Calamus East Deer Management Unit, Nebraska: deer harvest, public land and walk-in access
Nebraska's Calamus East Deer Management Unit covers 2,312 square miles across Holt, Wheeler, Antelope, Garfield and Boone counties. 0.1% of it is public land by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and Game and Parks area maps, mostly Game and Parks land, and Game and Parks' 2026-27 OFW map adds 19,388 acres of private walk-in land on 30 tracts. Game and Parks counted 628 deer taken across all seasons in 2025: 431 white-tailed bucks and 87 antlerless whitetails, plus 103 mule deer bucks and 7 antlerless mule deer.
Data updated October 2026. Harvest: Game and Parks' 2026 Big Game Recommendations, 2021 to 2025. Seasons: the 2026 Big Game Guide. Land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 and agency area maps. Walk-in: Game and Parks, 2026-27.
Game and Parks landBLMState park or recreation areaOpen Fields and WatersCalamus EastWMANeighboring unitsLakeHighway
| Size | 1,479,507 acres (2,312 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Counties | Holt, Wheeler, Antelope, Garfield, Boone and Greeley |
| Public land | 0.1% (929 acres) |
| Walk-in land (OFW, 2026-27) | 19,388 acres on 30 tracts (1.3% of the unit) |
| Deer harvested, 2025 | 628 (534 bucks) |
| Unit Buck permits, 2026 | Calamus East: 1,000 |
| WMAs with a page | Goose Lake WMA, Red Wing WMA and Dry Creek WMA |
| Towns in it | Chambers, Ewing, Clearwater, Inman, Emmet and Bartlett |
How many deer are harvested in the Calamus East unit?
Game and Parks counted 628 deer across all seasons in 2025, down 46% from 1,161 in 2021. Mule deer were 17.5% of it. Of the white-tailed bucks checked in 2025, 33% were 3 or older.
| Year | Total deer | White-tailed bucks | Antlerless whitetails | Mule deer bucks | Antlerless mule deer | Whitetail bucks 3 and older |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 628 | 431 | 87 | 103 | 7 | 33% |
| 2024 | 685 | 415 | 179 | 84 | 7 | 37% |
| 2023 | 697 | 451 | 164 | 79 | 3 | 43% |
| 2022 | 977 | 585 | 311 | 75 | 6 | 33% |
| 2021 | 1,161 | 737 | 334 | 88 | 2 | 29% |
Source: Game and Parks' 2026 Big Game Recommendations, page 53, the unit's harvest comparisons by year (all seasons and permit types). Buck ages are Game and Parks' estimates from check-station data.
Game and Parks also reports 0 deer depredation complaints in the unit in 2025, and a harvest objective of 100 mule deer bucks and 800 white-tailed bucks (Game and Parks' 2026 Big Game Recommendations, page 52).
How much public land is in the Calamus East unit?
0.1% of the unit is public land: 929 of its 1,479,507 acres, led by Game and Parks land at 814 acres. WMAs with a page of their own: Goose Lake WMA, Red Wing WMA and Dry Creek WMA. Game and Parks' map shows 4 WMAs in the unit in all.
| Manager | Acres | Share of the unit |
|---|---|---|
| Game and Parks land | 814 | 0.1% |
| BLM | 115 | under 0.1% |
| State park or recreation area (not counted as hunting land) | 51 | under 0.1% |
Measured by FilledTag inside Game and Parks' unit boundary from USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee and designation lands with open or restricted public access) and Game and Parks properties (WMAs, recreation areas, parks) and Game and Parks other public recreation lands; the water of the larger reservoirs is left out.
How much walk-in hunting land is in the Calamus East unit?
Game and Parks' 2026-27 Open Fields and Waters layer maps 19,388 acres on 30 tracts inside the unit, 1.3% of its ground. OFW land is private land Game and Parks leases for walk-in hunting, trapping or fishing; driving on it is prohibited. County totals for the counties the unit touches:
| County | Share of the county in this unit | OFW acres in the county | OFW tracts in the county |
|---|---|---|---|
| Holt County | 33.7% | 13,656 | 11 |
| Wheeler County | 94.3% | 6,318 | 7 |
| Antelope County | 43.3% | 779 | 17 |
| Garfield County | 62.1% | 2,827 | 2 |
| Boone County | 27% | 1,882 | 4 |
| Greeley County | 7.5% | 1,961 | 6 |
Walk-in acres inside the unit measured by FilledTag from Game and Parks Open Fields and Waters, 2026-2027; county acres and tract counts are Game and Parks' own figures for each tract.
