Head of the Plains Wildlife Management Area: hunting, access and parking in Zone 14
Head of the Plains Wildlife Management Area is 2 acres of MassWildlife land in Nantucket, in Wildlife Management Zone 14. MassWildlife says all of its WMAs are open to hunting, fishing and trapping. Hunters took 1,003 deer in Zone 14 in 2025.
Data updated October 2026. Area facts: MassWildlife's Head of the Plains WMA fact sheet. Harvest: MassWildlife 2025 Deer Harvest Summary. Seasons: MassWildlife deer hunting regulations (2026 dates).
MassWildlife (Fish and Game) landHead of the Plains WMAZone lineHighway
| Size | 2 acres (MassWildlife) |
|---|---|
| Town | Nantucket |
| Wildlife Management Zone | Zone 14 |
| MassWildlife district | Southeast District |
| Parking (MassWildlife) | None mapped |
| Deer taken in Zone 14, 2025 | 1,003 (359 adult males) |
| Nearest town centers | Nantucket (4 mi), Edgartown (18 mi) and Oak Bluffs (24 mi) |
What is Head of the Plains WMA like?
MassWildlife describes it: "Head of the Plains WMA lies on the island of Nantucket. This property exists within a large area of scrub oak dominated scrub shrub habitat, with interspersed patches of huckleberry and various grasses and forbs."
On wildlife: "White-tailed deer and migratory songbirds are commonly observed from this property."
Quoted from MassWildlife's Head of the Plains WMA fact sheet.
What does MassWildlife say about hunting Head of the Plains WMA?
"The surrounding landscape provides excellent white-tailed deer hunting opportunities. The Head of the Plains WMA borders Clark Cove which is known to contain white perch and chain pickerel. The southern half of the western shoreline lies within the WMA."
How do you get into Head of the Plains WMA?
"There is no formal parking or access to this WMA, due to its size, but access can be acquired from Sheep Pond Road (an unimproved road) or abutting conservation lands."
MassWildlife's parking layer shows no lot for Head of the Plains WMA.
Distances to the nearest town centers: Nantucket 4 miles, Edgartown 18 miles, Oak Bluffs 24 miles and Chatham 26 miles. Other WMAs nearby: Miacomet Heath (2 miles), Wasque Point (16 miles), Katama Plains (19 miles).
When can you hunt deer on Head of the Plains WMA in 2026?
Deer seasons follow Zone 14: archery October 5 to November 28, shotgun November 30 to December 12, primitive firearms December 14 to 31, plus an early season September 21 to October 1 and a winter season January 1 to February 13, 2027. In 2025 the zone gave 298 deer to archers and 426 in shotgun season.
| Zone | WMA acres in it | Deer, 2025 | Adult males, 2025 | Deer, 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zone 14 | 2 | 1,003 | 359 | 871 |
Seasons: MassWildlife deer hunting regulations (2026 dates). Harvest: MassWildlife 2025 Deer Harvest Summary; MassWildlife 2024 Deer Harvest Summary.
What rules apply on Head of the Plains WMA?
Under 321 CMR 3.01, camping, fires and target practice need the Director's written permission, vehicles stay on roads open to traffic, and dogs must be leashed unless hunting or training with a licensed hunter.
Source: MassWildlife WMA regulations.
Questions hunters ask
Can you hunt on Head of the Plains WMA?
Yes. MassWildlife says all WMAs are open to hunting, fishing and trapping; deer seasons follow Zone 14, where the 2026 shotgun season runs November 30 to December 12 (MassWildlife WMA regulations).
What zone is Head of the Plains WMA in?
Zone 14, as MassWildlife's fact sheet gives it. Hunters took 1,003 deer in Zone 14 in 2025, 359 of them adult males, after 871 in 2024 (MassWildlife 2025 Deer Harvest Summary).
How do you get into Head of the Plains WMA?
MassWildlife's fact sheet: "There is no formal parking or access to this WMA, due to its size, but access can be acquired from Sheep Pond Road (an unimproved road) or abutting conservation lands."
What can you hunt on Head of the Plains WMA?
MassWildlife's fact sheet: "The surrounding landscape provides excellent white-tailed deer hunting opportunities. The Head of the Plains WMA borders Clark Cove which is known to contain white perch and chain pickerel. The southern half of the western shoreline lies within the WMA."
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Sources: MassWildlife fact sheet; MassWildlife Lands (MassGIS); MassWildlife parking for recreation; MassWildlife 2025 Deer Harvest Summary; MassWildlife deer hunting regulations (2026 dates); MassWildlife WMA regulations; public land MassGIS Protected and Recreational OpenSpace for state and Army Corps land; USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US 4.1) for federal land; towns U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024 primary and secondary roads; U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer, towns (county subdivisions). FilledTag is not part of Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife).