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West Virginia deer and bear hunting: counties, seasons and public land

WVDNR's 2025 Big Game Bulletin counts 92,533 deer taken across West Virginia's 55 counties in 2025, 33,823 of them bucks in the two-week buck firearms season, and 2,469 bears. The 2026 buck firearms season runs November 23 to December 6.

Data updated October 2026. Harvest: WVDNR 2025 Big Game Bulletin. Seasons: WVDNR 2026-2027 Hunting and Trapping Regulations Summary.

Map of West Virginia's 55 counties with the Wildlife Management Areas shaded
Orange: the four counties closed to firearms deer hunting. Green: Wildlife Management Areas.

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When are West Virginia's 2026-27 seasons?

SeasonDates, 2026-27
Deer, archery and crossbowSeptember 26 to December 31
Deer, youth, Class Q and Class XS (antlerless)October 17 to 18, and December 26 to 27
Deer, antlerless (selected counties)October 22 to 25, November 23 to December 6, December 10 to 13, and December 28 to 31
Deer, buck firearmsNovember 23 to December 6
Deer, muzzleloaderDecember 14 to 20
Deer, bear and turkey, Mountaineer Heritage (private land in selected counties)January 14 to 17, 2027
Bear, archery and crossbowSeptember 26 to December 31
Bear, firearms (selected counties)August 29 to September 7; September 19 to 25; October 3 to 9; October 22 to 25; November 23 to December 6; December 7 to 31
Turkey, fallOctober 10 to 18, with split seasons in selected counties
Turkey, spring (bearded only)April 19 to May 23, 2027

Source: WVDNR 2026-2027 Hunting and Trapping Regulations Summary. Buck season is open in every county except Logan, McDowell, Mingo and Wyoming.

West Virginia's counties

The most deer in 2025 came from Preston County (4,570), Greenbrier County (3,577) and Randolph County (3,004).

CountyPublic landDeer, 2025Bucks, buck season 2025Bears, 2025Spring gobblers, 2025
Barbour County0.8%1,95261437187
Berkeley County8.4%1,9905554158
Boone County0%1,250514196154
Braxton County10.1%2,24282460193
Brooke County4.7%9762890107
Cabell County2.2%9053592134
Calhoun County1%1,16443213145
Clay County2.5%9233514295
Doddridge County0.2%1,2915506166
Fayette County12.6%2,673993148241
Gilmer County1.8%1,20947825136
Grant County6.8%2,0651,04030171
Greenbrier County17.7%3,5771,733127259
Hampshire County5.8%2,01092621240
Hancock County6.3%1,2342960120
Hardy County15.6%2,4461,16637189
Harrison County0.6%1,9216418345
Jackson County3.3%1,6335691366
Jefferson County4.2%1,442414187
Kanawha County3.5%2,338832163306
Lewis County9.4%2,08873831259
Lincoln County2.6%1,4195826175
Logan County6.9%6020122151
Marion County1.1%1,5775271248
Marshall County2%1,2855577286
Mason County5.8%2,1937013476
McDowell County5.9%8760118129
Mercer County3.2%2,06967125179
Mineral County6.9%1,94880918143
Mingo County11.1%602069121
Monongalia County5.1%2,0506036230
Monroe County8.4%2,6771,05952204
Morgan County9.6%1,216414375
Nicholas County8.9%2,61686597252
Ohio County0.5%8182490109
Pendleton County30%2,1871,14080150
Pleasants County3.2%18699085
Pocahontas County57.4%1,8621,090115152
Preston County3.5%4,5701,34982362
Putnam County3.5%1,3904531209
Raleigh County3.8%2,844893130258
Randolph County32.7%3,0041,199145238
Ritchie County5.6%1,36555512228
Roane County1.9%1,76065013226
Summers County12.7%1,70963533159
Taylor County5%1,03532312124
Tucker County48.2%1,4476077199
Tyler County2.3%9824174199
Upshur County0.4%2,57579231231
Wayne County13.6%1,19657610163
Webster County20.9%1,244589146127
Wetzel County6%1,3746206242
Wirt County8.5%68026712132
Wood County1.9%6192180262
Wyoming County6.1%1,227087212

Harvest: WVDNR 2025 Big Game Bulletin. Public land measured by FilledTag from USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US 4.1).

How much of West Virginia is public hunting ground?

11.1% of West Virginia is public land by PAD-US 4.1: national forest 1,047,733 acres, WVDNR land (WMAs, state forests, parks) 437,507 acres, Army Corps of Engineers 123,066 acres, National Park Service 61,167 acres, jointly managed land 31,963 acres and national wildlife refuge 20,323 acres.

Questions hunters ask

When is buck season in West Virginia in 2026?

The buck firearms season runs November 23 to December 6, 2026 in every county except Logan, McDowell, Mingo and Wyoming, which are closed to firearms deer hunting. Archery and crossbow season runs September 26 to December 31 (WVDNR 2026-2027 regulations).

How many deer were taken in West Virginia in 2025?

Adding up the county tables in WVDNR's 2025 Big Game Bulletin gives 92,533 deer, 33,823 of them bucks in the buck firearms season.

How many bears were taken in West Virginia in 2025?

WVDNR's county table adds up to 2,469 bears in 2025. The most came from Boone County (196), Kanawha County (163) and Fayette County (148).

Which West Virginia counties are closed to buck season?

Logan, McDowell, Mingo and Wyoming counties are closed to firearms, muzzleloader and air rifle deer hunting; archery and crossbow hunting is open there.

How much of West Virginia is public hunting land?

PAD-US 4.1 counts 1,721,759 acres of public land, 11.1% of the state, most of it the Monongahela and George Washington national forests and WVDNR's wildlife management areas.

Get a West Virginia hunt plan when they open

Hunt plans for West Virginia 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, West Virginia included.

Where these numbers come from

FilledTag is not part of the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources. WVDNR's hunting pages are the final word on every rule.

Every state Virginia counties Pennsylvania WMUs