How to hunt Public Land in OK

[garret01]

Hello Everyone,

Here is the deal. I went on my first hunt with my brothers in Bandera, TX last year and caught the Buck Fever. I don't want to get to hunt only once a year so I am looking for figure out how to hunt public land in Oklahoma this season. Any guidance you guys can provide would be great. I'll start with some questions...

1.) How does the public land hunt work; do I have to register at a WMA or do I just show up and treck out into the woods to setup?

2.) Are the WMA's split up into grids that are assigned to each hunter?

3.) Can I hunt the same spot over multiple days?

4.) If I'm not an expert at field dressing my deer, can I take the whole darn thing to a processor and let them do it?

5.) I live in Tulsa County, any references on a good WMA to hunt for deer?

6.) I'm 28, what do I need to get license wise to hunt in Oklahoma as a resident?


Thanks,
Garret01

 

[orangeRcode]

I've never hunted public lands but know alot of guys who do and have success at it. I could explain how to field dress but it's easier to just watch a video on youtube. There are many on there which will give you a good idea. You will need a sharp knife and one with a gut hook is helpful but not necessary. You will need an Oklahoma State hunting license. If you are under a certain age you will need to complete the hunters safety course. You will also need a deer tag for every deer harvested in each season (bow, primitive and gun). This is generally 1 antlered and 2 antlerless depending on the area hunting. Check out my thread that has the 2012 hunting guide in it. It has alot of good info. I'm sure others will fill in the other details. Edit, you really should field dress it shortly after its killed. If you can get it to the processor fairly quickly it would probably be okay but they are going to charge you for that and its really not that difficult.

 

[AllOut]

Most public land in Ok is come and go as you please, some have special regulations which are usually listed in hunting regs book.
You can run to Jenks and grab a WMA atlas that shows all the state owned land. Plus don't forget about CORPS land. If your in Tulsa you are just a few miles west from some really good unpressured public hunting CORPS land on the river.
No you don't have to field dress your deer, but you should. Some processors will do it but usually charge an extra fee.

As far as licensing, being 28 you need a hunters safety card. Oklahoma recognizes other states if you have one. Then you have to buy a hunting license. Plus tags for each big game animal, archery tags for deer with a bow covers either sex, muzzleloader and rifle tags are buck or doe you have to specify when you buy which one you want or get both.

 

[SoonerATC]

By Corps land, do you mean the Corps of Engineers? Do they charge an access fee for their lands? I've never hunted anything but WMAs.

 

[ByrdC130]

No charge for hunting Corps lands. Might drop by one of their offices and see if they have maps. You definately need to get the 2012 hunting guide and regulation book and read and re read it. Nothing ruins a good hunt like breaking and getting caught on of the rules. Like others have said, lot's of good walk in and hunt lands around your area. But you need to check the reg book to make sure the WMA or whatever public land your wanting to hunt is open (not closed for a draw hunt), the bag limit and type (buck or doe) that can be taken on each hunting area. They differ vastly in those reguards. Any questions, feel free to ask.

 

[AllOut]

Yes Corps of Engineers
Most Corp owned water (lakes/rivers) have walk in public hunting areas around them.
Take Kaw Lake for example or the Verigris River/Navigational Channel, most/all the land on the river within so close to the water is considered public and open for hunting (bow/shotgun pellets only). Lots of good areas especially if you have a boat. Just because u can hunt on the edge of the river doesn't mean you have land access to it though. Some areas are unacessable by land without going through private property which you would have to get land owner permission to do. But you can always boat in...
Some areas open up to larger tracts than just thin strip u get on the edge of the river, sometimes these areas have parking areas or ways of walking the dike (sometimes miles) to get to. But it's doable and some of these places are great hunting and have been favorite bow hunting areas for me since I was younger.

 

[Porter]

Hello Everyone,

Here is the deal. I went on my first hunt with my brothers in Bandera, TX last year and caught the Buck Fever. I don't want to get to hunt only once a year so I am looking for figure out how to hunt public land in Oklahoma this season. Any guidance you guys can provide would be great. I'll start with some questions...

1.) How does the public land hunt work; do I have to register at a WMA or do I just show up and treck out into the woods to setup? Get a copy of the hunting regs or go to wildlifedepartment.com and read them online.

2.) Are the WMA's split up into grids that are assigned to each hunter? Get a copy of the hunting regs or go to wildlifedepartment.com and read them online.


3.) Can I hunt the same spot over multiple days? Get a copy of the hunting regs or go to wildlifedepartment.com and read them online.


4.) If I'm not an expert at field dressing my deer, can I take the whole darn thing to a processor and let them do it? Please don't. The venison will be much better if you get it cooled down quickly and dress it yourself in the field.

5.) I live in Tulsa County, any references on a good WMA to hunt for deer? Get a copy of the hunting regs or go to wildlifedepartment.com and read them online.

6.) I'm 28, what do I need to get license wise to hunt in Oklahoma as a resident? Get a copy of the hunting regs or go to wildlifedepartment.com and read them online.


Thanks,
Garret01

Not trying to sound like an ass in my response. The hunting guide is really easy to understand and informative. It should answer all the questions you're asking. If you read it and still have questions or need additional info, don't hesitate to ask.

 

[dennishoddy]

Not trying to sound like an ass in my response. The hunting guide is really easy to understand and informative. It should answer all the questions you're asking. If you read it and still have questions or need additional info, don't hesitate to ask.

The hunting guide is just a guide
I spotted a mistake in there about Sooner Lake, and brought it to the attention of the supervisor of the NW counties.
He pulled up the Title 800 regulations, and sure enough the guide is wrong.

The title 800 regulations are printed in their entirity on the ODW website.
One thing that I noticed that is not in the guide for sooner lake is that telapia is not allowed for bait.
It is included in the Title 800 regs but not in the guide that one gets at the bait shop.

Check out the site.

 

[garret01]

Guys, thanks for the reply. I get the field dressing requirement. I've dressed a whitetail before and could probably swing it again. I, right now, only hunt rifle, so it looks like the CORP lands would be out for me. There is a WMA up around Waggoner that I might try out this season. Here is my question... When hunting with family, each guy would grab one of the six stands we had setup across roughly 40+ acres. This would insure that no two guys were in the IMMEDIATE area of the other (i.e. no one gets shot from cross fire).

I'm still trying to wrap my head around allowing hunters to just venture out into public land without assigned areas. How do you keep from getting two guys sitting right across from each other and never knowing it..? How do you prevent a guy from dragging his kill through your spot on the way to his truck?

Does this make sense?

 

[AllOut]

First, 6 people on 40 acres rifle hunting is WAAAAY to many!!!
That's the beauty of hunting public. That stuff does happen and you have to deal with the idiots who do it. But if you hunt public long enough it doesn't matter how well you pay attention, you will eventually run across someone in their stand. Those idiots are the major reason I WILL NOT hunting public with a rifle during deer season.
As far as being out unassisted, that's why we have the hunters safety course. You gotta pass a test to be able to hunt by yourself. Lol