Maryland Public Hunting Lands

I am always amused when people tell me there's a "war on hunting."

Really?

Where's that war?

Only in the head of paranoid theorists from what I can tell.

It's not here in Washington, D.C. where I live, that's for sure!

In fact, Washington, D.C. is surrounded by both private and public hunting lands with virtually unlimited take on deer, as well as prime goose, duck and turkey shooting of every kind.




Consider Maryland, one of the more liberal states in the union, which Barack Obama won by a better than 25% margin in the last election.

If you want to hunt in Maryland there's no shortage of Wildlife Management Areas (WMA), State Forests, State Parks, Watersheds, Natural Environmental Areas (NEA), Cooperative Wildlife Management Areas (CWMA), Natural Resources Management Areas (NRMA), Demonstation Forests, and Scenic Wild Rivers.

Here are just a few:

• Billmeyer WMA & Belle Grove WMA - 1,114 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun, rifle).
  
  


• Dan’s Mountain WMA - 9,681 acres - Furbearers, forest game and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Green Ridge State Forest - 46,657 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game, and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun, and rifle).
  
  


• Warrior Mountain WMA - 4,672 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun, rifle).
  
  


• Gunpowder Falls State Park - 3,000 acres - deer (shotgun and bow) and waterfowl.
  
  


• Liberty Watershed - 9,200 acres - Forest game, upland game and deer (bow only for all game species).
  
  


• Loch Raven Watershed - 1,600 acres - Deer (bow only).
  
  


• Patapsco Valley State Park- 3,895 acres - Deer (bow only).
  
  


• Prettyboy Watershed - 7,380 acres - Forest game, upland game and deer (bow only for all game species).
  
  


• Idylwild WMA - 3,382 acres - Furbearers (trapping permits issued through bid process), forest game, upland game, waterfowl, dove and deer (bow, muzzleloader and shotgun).
  
  


• Tuckahoe State Park - 1,000 acres - Forest game, upland game, deer (bow, muzzleloader and shotgun), waterfowl.
  
  


• Morgan Run NEA - 1,300 acres - Deer (bow and muzzleloader).
  
  


• Bainbridge CWMA - 1,000 acres - Deer (bow only).
  
  


• Elk Neck State Forest - 3,316 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game, and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun, and rifle).
  
  


• Fair Hill NRMA - 5,613 acres - Deer (bow).
  
  


• Cedar Point WMA - 1,920 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game, dove, waterfowl, and deer (bow, muzzleloader and shotgun).
  
  


• Cedarville State Forest - 1,100 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game.
  
  


• Chapman Residual - 1,305 acres - Forest game, upland game, deer (bow, muzzleloader, and shotgun).
  
  


• Doncaster Demonstration Forest - 1,700 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game, waterfowl.
  
  


• Myrtle Grove WMA - 1,748 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game, dove, waterfowl and deer (bow, muzzleloader and shotgun).
  
  


• Fishing Bay WMA - 29,237 acres - Furbearers (trapping permits issued through bid process), forest game, upland game, waterfowl, white-tailed and sika deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Taylors Island WMA - 1,114 acres - Furbearers (trapping permits issued through bid process), forest game, upland game, waterfowl, white-tailed and sika deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Cunningham Falls State Park - 3,500 acres - Furbearers, forest game, deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Frederick City Watershed CWMA - 7,300 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game, and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Monocacy NRMA - 1,800 acres - Forest game, upland game, waterfowl, dove and deer (bow, muzzleloader and shotgun).
  
  


• South Mountain State Park - 3,350 acres - Furbearers, forest game, deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Deep Creek Lake State Park - 1,200 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game, dove and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Mt. Nebo WMA - 1,860 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game, waterfowl and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Potomac-Garrett State Forest - 18,535 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game, and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun, and rifle).
  
  


• Savage River State Forest - 54,447 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game, and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun, and rifle).
  
  


• Youghiogheny Scenic Wild River - 1200 acres - Forest game, upland game, dove, waterfowl and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Patuxent River State Park - 5,000 acres - Forest game, upland game, deer (bow, muzzleloader and shotgun).
  
  


• Millington WMA - 4,000 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game, dove, waterfowl and deer (bow, muzzleloader and shotgun).
  
  


• Sassafras NRMA - 1,000 acres - Forest Game, limited upland game seasons, and deer (bow, muzzleloader, and shotgun).
  
  


• McKee-Beshers WMA - 1,960 acres - Forest game, upland game, dove, waterfowl, and deer (bow, muzzleloader and shotgun).
  
  


• Seneca Creek State Park - 1,000 acres - Forest game, upland game, dove, deer (bow, muzzleloader and shotgun).
  
  


• Wye Island NRMA - 2,500 acres - Deer (bow, muzzleloader and shotgun ).
  
  


• Cedar Island WMA - 2,880 acres - Furbearers (trapping permits issued through bid process) and waterfowl.
  
  


• Deal Island WMA - 13,400 acres - Furbearers (trapping permits issued through bid process), forest game, upland game, dove, waterfowl and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Fairmount WMA - 5,054 acres - Furbearers (trapping permits issued through bid process), forest game, waterfowl and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Janes Island State Park - 3,147 acres - Waterfowl hunting only. Trapping permits issued through bid process.
  
  


• Maryland Marine Properties WMA - 1,130 acre s- Furbearers (trapping permits issued through bid process), forest game, upland game, dove, waterfowl and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• South Marsh WMA - 2,969 acres - Furbearers (trapping permits issued through bid process) and waterfowl.
  
  


• St. Mary's River State Park - 2,200 acres - Forest game, upland game, deer (bow, muzzleloader and shotgun).
  
  


• Indian Springs WMA - 6,635 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game, dove, waterfowl and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Sideling Hill WMA - 3,100 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Woodmont - 2,400 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Ellis Bay WMA - 2,994 acres - Furbearers (trapping permits issued through bid process), forest game, waterfowl and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Nanticoke River WMA - 1,688 acres - Furbearers (trapping permits issued through bid process), forest game, upland game, dove, waterfowl and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• E. A. Vaughn WMA - 2,630 acres - Furbearers (trapping permits issued through bid process), forest game, upland game, dove, waterfowl and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  
  


• Pocomoke State Forest - 13,036 acres - Furbearers, forest game, upland game, waterfowl. Free permit required for trapping and raccoon hunting.
  
  


• Pocomoke River WMA - 1,016 acres- Furbearers (trapping permits issued through bid process), forest game, upland game, dove, waterfowl and deer (bow, muzzleloader, shotgun and rifle).
  

Now, here's the thing.... This is just a partial listing.

I have not included any of the places under 1,000 acres (one square mile is 640 acres), nor have I included the 55,000 acres in the lower six counties of Maryland's Eastern Shore which comprise the Chesapeake Forest Lands where hunting is also permitted under lease to hunting clubs.



Nor have I included all the private hunting lands, which range from simple farms where permission is given for free to the sane and sober, to the pay-to-shoot places which will gut your take and wrap it for the freezer too.

And yes, you also have a similar bounty of public and private hunting lands in your state, and very close to where you live too.

So get off your ass and get out out there.

Stop listening to whining pretenders who probably do not even have a state hunting license, much less a decent dog and a worn pair of boots.

War on hunting? What kind of nonsense is that?