Keya Paha Deer Management Unit, Nebraska: deer harvest, public land and walk-in access
Nebraska's Keya Paha Deer Management Unit covers 2,730 square miles across Keya Paha, Holt, Brown, Cherry, Boyd and Rock counties. 1.5% of it is public land by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and Game and Parks area maps, mostly national wildlife refuge or WPA, and Game and Parks' 2026-27 OFW map adds 8,300 acres of private walk-in land on 7 tracts. Game and Parks counted 1,859 deer taken across all seasons in 2025: 1,221 white-tailed bucks and 538 antlerless whitetails, plus 97 mule deer bucks and 3 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 landNational wildlife refuge or WPABLMState park or recreation areaOther publicOpen Fields and WatersKeya PahaWMANeighboring unitsLakeHighway
| Size | 1,747,097 acres (2,730 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Counties | Keya Paha, Holt, Brown, Cherry, Boyd and Rock |
| Public land | 1.5% (25,691 acres) |
| Walk-in land (OFW, 2026-27) | 8,300 acres on 7 tracts (0.5% of the unit) |
| Deer harvested, 2025 | 1,859 (1,318 bucks) |
| Unit Buck permits, 2026 | Keya Paha: 1,800 |
| WMAs with a page | Thomas Creek WMA, Pine Glen WMA, Bobcat WMA, Keller WMA and Fred Thomas WMA |
| Towns in it | Valentine, Stuart, Springview, Anoka, Johnstown and Butte |
How many deer are harvested in the Keya Paha unit?
Game and Parks counted 1,859 deer across all seasons in 2025, down 28% from 2,588 in 2021. Mule deer were 5.4% of it. Of the white-tailed bucks checked in 2025, 53% were 3 or older.
| Year | Total deer | White-tailed bucks | Antlerless whitetails | Mule deer bucks | Antlerless mule deer | Whitetail bucks 3 and older |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,859 | 1,221 | 538 | 97 | 3 | 53% |
| 2024 | 2,081 | 1,290 | 694 | 95 | 2 | 57% |
| 2023 | 1,867 | 1,253 | 543 | 65 | 6 | 54% |
| 2022 | 2,351 | 1,449 | 817 | 82 | 3 | 44% |
| 2021 | 2,588 | 1,639 | 880 | 65 | 4 | 60% |
Source: Game and Parks' 2026 Big Game Recommendations, page 61, 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 1 deer depredation complaint in the unit in 2025, and a harvest objective of 200 mule deer bucks and 1400 white-tailed bucks (Game and Parks' 2026 Big Game Recommendations, page 60).
How much public land is in the Keya Paha unit?
1.5% of the unit is public land: 25,691 of its 1,747,097 acres, led by national wildlife refuge or WPA at 19,097 acres. WMAs with a page of their own: Thomas Creek WMA, Pine Glen WMA, Bobcat WMA, Keller WMA and Fred Thomas WMA. Game and Parks' map shows 11 WMAs in the unit in all.
| Manager | Acres | Share of the unit |
|---|---|---|
| National wildlife refuge or WPA | 19,097 | 1.1% |
| Game and Parks land | 6,012 | 0.3% |
| BLM | 582 | under 0.1% |
| Other public (not counted as hunting land) | 551 | under 0.1% |
| State park or recreation area (not counted as hunting land) | 2 | 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 Keya Paha unit?
Game and Parks' 2026-27 Open Fields and Waters layer maps 8,300 acres on 7 tracts inside the unit, 0.5% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Keya Paha County | 100% | 0 | 0 |
| Holt County | 27.4% | 13,656 | 11 |
| Brown County | 30.6% | 4,041 | 3 |
| Cherry County | 5.9% | 171 | 1 |
| Boyd County | 55.8% | 20 | 1 |
| Rock County | 26% | 6,733 | 3 |
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 Keya Paha 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Keya Paha | 1,800 | 1 AD2 | Nov. 16 |
| Antlerless Only permit, 2026 | Quota | Bag limit | Sold out in 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| AO Keya Paha | 300 | 1 AOWT | Jan. 2, 2026 |
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 Keya Paha 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Keya Paha | 2000, 2000, 11/16/25 | 62, 0, 62, 656, 89, 745 | 40% |
| Keya Paha AO | 500, 500, 1/2/26 | 0, 0, 0, 8, 224, 232 | 35% |
Source: Game and Parks' 2026 Big Game Recommendations, page 60, 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 Keya Paha unit?
Game and Parks' elk unit map overlaps it: elk unit 6 and elk unit 7. Pronghorn units that overlap it: Eastern Sandhills and 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 Keya Paha unit?
Keya Paha touches 4 other units. Their public land, walk-in acres and 2025 harvest, for comparison:
| Unit | Public land | OFW acres | Deer harvested, 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calamus East | 0.1% | 19,388 | 628 |
| Calamus West | 5% | 16,790 | 1,108 |
| Missouri | 2% | 5,936 | 2,242 |
| Sandhills | 3.4% | 8,433 | 1,812 |
Questions hunters ask
How much public land is in Nebraska's Keya Paha deer unit?
25,691 acres, 1.5% of the unit, by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and Game and Parks area maps; the largest share is national wildlife refuge or WPA (19,097 acres). Game and Parks' walk-in program adds 8,300 acres of private land open to walk-in hunting in 2026-27.
How many deer were harvested in the Keya Paha unit in the latest year on record?
1,859 across all seasons in 2025, by Game and Parks' count: 1,759 white-tailed deer and 100 mule deer.
How many Unit Buck permits does the Keya Paha unit have in 2026?
Keya Paha: 1,800 (1 AD2). Each is a Season Choice permit, good in archery, November firearm and muzzleloader seasons.
Which counties are in the Keya Paha unit?
Keya Paha, Holt, Brown, Cherry, Boyd and Rock. 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 East Calamus West Missouri Sandhills