Apply For WMA Youth Turkey Hunts

Some of the best public turkey-hunting opportunity in the state occurs on WMA youth-only hunts. Trust me, I’ve been witness to some of these hunts.

Think about it… you’ve got low numbers of youth/adult hunting teams on tons of land, and for the most part the turkeys haven’t been harassed by other hunters and are still excited about gobbling their heads off. Want to take your kid? I highly suggest you take the chance. They don’t stay young forever, so take the opportunity and apply for a WMA youth hunt. If they don’t get drawn, you’ll at least be building up those valuable rejection points.

Adult/child WMA hunts must be applied for online through DNR’s website. You’ll need to set up an account for your child. When doing so, you’ll need to use their social-security number and birthdate. Once signed in, all the different adult/child turkey-hunt quota-hunt options are listed. Those hunts are listed in the chart to the left.

Some of the state’s best public turkey hunting happens on youth-only WMA hunts. Here, Thomas Holcombe, of Royston, poses with a pair of gobblers he shot on River Creek WMA in 2006. On that hunt he had several encounters with gobbling birds. The complete story is at www.gon.com. Just click on the “Youth” link.

If you’ve yet to set up an online account for a child, the process is simple.

• Log on to www.gohuntgeorgia.com

• Under the “Hunting” tab, go down to “Quota Hunts.”

• Click on “Access the Quota Hunt System!”

• Under the “About” tab, there are three links. Read the information under all those links. It’s not overwhelming, and it does explain the system very well.

• Finally, in the upper right-hand corner, click the link that says, “Log In.” From there you’ll click “Create an Account/Log In.” Follow the instructions that you read under the “About” tab, and then apply for a turkey hunt for the child.

Just remember that on these adult/child turkey quota hunts that adults can’t hunt—or shoot the gun—but that doesn’t mean a parent can’t call a big strutter to the gun for a child. I can nearly guarantee you that’ll be more fun for you anyway.

WMA Adult/Child 2014 Turkey Quota Hunts

WMA                    Dates                Quota
Clybel                   March 22-30       25
Clybel                   April 5-13           25
Dodge Co. PFA      April 4-5               2
Dodge Co. PFA      April 11-12           2
Griffin Ridge         March 22-23        25
Hugh Gillis PFA     March 28-29          2
Hugh Gillis PFA     April 11-12            2
River Creek          March 28-30          5
River Creek          April 4-6                5
Rum Creek           March 22-30        25
Rum Creek           April 5-13            25
Silver Lake           April 5-13            35
Standing Boy        March 22-30        10
Standing Boy        April 5-13            10