Northern Missouri Public land for Bow hunting

[morten]

My son and I are trying to put together a public land bow hunt in northern Missouri. Would like to stay close to the Iowa border. I have heard of a place only a mile from the Iowa state line but cant find it on the maps. Any advise from fellow Mo. public land archery hunters would be appreciated.

 

[Corey Paulsen (teamkabob)]

MDC has a map atlas you can pull up. I believe I know which one your talking about. They show up on google maps too. Good luck!

 

[Mighty Mouse]

There are several tracts of MDC land close to the Iowa border. I've hunted Rebel's Cove Conservation Area near Livonia MO a few times, but it has been a while since my last trip there. The MDC website should have a list of all CA's in the state, and I believe you can sort them by county to hone in on the ones up north along the border.

 

[morten]

Thanks Mighty Mouse. I believe Rebels Cove CA is the area is was looking for. I was able to locate it on the map. What was your opinion of the area?

 

[Mighty Mouse]

What was your opinion of the area?

Short answer: plenty of deer, mild hunting pressure, decent buck quality.

I bowhunted Rebel's Cove one weekend per year from 2009 to 2014 with a group of 3-5 guys. At some point during the weekend (we'd usually arrive late Thursday night and leave Sunday afternoon), at least one of us got a shot opportunity every year. None of us were/are trophy hunters (nothing against that, it's just not our primary motivation) and wouldn't hesitate to loose an arrow at the first grain-fed doe that came into range. That said, we did see some nice bucks over the years. My younger brother killed a solid 10 pt (photo below) and hit but didn't recover a buck he says was considerably bigger. We always made our trip either the last weekend of October or first weekend of November trying to maximize rutting activity but avoid regular rifle season. Youth rifle season runs the first weekend of November, but I don't recall ever seeing any youth rifle hunters. There would usually be another camp or two of bowhunters in the area, but I only remember one time actually encountering another hunter in the woods.

 

[Sodbuster]

Look at Brickyard Hill as well.

 

[morten]

Nothing wrong with that buck. Love the tall tines. Thanks again for the info.

 

[cwhite]

I have a buddy that has a farm right down the road from Rebels Cove and I've hunted Putnam county a couple of years. Just as good as Iowa if you ask me.

 

[Whitetaildown215]

This year youth season is October 31st and November 1st. In case you were curious and I believe that weekend you have to wear orange if those are dates you are looking to hunt.

 

[hntr]

OnX maps highlights all public land areas. I recommend climbers on all public land because you never know where others will set up, so you need to be mobile. I hunt some public in mid mo. I strongly recommend scouting bc MDC will let the majority of it to grow natural. Which is great for habitat, but can be a tough/loud walk in. Again OnX will be your best friend even when you find a spot. Good luck, have fun!

 

[freitage13]

My son and I are trying to put together a public land bow hunt in northern Missouri. Would like to stay close to the Iowa border. I have heard of a place only a mile from the Iowa state line but cant find it on the maps. Any advise from fellow Mo. public land archery hunters would be appreciated.

Hey Morten, just curious if you made it to Missouri. Looking to plan a trip out there for 2021 bow season. Any tips or advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[morten]

Sorry I just saw you comment. Yes we did go to Mo on a public land bow hunt. Had a great time. Cheap hunt but wasn’t very impressed with the deer we seen. We hunted Rebels cove. Went the last week in October. Fair amount of people. Everyone we talked to said it gets worse the later you go. I’m not sure if I would go back. If you are just after a buck you won’t have a problem but if you are looking for a good buck(+130”) it’s gonna be tough.