DMU Putnam, Georgia

Putnam County lies in Georgia's Upper Piedmont, transitioning toward the Coastal Plain, with gently rolling hills, mixed pine-hardwood forests, and fertile creek bottoms draining toward the Oconee River. Lake Oconee and Lake Sinclair — both impoundments of the Oconee River — dominate the county's eastern and southern margins, creating miles of shoreline browse and deer travel corridors. Upland timber includes loblolly pine plantations interspersed with mature oak-hickory hardwood ridges. Bottomland hardwoods along creek drainages provide mast-rich habitat and thick bedding cover. Elevation runs generally 400-600 feet above sea level.

Three major public-land blocks overlap Putnam County. B.F. Grant WMA (11,400 acres, partly in Morgan County) is a quota-only, University of Georgia-owned showcase managed for quality deer — one of Georgia's premier WMAs and a pioneer in antler-restriction management since 1974. Cedar Creek WMA (~41,000 acres spanning Putnam, Jones, and Jasper counties) sits on the Oconee National Forest and provides walk-in public access for deer, turkey, and small game. Oconee WMA (~7,400 acres across Greene, Hancock, and Putnam counties) offers additional mixed-use habitat with some archery-only sections. Together these three areas give hunters a substantial public-land footprint, though private timber company land and lakefront properties dominate the overall county acreage.

Moderate. Private land carries significant pressure, particularly near Lake Oconee developments and agricultural edges, as Putnam is within easy reach of Atlanta and Macon. B.F. Grant draws intense competition for quota tags given its trophy reputation. Cedar Creek WMA receives moderate traffic spread across its large footprint. Midweek and off-peak hunters can find solitude on the National Forest ground.

Statewide limit: up to 10 antlerless deer per season; up to 2 antlered deer total, with one antlered deer required to have at least 4 points (each 1 inch or longer) on one side or a minimum 15-inch outside spread. Putnam County is in the GREEN zone and generally allows either-sex harvest throughout the firearms season. Archery: Sept 13-Oct 10 (either sex statewide). Primitive weapons and youth-only firearms: Oct 11-17 (either sex). Antlerless-only firearms opener: Oct 4-5. Main firearms season: Oct 18-Jan 11. On B.F. Grant WMA the 4-points-or-15-inch antler restriction applies to all antlered deer.

White-tailed deer: archery Sept 13-Oct 10, primitive weapons/youth Oct 11-17, firearms Oct 18-Jan 11. Wild turkey: spring private-land season March 28-May 15; public-land season April 4-May 15; two-gobbler season limit statewide, one per season on public land. Feral hogs: year-round and no bag limit on private land; on WMAs legal during any open season using that season's legal weapons, plus a dedicated statewide WMA hog and coyote season May 16-31. Small game (squirrel, rabbit, dove) also available. Waterfowl on Oconee WMA impoundments subject to archery-only and special waterfowl restrictions.

Putnam County is anchored by B.F. Grant WMA, Georgia's longest-running quality deer management area and a national model for public-land trophy management since 1974 — regularly producing 130-class bucks through its quota-only system. Cedar Creek WMA on the Oconee National Forest adds more than 40,000 acres of huntable ground within the county's boundaries. The Oconee River corridor and the Lake Oconee and Lake Sinclair shorelines generate exceptional deer travel funnels and edge habitat. Hunters who draw a B.F. Grant quota tag are chasing some of the best public-land trophy potential in the Southeast.