Public Land Duck Hunting

WMA Waterfowl Hunting Locations

DRY WEATHER CONDITIONS EXPECTED AHEAD OF WATERFOWL SEASON

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) is advising hunters to be aware of dry weather conditions ahead of the waterfowl hunting season. The season for public lands duck hunting is November 26^th through 27^th and December 5^th through January 31^st.

Without significant rain, the following sites are expected to have low water levels for opening weekend:

West Tennessee

·       Big Sandy WMA: Tier 1 site 5 and 8 may not have huntable water for the opener.  Site 11 will have very shallow levels due to low levels in Big Sandy River. Site 13 is not expected to be huntable for the opener.

·       West Sandy WMA: Tier 2 site 4 will have low water on opening day, however, this is considered normal for this site.

·       Camden WMA: Tier 1 site 76 and Tier 2 site 133 are expected to be 6-12” low.

·       Lebanon Pond WMA: All sites will have very limited to no hunting opportunities.

·       Gooch WMA: Water levels at sites E1 and E2 are currently 2-3” in depth. Many other sites will only be accessible with a mud motor.

·       Shelby Forest WMA: All sites are very shallow. Hunters will need to wade or use paddle craft.

·       Reelfoot WMA: Water levels at Tier 2 sites RD15 and RD36 are low but can be accessed with a mud motor. Other Tier 1 blind holders are reporting trouble placing blinds due to low water.  

·       Bean Switch WMA: All sites will have no water without rainfall.

·       Jarrell Switch WMA: All sites will have no water without rainfall.

Middle Tennessee

·       All Middle Tennessee sites are on schedule for normal pool level for opening weekend.

East Tennessee

·       Chickamauga WMA:  Upper Rogers Creek Unit blind sites 5, 7, and 8 are not expected to be full due to unusually low stream levels that support these sites. TWRA recommends making a scouting trip prior to your hunt date to check conditions. 

The remaining public land waterfowl sites are expected to have sufficient water levels for hunting. TWRA has a total of 453 Tier 1 duck blind sites on public lands for season-long duck hunting. An additional 42 Tier 2 sites are equipped with agency-built blinds and offered through a quota hunt system for segmented hunts throughout the season.

Early and Mid-season quota applications have already closed, but hunters can still apply for Late segment hunts. Applications are open November 16^th through December 6^th. Hunters who are awarded permits are required to complete their Notice of Intent (NOI) by December 19^th.

A valid Tennessee duck hunting permit is required to hunt, as well as all required licenses. For more information on public land duck hunting sites, conditions, and license requirements visit tnwildlife.org.

WMA Waterfowl  Crop and Blind Condition

Click each region for more information.

Quota Hunt Permit Details (including Tier 2 & pools)

• Applications must be submitted through at www.GoOutdoorsTennessee.com. No mail-in applications are accepted. When applying through the website, it is critical you include a current email address for your account.   The following notifications will arrive ONLY by email: your application has been submitted and accepted into the system, you have successfully made changes to your application (hunt locations, group members, etc.), you were/were not selected for hunts, and how to obtain permits. You can log into your account at www.GoOutdoorsTennessee.com at any time and see hunts you applied for, permits you were awarded, and your priority points balance. 
• Tier 2 and pool permits will be issued during three (3) application periods during the regular duck season early, middle, and late; corresponding to three 20-day periods. Local vacancy (leftover) drawings will be held after a Notice of Intent (NOI) period. 
• Residents: An applicant must hold any of the following license groupings to apply for season long and segmented hunts. Segmented hunts have the option of licenses or the $12 fee:

1. Combo Hunt/Fish and WMA Small Game Waterfowl (Type 01 & 91)
2. Annual Sportsman license and Migratory Bird permit
3. Lifetime Sportsman and Migratory Bird permit
4. Annual Senior Sportsman and Migratory Bird permit
5. Disabled Veteran and Migratory Bird Permit
6. Permanent Senior and Migratory Bird Permit
7. Wheelchair and Migratory Bird Permit 
8. SSI Hunt and Fish and Migratory Bird Permit 
9. Junior Hunt/Fish/Trap (holder must already be 16) and Migratory Bird Permit 
10. Reelfoot needs Combo Hunt/Fish and Reelfoot Annual preservation permit

• Non-Residents:

1. Non-resident hunting no big game and a WMA Waterfowl/Small Game permit: 
2. OR the customer can pay a $12 application fee and purchase the required licenses once selected for the drawing (which includes a 7 day option versus the entire season if this their only opportunity to hunt). You will receive a priority point for each unsuccessful application. For example, if you apply for an Early Waterfowl Permit and are unsuccessful, you will receive a priority point for future Early Waterfowl drawings. 

