Marrowbone State Forest and WMA

New hunting opportunity in southern Kentucky

 

By Lee McClellan

 

          Hunters in southern Kentucky now have an additional 1,608 acres of public land to pursue deer, turkeys and squirrels along the Metcalfe and Cumberland County line. The Marrowbone State Forest and Wildlife Management Area (WMA) opened to public hunting last November.

          “It’s hilly and mostly forested,” said Wayne Tamminga, area manager and public lands biologist for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. “It has about 60 acres of open ground. It is mainly pole-sized timber and upland hardwoods.”

          Marrowbone State Forest and WMA is open under statewide regulations for all hunting and trapping seasons. The area holds good populations of squirrel, turkey and deer.

          Hunters should expect good squirrel hunting around nut bearing trees. “I’ve squirrel hunted the area with five kids,” Tamminga said. “We had some success. There are plenty of squirrels on the area.”

          The area also has decent turkey hunting. “If you stay out there long enough and work, you’ll be rewarded with a turkey,” Tamminga explained. “It has some good electrical power right-of-ways running through it that provide good edge habitat.”

          Numerous forest management trails traverse the property, making for good hiking. “Most of these trails are on ridgetops which make for easy hiking,” Tamminga said. “We are constantly opening forest trails as we go. This winter after the leaves fell, we found some we didn’t know existed.”

          Approximately 150-200 acres of the area is a leftover pine plantation from its days as a tree farm. The northern rim of the area is Lone Star Ridge, the highest place in Metcalfe County. “It snows up there when it doesn’t snow anywhere else in the county,” Tamminga said.

          Tamminga cautions visitors to avoid trespassing on the private property located in the northeastern section of the area. “There is a large in-holding in there,” he said. “Visitors need to look at the map off KY 90. The in-holding is about 400 to 500 acres.

          Plans for the area include native grass plantings and eradication of exotic plants. Horseback riding and all-terrain vehicles are not permitted in the area.

          An information kiosk is located on KY 90, just east of Gordon Branch Road.

         

          How to get there:

          From Glasgow, take exit 14 off the Cumberland Parkway and travel southeast on KY 90 for 20 miles. The main entrance is located on the left, near the Metcalfe-Cumberland county line.