Plantation WMA; TPWD regulations apply there. Bag limit is one buck and two antlerless; dogs prohibited during deer season.
San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge
1212 N. Velasco, Ste. 200Angleton, TX 77515
- Phone:
- (979) 849-7771
- County:
- Brazoria
- Acreage:
- 27,414
- Permit required:
- Sargent hunt area only
- Game:
- Waterfowl
- Special regulations:
- $10 fee required for Sargent hunt area; call (979) 849-6062 for reservation. Hunters must return to check station by 12:30 p.m.
Sam Rayburn Reservoir
Route 3, Box 486Jasper, TX 75951
- Phone:
- (409) 384-5716
- County:
- Angelina, Jasper, Nacogdoches, Sabine, San Augustine
- Acreage:
- 6,000
- Permit required:
- None
- Game:
- Doves, quail, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl, deer, feral hogs
- Special Regulations:
- Antlerless deer may be taken during archery season only. Shotguns with slugs only for deer. Except for deer hunting, shotgunners must use No. 4 shot or smaller.
Somerville Lake / COE Area
P.O. Box 549Somerville, TX 77879
- Phone:
- (979) 596-1622
- County:
- Burleson, Washington
- Acreage:
- 3,000
- Permit required:
- Fee for permanent duck blinds only; assigned by drawing
- Game:
- Waterfowl
Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir
3740 FM 1670Belton, TX 76513
- Phone:
- (254) 939-2461
- County:
- Bell
- Acreage:
- 4,541
- Permit required:
- Waterfowl only
- Game:
- Doves, quail, waterfowl
- Special regulations:
- Free waterfowl permit must be obtained from lake office; no hunting within 600 feet of boundary, parks and residential areas.
Texas Point National Wildlife Refuge
P.O. Box 609Sabine Pass, TX 77655
- Phone:
- (409) 971-2909
- County:
- Jefferson
- Acreage:
- 4,000
- Permit required:
- Free
- Game:
- Waterfowl
- Special regulations:
- Hunters must be off the area by 12:30 p.m.
Texoma Lake U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
351 Corps RoadDenison, TX 75020
- Phone:
- (903) 465-4990
- County:
- Cook, Grayson
- Acreage:
- 80,000 (in Texas and Oklahoma)
- Permit required:
- None
- Game:
- Quail, doves, squirrels, rabbits, deer
- Special regulations:
- Deer hunting by archery only in Grayson County
Town Bluff and B.A. Steinhagen Lake / COE Area
890 FM 92Woodville, TX 75979
- Phone:
- (409) 429-3491
- County:
- Jasper, Tyler
- Acreage:
- 875
- Permit required:
- None
- Game:
- Doves, quail, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl, deer, feral hogs
- Special regulations:
- Hog hunting allowed only during deer season. Muzzleloaders are allowed. Does can be taken only during archery season.
Truscott Brine Lake, Area VIII
13173 CR 2631Crowell, TX 79260
- Phone:
- (940) 474-3293
- County:
- Knox
- Acreage:
- 2,000
- Permit required:
- None
- Game:
- Doves, quail, waterfowl, feral hogs
- Special regulations:
- Shotgun and archery only; no crossbows allowed.
Waco Lake
3801 Zoo Park RoadWaco, TX 76708
- Phone:
- (254) 756-5359
- County:
- McLennan
- Acreage:
- 2,000
- Permit required:
- Corps permit
- Game:
- Doves, squirrels, rabbits, feral hogs, waterfowl, deer, turkeys
- Special regulations:
- Computer drawing for permits; application may be obtained in lake office.
Wallisville Project
P.O. Box 293Wallisville, TX 77597
- Phone:
- (409) 389-2285
- County:
- Chambers, Liberty
- Acreage:
- 19,000
- Permit required:
- For stationary blinds only
- Game:
- Waterfowl
- Special regulations:
- Only authorized persons may use stationary blinds. All blinds must be removed within 30 days after close of season. No hunting after noon. No extended deer season.
Whitney Lake/ COE Area
285 CR 3602Clifton, TX 76634
- Phone:
- (254) 694-3189
- County:
- Bosque, Hill, Johnson
- Acreage:
- 14,000
- Permit required:
- Corps permit
- Game:
- Doves, quail, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl, deer, feral hogs, turkeys
- Special regulations:
- Deer hunting by archery only. All hunters must register in advance. No shot larger than No. 4, except No. 2 steel shot for waterfowl. Rifles, handguns, crossbows and muzzleloaders are prohibited.
Wright Patman Dam and Lake
P.O. Box 1817Texarkana, TX 75504
- Phone:
- (903) 838-8781
- County:
- Bowie, Cass
- Acreage:
- 54,358
- Permit required:
- Required to hunt ATV-accessible areas
- Game:
- Doves, quail, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl, deer, feral hogs, eastern turkeys
- Special regulations:
- Antlerless deer may be taken during archery season only.