Kentucky hunting and fishing laws

Anyone born after January 1, 1975, and age 12 or older must carry a Hunter Education card while hunting. A one-time Hunter Education Exemption Permit allows hunting without certification for up to one year.

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Hunters younger than 12 are not required to purchase licenses and permits. Youth licenses cover ages 12 through 15. Hunters under 16 years old must be accompanied by an adult when hunting turkey, elk, deer or bear with a firearm.

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Applies to: Big game

All hunters, and persons accompanying them, must wear outer garments of hunter orange visible from all sides on the head, back and chest when hunting during daylight hours in modern gun, muzzleloader and youth firearm deer seasons and in firearm elk and bear seasons. Kentucky specifies no square-inch figure; it is a coverage rule. Mesh is allowed if the openings in the mesh weave are no wider than one-quarter inch.

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Applies to: Deer

Archers and crossbow hunters must wear hunter orange during deer firearms seasons. Camo-patterned orange alone does not comply. Waterfowl and dove hunters are exempt. Blaze pink is not authorized; only hunter orange appears in the guide.

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Kentucky has no statewide Sunday hunting restriction; statewide seasons run straight through Sundays. Some wildlife management areas set their own hunting days, so check area rules.

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Thirty minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset for deer and most species. Elk may be hunted only during daylight hours, from 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset.

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Applies to: Deer

Hunting deer over bait is permitted on private property only and is prohibited on public land. Bait is defined as a substance composed of grains, minerals, salt, fruits, vegetables, hay, or any other food materials. Additional restrictions apply in the CWD Surveillance Zone.

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Applies to: Bear

Bear baiting is illegal. Hunters may not use bait or other substances capable of luring bears, and garbage counts as bait.

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No person shall take wildlife, except raccoons, opossums, coyotes, frogs and fish, using lights or other means designed to blind wildlife. Hunting coyote with an artificial light is permitted on private land during designated periods. Artificial light or other means designed to make wildlife visible at night cannot be connected to or cast from a mechanized vehicle.

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Applies to: Furbearers

Raccoon and opossum may be hunted day or night, except during modern gun deer season, when they may be hunted only at night.

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Applies to: Big game

Report through Telecheck online or at (800) 245-4263 by midnight on the day the animal is recovered. The harvest log must be completed immediately after harvest. A carcass tag is required if a harvested deer or elk leaves the hunter's possession for any reason. If the hide or head is removed from the carcass before the animal is telechecked, the hunter must demonstrate proof of the sex.

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You may not enter another person's land to hunt, trap or fish without the verbal or written permission of the landowner, tenant or person in charge; verbal permission is enough. Purple paint marks on trees or posts (vertical, at least 8 inches by 1 inch, 3-5 feet high) are legal no-trespassing notice.

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