Old Island Heritage Preserve WMA: 2026-27 seasons, rules and map
Old Island Heritage Preserve WMA is 3,005 acres of public hunting land in Beaufort County, owned by SCDNR, in Game Zone 3. Its 2026-27 deer seasons are set on SCDNR's Game Zone 3 table: archery; the earliest dated hunt is Sept. 15-Jan. 1 (archery).
Data updated October 2026. Seasons: SCDNR's 2026-27 Game Zone 3 WMA table. Harvest: SCDNR's 2024 Deer Harvest Report.
Old Island Heritage Preserve WMAOther SCDNR WMAsLake or riverHighwayCounty line
| Size | 3,005 acres (measured by FilledTag on SCDNR's mapped boundary); SCDNR's WMA list gives 400 |
|---|---|
| County | Beaufort County |
| Game zone | Zone 3 |
| Deer hunts | Archery |
| Archery deer | Sept. 15-Jan. 1 |
| Dogs for deer | No dog drive hunts listed for the area |
| Spring turkey | Not on SCDNR's list of WMAs open for turkey |
| Phone | (843) 546-8119 |
| Nearest towns | Port Royal (9 mi), Hilton Head Island (13 mi) and Beaufort (14 mi) |
When are the 2026-27 seasons on Old Island Heritage Preserve WMA?
| Hunt | Dates, 2026-27 | Limits |
|---|---|---|
| Deer Archery | Sept. 15-Jan. 1 | Statewide WMA limits |
Source: SCDNR 2026-27 Game Zone 3 WMA seasons, read October 2026. SCDNR's rules are the final word.
When is turkey season on Old Island Heritage Preserve WMA?
Old Island Heritage Preserve WMA is not on SCDNR's 2026-27 list of WMAs open for spring turkey. Check SCDNR's property page before planning a turkey hunt there.
Source: SCDNR spring 2027 turkey seasons on WMAs.
How many deer are taken on Old Island Heritage Preserve WMA?
SCDNR's 2024 Deer Harvest Report does not list Old Island Heritage Preserve WMA on its own; it counts 844 deer on its other and unnamed WMA lands together. Around it, Beaufort County's harvest was 1,640 deer in the 2024 season (7.1 per square mile of deer habitat).
Source: SCDNR 2024 Deer Harvest Report, Table 4 (WMA harvest); SCDNR 2024 Deer Harvest Report, Table 1 (county harvest).
What does SCDNR say about Old Island Heritage Preserve WMA?
From SCDNR's property page: "Old Island Heritage Preserve, situated in coastal Beaufort County near Hunting Island State Park, is dominated by vast marshlands. However, Old Island also boasts roughly 400 acres of upland land. The property was acquired from The Nature Conservancy's South Carolina Chapter to protect seven coastal habitat types and feeding areas for the federally endangered wood stork and federally threatened bald eagle. Perhaps the most appealing feature of the property is a relatively undisturbed coastal island. One only has to look across Old House Creek at Fripp Island to see the potential for development on this property."
Source: SCDNR Public Lands, Old Island HP and WMA, read October 2026.
Which county is Old Island Heritage Preserve WMA in, and what do hunters take there?
| County | Acres of the area in it | County deer, 2024 season | Per square mile of deer habitat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beaufort County | 3,005 | 1,640 | 7.1 |
Acres measured by FilledTag on SCDNR Public Lands property boundaries and the U.S. Census Bureau 2024 county boundaries. County harvest: SCDNR 2024 Deer Harvest Report, Table 1 (county harvest), for the whole county.
How do you get to Old Island Heritage Preserve WMA?
Highways within 5 miles: US 21. Nearest towns: Port Royal (9 miles), Hilton Head Island (13 miles), Beaufort (14 miles) and Edisto Beach (14 miles). SCDNR's number for the area: (843) 546-8119.
The closest other South Carolina WMAs with a page here: St. Helena Sound Heritage Preserve WMA (9.4 miles), South Fenwick Island WMA (11.5 miles), Bear Island WMA (14.3 miles) and Victoria Bluff Heritage Preserve WMA (14.5 miles).
Questions hunters ask
When is deer season on Old Island Heritage Preserve WMA in 2026-27?
Deer Archery: Sept. 15-Jan. 1. From SCDNR's 2026-27 Game Zone 3 table.
Can you hunt deer with dogs on Old Island Heritage Preserve WMA?
No dog drive hunts are listed for Old Island Heritage Preserve WMA on SCDNR's 2026-27 table, so deer are hunted without dogs there.
Can you hunt turkeys on Old Island Heritage Preserve WMA?
It is not on SCDNR's 2026-27 list of WMAs open for spring turkey; check SCDNR's property page before planning a turkey hunt.
What county is Old Island Heritage Preserve WMA in?
Beaufort County, measured on SCDNR's boundary.
Get a South Carolina hunt plan when they open
South Carolina plans are not open yet. They are coming soon. Join the waiting list; the first 50 hunters get one plan free.
Use the map while you wait for your plan.
You need a South Carolina hunting license, a WMA permit and big game tags; statewide WMA limit: 2 deer a day, 5 in all, no more than 2 antlered, unless the area's rules say otherwise; antlerless deer 2 a day. The WMA rules on one page. FilledTag is not part of the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources; numbers are copied from SCDNR or measured from public maps, each with its source above.
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