County Macon, Missouri

Macon County lies in north-central Missouri's glaciated plains transition zone — gently rolling hills shaped by Pleistocene glacial till rather than Ozarks uplift, with elevations ranging roughly 700–900 feet. The Chariton River and its East and Middle Fork tributaries define the primary drainage corridors, creating bottomland timber bands of cottonwood, silver maple, and willow. Uplands support mixed oak-hickory forest interspersed with cedar thickets on south-facing slopes and ridges. The county is roughly half cropland — corn and soybeans on productive glacial-loam soils — and half timber and grassland, a combination that concentrates deer along agricultural edges. Cedar pocket bedding areas hold deer under off-season pressure. Long Branch Lake on the northwest edge adds a wetland and open-water component that draws waterfowl and keeps deer in the area year-round.

Moderate. Macon County sits roughly 150 miles from St. Louis and 135 miles from Kansas City, removed from the primary metro pressure corridors, but its reputation as a top-10 statewide harvest county draws hunters from across the region. Atlanta Conservation Area receives consistent weekend pressure during firearms season; archery hunters who penetrate beyond half a mile find significantly lower competition. Weekday hunting during late October through mid-November rut period on public ground offers near-private-land conditions. Pressure is higher than adjacent Adair or Sullivan counties due to Atlanta CA name recognition and easy Highway 63 access.

Macon County is within Missouri's CWD Management Zone. Hunters may fill up to 4 firearms antlerless permits across all firearms portions combined. The antler-point restriction is waived within the CWD Management Zone, meaning any legal buck may be taken regardless of antler configuration. Archery antlerless tags are available over-the-counter and included with the archery permit with no county cap. Resident landowners with at least 75 contiguous acres may obtain additional no-cost Landowner Firearms Antlerless Permits. CWD sampling is mandatory for deer harvested during opening weekend of each firearms portion. Deer feeding and baiting (grain, salt, minerals) is prohibited year-round in Macon County under CWD zone regulations.

2026-2027 deer archery: Sept. 15 – Nov. 13, 2026 and Nov. 25, 2026 – Jan. 15, 2027. Firearms: Early Antlerless Oct. 9-11; Early Youth Oct. 24-25; November Portion Nov. 14-24 (main firearms season); Late Youth Nov. 27-29; Late Antlerless Dec. 5-13; Alternative Methods (muzzleloader, handgun, atlatl) Dec. 26, 2026 – Jan. 5, 2027. Spring turkey 2026: Youth April 11-12; Regular April 20 – May 10 (2 bearded birds for residents; nonresidents limited to 1 bearded bird starting 2026). Fall turkey: archery Oct. 1 – Nov. 13; firearms Oct. 1-31. Squirrel: May 23 – Feb. 15, bag limit 8 per day. The Chariton River corridor at Rebels Cove CA offers duck and Canada goose hunting in flooded bottomland timber; check MDC managed waterfowl hunt area lottery for designated blind sites on Long Branch Lake.

Macon County ranked 7th statewide in total deer harvest during the 2025-26 season with approximately 4,537 deer and is consistently cited as one of northeast Missouri's premier farmland whitetail destinations. The Atlanta Conservation Area complex (Atlanta CA plus Long Branch Management Lands totaling over 4,800 acres) is the crown jewel: a mix of timber, wetlands, food-plot edges, and lake shoreline that holds deer year-round. The Chariton River bottomlands at Rebels Cove CA add a distinct river-corridor dynamic with buck travel lanes and waterfowl opportunity. Large-scale corn and soybean production on fertile glacial loam provides exceptional late-season nutrition that keeps bucks on their feet through December. CWD zone status removes the antler-point restriction — any legal buck may be taken — benefiting hunters targeting management animals. MRAP walk-in enrollment supplements public conservation areas with enrolled private farmground for additional access options.