DMU Montgomery, Georgia

Montgomery County occupies the upper Coastal Plain of southeast Georgia, with gently rolling to flat terrain averaging around 275 feet in elevation and dropping to river bottoms near 70 feet. Sandy soils support extensive loblolly and slash pine plantations across the uplands, with hardwood bottomlands — sweetgum, water oak, and cypress-tupelo — lining the drainages. The county's defining geographic feature is its river confluence: the Oconee River runs along the eastern border before joining the Ocmulgee near Lumber City in the southeastern corner to form the Altamaha River, creating one of Georgia's most productive big-game corridors.

Low to moderate. The only public-land deer option is an archery-only foot- and boat-access tract of Bullard Creek WMA, which limits walk-in pressure significantly. Private land is largely held under hunting club leases — actively managed but not crowded. Montgomery County does not draw the regional traffic that larger WMAs or metro-adjacent counties attract, and road networks are sparse. Overall pressure sits below the Georgia state average.

Georgia statewide bag limit is 12 deer per season — no more than 10 antlerless and no more than 2 antlered. Montgomery County falls in the GREEN zone with either-sex opportunity throughout all seasons. Antlered bucks must have a minimum of 4 points (at least 1 inch long) on either antler OR a minimum 15-inch outside antler spread. A free Deer Harvest Record is required and harvest must be reported via Georgia Game Check within 24 hours of kill.

Deer (2025-2026): archery Sept. 13-Oct. 10; primitive weapons Oct. 11-17; firearms Oct. 18-Jan. 11; antlerless-only bonus firearms window Oct. 4-5. Rut peaks approximately the first week of November in this county. Spring turkey opens on private land March 28, 2026, and closes May 15 statewide (3-gobbler season limit, 1 per day). Feral hogs are present throughout the river swamps and pine flatwoods and may be taken year-round with no bag limit on private land. Squirrel, rabbit, and dove seasons follow statewide dates.

The Oconee-Ocmulgee confluence at Lumber City is the birthplace of the Altamaha River, producing miles of hardwood bottoms and cypress swamps that concentrate deer, turkeys, and hogs in numbers disproportionate to the county's modest size. Coastal Plain pin oak flats and planted loblolly corridors provide strong early-season archery opportunities, while river drainages come alive during the early November rut. Hunters willing to work the timber-company lease circuit or paddle into the Bullard Creek WMA Montgomery Tract by canoe find relatively low competition — making this an underrated and underexplored southeast Georgia destination.