FYU
States / IL / Mason County

Mason County, Illinois

Game found here
White-tailed DeerWild TurkeyWaterfowl
Central IllinoisSee on map →0 questions

Unit info

Game species
White-tailed Deer, Wild Turkey, Waterfowl
Group
Central Illinois
Area
N/A
Public land
N/A
White-tailed Deer — season & harvest
Reported harvest
1,071

Draw odds for White-tailed Deeraren't on file for this unit yet. Check your state wildlife agency website for current draw statistics.

Season & harvest data is published for White-tailed Deer so far. Wild Turkey, Waterfowl also occur here — that data can be added as the community contributes.

About this unit

AI-compiled · sourced
Sign in to contribute

Mason County occupies a bend of the Illinois River in central Illinois, featuring sandy soils, expansive river-bottom forests, and the sprawling Sanganois Conservation Area. The county is celebrated among Illinois deer hunters for producing outsized bucks that thrive in the brushy river-bottom terrain. Waterfowl hunting on the river and oxbow sloughs adds a second major draw to this productive central Illinois unit.

Terrain & elevation

Broad Illinois River floodplain with sandy loam soils supporting cottonwood, willow, and mixed hardwood bottoms; uplands are level to gently rolling row-crop fields; several large oxbow lakes and backwater sloughs characterize the river margin.

Hunting pressure

moderate - Sanganois draws hunters from across central Illinois but the large acreage distributes pressure well across the unit

Tags & permits

Over-the-counter archery, muzzleloader, and firearm tags; Zone 1 deer permits

Species & seasons

Wild turkey populations are solid in the river-bottom timber; waterfowl migration along the Illinois River is significant with ducks and geese using oxbow sloughs during October and November

Highlights

Sanganois Conservation Area offers top-tier public river-bottom deer hunting; sandy-soil browse country produces some of the heaviest-bodied bucks in central Illinois

Questions, tips & discussion

Ask anything about Mason County— or drop a tip or trick: access points, where game holds, glassing spots, conditions, crowding, gear that worked. This is where the unit's species-specific intel gets built, hunter by hunter.

Nothing posted yet about Mason County.

Be the first — ask a question (“Best public access on the north end?”) or share a tip (“Glass the burn scars off the main ridge at first light”).

Boundaries: IDNR county-based deer management units. Community info last updated 15d ago.