illinois_hunting_map-196x300Chances are that if you’re like me, you can’t afford thousands of acres of hunting leases in each State. So, if you want to deer hunt in a state that you don’t live in, you’re either going to have to fork over a lot of money for a guide or you’re going to have to find some public land hunting. This is especially true if you want to hunt a popular deer hunting state like Illinois. Illinois has quite a bit of public land hunting, but as  with any State that is as heavily populated as Illinois is, you’re going to have to work hard to avoid the crowds. One Illinois public hunting land you might want to check out is Cedar Glen State Natural Area.

Cedar Glen is located near the town of Warsaw Illinois. Warsaw lies along the Mississippi River and is in the North West part of Illinois. Access is good and you shouldn’t have a problem finding a place to stay if you choose to visit the area.

As of this writing, this years Illinois deer hunting regulations haven’t been published so I’m not sure what changes may have taken place in Illinois or to the Cedar Glen area. Last year, you could buy a Statewide bowhunting permit and have access to this area. Illinois Muzzleloading and Shotgun deer hunters had to have a special quota permit. Again, not sure about this year as it’s a little early yet, so make sure you check the current Illinois deer hunting regulations before heading out.

The topography of Cedar Glen consist of about half and half of hardwood uplands and bottomland. If you prefer to hunt forest with openings, then the uplands will not disappoint you. On the other hand, if you like a little muck and mud mixed with your hunting, the bottomland area will please you to no end!

You’ll have about 1100 acres to roam and hunt at Cedar Glen. There are some off limit areas, so be sure to get a good map of the area before heading out. Being along the Mississippi River, you know there just hast to be some bruiser bucks in there and I’m betting that if you can access the area around the rut, you just might see a few!

Cedar Glen would certainly be on my list of Illinois Public Land Hunting spots to check out if I was heading to Illinois this year. And I just might do that!

Here’s fact sheet as well as a link to a map of the area.