FilledTag Get a hunt plan

Clay County, Missouri: deer harvest and public hunting land

Clay County covers 409 square miles around Liberty. Hunters checked 1,139 deer here in the 2025 season, 596 of them antlered bucks, by MDC's harvest summary. That is up 8% from 2024. 7.2% of Clay County is public land open to the public, the largest share federal land, mostly Corps of Engineers lakes (12,407 acres), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and MDC conservation area boundaries.

Data updated October 2026. Harvest: MDC's deer harvest summaries, 2021 to 2025. Land: PAD-US 4.1 and MDC's conservation area and MRAP layers.

Map of Missouri's Clay County: public land by manager, MRAP land, the counties around it, highways I-35, US 69 and US 169; towns: Liberty, Smithville, Kearney, Excelsior Estates and Northmoor

MDC conservation areasFederal land, mostly Corps of Engineers lakesNational wildlife refugesState parks and historic sitesCounty, city and regional landLand trusts and other open landMRAP landClay CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway

Clay County at a glance
Size261,548 acres (409 square miles)
Deer checked, 20251,139 (596 antlered bucks, 101 button bucks, 442 does)
Firearms and archery, 2025610 by firearms, 413 by archery
Public land7.2% (18,942 acres)
MDC lands4 (1,461 acres inside Clay County)
MRAP land1 site, 79 acres
Towns in and near itLiberty, Smithville, Kearney, Excelsior Estates, Northmoor and Kansas City

How many deer are harvested in Clay County?

Hunters checked 1,139 deer in Clay County in 2025: 596 antlered bucks, 101 button bucks and 442 does. By method: 610 by firearms (442 of them in the November portion) and 413 by archery; the rest came on managed hunts.

SeasonDeer checkedAntlered bucksButton bucksDoesFirearmsNovember portionArchery
20251,139596101442610442413
20241,05956771421610453368
20231,11760382432679486349
20221,146594108444664571379
20211,08260273407642349

Source: MDC deer harvest summaries (2021 to 2025 seasons), Clay County, from the county tables of each season (all methods, firearms, archery and the November portion). The 2021 summary has no separate November table.

How much public land is in Clay County?

18,942 of Clay County's 261,548 acres are public land open to the public (7.2%). The biggest share is federal land, mostly Corps of Engineers lakes: 12,407 acres.

ManagerAcresShare of Clay County
Federal land, mostly Corps of Engineers lakes12,4074.7%
County, city and regional land3,5631.4%
MDC conservation areas1,4930.6%
State parks and historic sites1,4790.6%
All public land open to the public18,9427.2%

Measured by FilledTag inside the county line from USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and MDC conservation area boundaries. Hunting rules differ by manager: MDC conservation areas allow the hunting each area's page lists; national forest is open; Corps of Engineers lake land is open to hunting in many places under each project's own rules; refuges follow U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rules; the Ozark National Scenic Riverways allows hunting under state rules while most other national park land is closed; state parks and city and county land are closed to most hunting.

MDC lands in Clay County

MDC lands in Clay County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:

Other large public areas here, by PAD-US: Smithville Recreation Area (12,407 acres) and Smiths Fork Park (220 acres).

MRAP land in Clay County

MDC's MRAP layer shows 1 tract in Clay County open to some hunting, 79 acres of private land enrolled for public access. Each tract's map says what it allows. MDC: MRAP.

How do you get to Clay County?

Highways through it: I-35 (about 56 miles inside), US 69 (about 49 miles inside), US 169 (about 42 miles inside), MO 33 (about 36 miles inside) and I-435 (about 32 miles inside). Towns inside: Liberty, Smithville, Kearney, Excelsior Springs, Gladstone and North Kansas City. Nearby: Excelsior Estates (on the line), Northmoor (on the line), Kansas City (on the line) and River Bend (on the line).

Which counties border Clay County?

Clay County touches 4 other counties. Their latest MDC harvest and public land, for comparison:

CountyDeer harvestedYearPublic landMRAP land sites
Ray County1,80020250.7%
Platte County1,15320252.9%
Clinton County1,01620253.4%
Jackson County2,41520257.9%

Questions hunters ask

How many deer were harvested in Clay County in 2025?

Hunters checked 1,139 deer: 596 antlered bucks, 101 button bucks and 442 does (MDC). In 2024: 1,059.

Is there public hunting land in Clay County?

Yes. 18,942 acres, 7.2% of the county, are public land open to the public by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and MDC conservation area boundaries, the largest share federal land, mostly Corps of Engineers lakes (12,407 acres). MDC's map shows 4 conservation areas here.

Does Clay County have MRAP land?

Yes. 1 tract open to some hunting, 79 acres, on MDC's MRAP layer.

Get a Missouri hunt plan when they open

Hunt plans for Missouri are coming. Join the list and you'll hear first. The first 50 hunters in each new state get their plan free.

Until then, the free FilledTag app for iPhone has a map that works in every state, Missouri included.

Where these numbers come from

FilledTag is not part of the Missouri Department of Conservation. Numbers are copied from MDC and the federal sources above, or measured from their maps; nothing on this page is estimated by FilledTag.

Missouri hunting Ray County Platte County Clinton County Jackson County