When is deer season in the Calamus East unit in 2026?
Archery runs Sept. 1 to Dec. 31, 2026, the November firearm season Nov. 14 to 22 and muzzleloader Dec. 1 to 31, with a late antlerless-only firearm season Jan. 1 to 15, 2027. New for 2026, Unit Buck permits use the Season Choice format: one permit is good in archery, November firearm and muzzleloader seasons with the legal weapon for each.
| Unit Buck permit, 2026 | Quota | Bag limit | Sold out in 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calamus East | 1,000 | 1 Buck | Nov. 14 |
| Antlerless Only permit, 2026 | Quota | Bag limit | Sold out in 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| AO Calamus East | 100 | 1 AOWT | Oct. 20 |
Source: Game and Parks' 2026 Big Game Guide, page 13 (Unit Buck permits) and page 17 (Antlerless Only). AD is any deer, AD2 any deer except an antlerless mule deer, WT whitetail, AOWT antlerless whitetail.
Statewide, antlerless mule deer may not be taken on land open to public hunting, except Open Fields and Waters land (Game and Parks' 2026 Big Game Guide, page 19).
How did the Calamus East permits do in 2025?
| Permit, 2025 | Quota, sold, sell-out | Deer taken (MD bucks, MD antlerless, MD total, WT bucks, WT antlerless, WT total) | Success on first deer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calamus East | 1000, 1000, 11/14/25 | 51, 1, 52, 218, 3, 221 | 27% |
| Calamus East AO | 100, 100, 10/20/25 | 0, 0, 0, 2, 40, 42 | 42% |
Source: Game and Parks' 2026 Big Game Recommendations, page 52, 2025 harvest data for the unit. Success is the share of permit holders who took a deer, as Game and Parks reports it.
Is there elk or pronghorn hunting in the Calamus East unit?
Game and Parks' elk unit map overlaps it: elk unit 14. Pronghorn units that overlap it: Prairie Muzzleloader. Elk permits are all drawn; nonresidents can hunt pronghorn only with archery, landowner or late doe/fawn permits.
Units: Game and Parks elk hunting units; Game and Parks antelope hunting units. Rules: Game and Parks' 2026 Big Game Guide, page 20 to 26.
Which deer units border the Calamus East unit?
Calamus East touches 6 other units. Their public land, walk-in acres and 2025 harvest, for comparison:
| Unit | Public land | OFW acres | Deer harvested, 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calamus West | 5% | 16,790 | 1,108 |
| Elkhorn | 0.2% | 4,026 | 1,837 |
| Keya Paha | 1.5% | 8,300 | 1,859 |
| Loup East | 0.6% | 4,483 | 2,351 |
| Loup West | 0.2% | 5,401 | 1,023 |
| Missouri | 2% | 5,936 | 2,242 |
Questions hunters ask
How much public land is in Nebraska's Calamus East deer unit?
929 acres, 0.1% of the unit, by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and Game and Parks area maps; the largest share is Game and Parks land (814 acres). Game and Parks' walk-in program adds 19,388 acres of private land open to walk-in hunting in 2026-27.
How many deer were harvested in the Calamus East unit in the latest year on record?
628 across all seasons in 2025, by Game and Parks' count: 518 white-tailed deer and 110 mule deer.
How many Unit Buck permits does the Calamus East unit have in 2026?
Calamus East: 1,000 (1 Buck). Each is a Season Choice permit, good in archery, November firearm and muzzleloader seasons.
Which counties are in the Calamus East unit?
Holt, Wheeler, Antelope, Garfield, Boone and Greeley. Walk-in land by county is on each county's OFW page where one exists.
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Where these numbers come from
- Harvest: Game and Parks' 2026 Big Game Recommendations.
- Seasons, permits and rules: Game and Parks' 2026 Big Game Guide.
- Public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1. Walk-in land: Game and Parks Open Fields and Waters, 2026-2027. Unit boundary: Game and Parks deer management units.
- Highways and towns: U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024 primary and secondary roads; U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer, places.
FilledTag is not part of Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. Numbers are copied from Game and Parks, the USGS and the Census Bureau, or measured from their maps; nothing on this page is estimated by FilledTag.
Nebraska hunting Open Fields and Waters by county Calamus West Elkhorn Keya Paha Loup East Loup West Missouri