Dupont Reservation Conservation Area: hunting and access
Dupont Reservation Conservation Area is 1,345 acres of MDC land in Pike County, next to Ashburn. MDC lists deer hunting here (archery and firearms, antlerless permits allowed). Hunters checked 4,848 deer in Pike County in 2025.
Data updated October 2026. Area facts: MDC's conservation area data, read 2026-10. Harvest: MDC deer harvest summaries, 2021 to 2025.
MDC conservation areasDupont Reservation Conservation AreaCounty lineLakeHighway
| Size | 1,345 acres |
|---|---|
| County | Pike County |
| Deer harvest unit | Pike County |
| MDC lists for hunting | Deer, Turkey and Squirrel |
| MDC area number | 4604 |
| MDC region | Northeast |
| Camping (MDC) | walk-in, float-in or backpack camping (not during deer and turkey seasons), designated camping sites and individual campsites |
| Nearest towns | Ashburn (next to it), Saverton (6 mi) and Frankford (7 mi) |
What is Dupont Reservation Conservation Area like?
From 1892 through 1932 a dynamite factory on this site provided explosives for lead, zinc and coal mines in the tri-state area and nitroglycerin for use in Oklahoma oil fields. Separate facilities were built in different valleys in this rough terrain to lessen the chance of a chain reaction explosion, should any one of the buildings explode.
E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Company donated 1,122.8 acres to the Conservation Commission in 1938. Subsequent land purchases have increased the size of this area to its present 1,320 acres. The area consists of 975 acres of upland timber, 310 acres of bottomland timber and 35 acres of old fields and grassland. It also contains plantations of walnut, cottonwood, tulip poplar, pine, and bald cypress trees. A concrete boat ramp and primitive campground are located along a portion of 1.5 miles of Mississippi River frontage. DuPont Forest Natural Area is found east of Highway 79. This 80-acre tract is a mixed upland hardwood forest and small limestone glade, lying within the Lincoln Hills Section of the Glaciated Plains Natural Division. Basswood, northern red oak, white oak, chinquapin oak and sugar maple are common overstory trees.
In MDC's words, from the Dupont Reservation Conservation Area page.
What can you hunt on Dupont Reservation Conservation Area?
MDC's page for Dupont Reservation Conservation Area lists: Deer: archery and firearms, antlerless permits allowed; Turkey: archery and firearms; Squirrel.
What are the rules on Dupont Reservation Conservation Area?
MDC's standard conservation area rules (Chapter 11 of the Wildlife Code) apply; the area's rules on MDC's site list any it adds.
How many deer are taken around Dupont Reservation Conservation Area?
Dupont Reservation Conservation Area lies in Pike County. Hunters checked 4,848 deer in Pike County in 2025, against 4,425 in 2024.
| County | Dupont Reservation Conservation Area acres in it | Deer, 2025 | Deer, 2024 | Deer, 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pike County | 1,345 | 4,848 | 4,425 | 4,855 |
Harvest for the whole county, not the conservation area alone: MDC deer harvest summaries (2021 to 2025 seasons).
How do you get to Dupont Reservation Conservation Area?
MDC's directions: From Hannibal, take Highway 79 south 17 miles, then Route TT east, then north onto gravel road at Ted Shanks Conservation Area entrance, 1.70 miles to ramp.
Nearest towns: Ashburn (next to it), Saverton (6 miles), Frankford (7 miles) and Louisiana (9 miles). Highways within 5 miles: MO 79.
What other public land is near Dupont Reservation Conservation Area?
MDC lands within 10 miles:
- Ted Shanks Conservation Area: 6,801 acres, next to it
- Upper Mississippi Conservation Area: 12,715 acres, next to it
- Edward Anderson Conservation Area: 1,067 acres, 1.4 miles away
- Ranacker Conservation Area: 1,832 acres, 7.5 miles away
Public land within 3 miles of Dupont Reservation Conservation Area
Counting Dupont Reservation Conservation Area itself, 5,941 of the 32,496 acres within 3 miles of its boundary are public land open to the public (18.3%), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and MDC conservation area boundaries.
| Manager | Acres within 3 miles |
|---|---|
| MDC conservation areas | 5,941 |
Questions hunters ask
Where is Dupont Reservation Conservation Area?
In Pike County, next to Ashburn.
Can you deer hunt on Dupont Reservation Conservation Area?
Yes, by MDC's page: archery and firearms, antlerless permits allowed.
How much public land is around Dupont Reservation Conservation Area?
5,941 acres within 3 miles of its boundary, Dupont Reservation Conservation Area included, by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and MDC conservation area boundaries. The closest other MDC area is Ted Shanks Conservation Area (next to it).
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 facts come from
- Area description, species, rules and directions: MDC, Dupont Reservation Conservation Area; MDC conservation area boundaries.
- Boundary and acres: MDC's map layer above. Surrounding public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and MDC conservation area boundaries.
- Deer harvest: MDC deer harvest summaries (2021 to 2025 seasons).
FilledTag is not part of the Missouri Department of Conservation. Check MDC's rules and posted signs before you go.