• Priority Points are not transferable from one drawing to another. You will have the ability to apply for a priority point only if you wish not to hunt this year.  These applications can only be submitted by individuals (not parties) and must be completed during the allotted application period.
• For Early, Mid and Late waterfowl quota hunts, hunters awarded a permit must return to TWRA a “Notice of Intent” (NOI) which states they do or do not intend to hunt during their permitted hunt.  The NOI may be submitted online through your www.GoOutdoorsTennessee.com account, by U.S. mail or e-mail. Detailed information will be provided to successful applicants. If TWRA does not receive the NOI by the speci­fied deadline, the permit will be forfeited and become invalid. Any forfeited or invalid quota permits will be reallocated by a local, in-person drawing.
• Customers wishing to sign up for vacancy drawings will need to sign up for the desired location using TWRA’s Event System and then attend the local drawing. You must be present to be awarded a vacancy permit.

Priority Point Details

Each of the 3 waterfowl quota hunt periods have unique and separate priority points.  An individual is awarded one point for each unsuccessful application in a drawing. When a person is drawn for a quota hunt, their priority points for that application period will be reset to zero (0). Priority points only apply to the individual drawing in which they were earned, i.e., WMA Big Game, Spring Turkey, and the new Early Waterfowl, Middle Waterfowl, Late Waterfowl drawings.  

Applicants with the highest priority are always drawn first.  Points are not transferable from one drawing to another.

The highest priority point of party members will be used for the full party.  If a party application is drawn, all members are awarded a permit and removed from drawing.  If a party application is not drawn, all members receive one priority point

Existing Waterfowl priority points will all be applied to the Mid-Season application period. Points may not be moved to another application period nor be used on a season-long permit application.

How does the drawing work?

Applicants select specific hunt choices by location (WMA and hunt site) and dates and arrange these choices by preference.  Please select only hunts you are interested in.  Applicants will not be awarded a hunt they did not select.

The computer draw process awards applicants with the highest number of priority points first. If the applicant’s first choice is available, it is awarded. The program then moves on to the next applicant’s first choice. If the applicant’s first choice is not available, the program moves to that applicant's second choice, either awarding that choice if available (and moving on to the next applicant), or if not available, the program moves to the third choice, etc.

Each eligible application is included in the drawing.  If you are in a party, each applicant in your party is entered into the drawing (so a party of 5 has 5 chances, etc). When a party application is selected, the drawing runs the location/date choices in the order they are entered on the party leader’s application. If successful, all members of the party are awarded a permit and removed from the drawing. If unsuccessful, all members of the party are unsuccessful and awarded one (1) priority point.

Licensed Duck Hunting Guides in Tennessee

Duck Hunting In Tennessee Background

The Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission (TFWC) approved several proposals by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency for changes to public land duck hunting and blind draw procedures.

For many years Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency has received public comments about how the current public land duck hunting system operates. The comments mostly fall into 2 categories: the need for increased duck hunting opportunities on public lands (i.e. more access) and concerns over the fairness of the handheld duck blind draw system.  A scientific survey of duck hunters done in partnership with the University of Tennessee validated these comments, as well as other issues with in-person handheld draws, and desire for opportunities to hunt for shorter time periods.

In 2019, we made changes to make the in-person drawings more fair and equitable, with limited success. In 2020, due to COVID, all handheld duck blind drawings were computerized and online, which made the process fair and equitable for hunters across Tennessee.  

In 2021, we took another step, by increasing the number of duck hunters who get drawn to hunt our public WMAs each season. This was an effort to increase public access for duck hunters. TWRA’s final approved proposal for public land duck hunting was a significant effort to increase access for hunters statewide and retain traditional season-long, 60-day blind locations as offered currently. In addition to the season-long blinds, there are hunt locations designated for quota hunts for 2, 3, 4, or 7-day periods at a marked location or an Agency-built blind. There are no changes proposed to privately-owned/permanent registered blinds.