Twenty years ago, this December, seven elk were released atop Potato Knob in Perry County in front of thousands of onlookers. The landmark restoration of a free roaming elk herd in Kentucky was off and running.
There are now more elk in Kentucky than any state east of the Rocky Mountains, and each year the prospect of harvesting one compels tens of thousands of hunters to apply for Kentucky’s quota elk hunts.
Don’t delay in applying for 2017. Applications must be submitted online at by midnight (Eastern time) April 30.
“For the person who has always wanted to elk hunt but just couldn’t afford to hunt out west, consider applying for a Kentucky elk quota hunt,” said Gabe Jenkins, elk program coordinator. “Our application and permit costs are low in comparison and our elk hunters enjoy some of the highest success rates in the country.”
Kentucky residents and those living out of state can apply for each of the four permit types – bull or cow firearms and bull or cow archery/crossbow – but can be drawn for one hunting permit only. Each entry costs $10.
Applicants for the youth-only hunt can put in for the regular elk quota hunts as well but cannot be drawn for both in the same year.
This year, Kentucky Fish and Wildlife will issue 700 general quota hunt permits and 10 youth permits. The permit breakdown will be 100 bull archery and crossbow permits, 150 bull firearms permits, 160 cow archery and crossbow permits and 290 cow firearms permits. Youth permits are valid for use for either sex during all elk seasons.
At least 90 percent of the available elk quota hunt permits go to Kentucky residents. Last year, Kentucky Fish and Wildlife received almost 75,000 applications from more than 34,000 applicants. Kentucky residents alone submitted 46,365 applications.
Sixty-eight percent of hunters who were drawn and purchased their elk permit for the 2016-17 season filled their tags. Bull elk hunters enjoyed the highest rate of success among drawn elk hunters last year. Eighty-one percent filled their tags and 70 percent of hunters utilizing archery and crossbow equipment successfully harvested a bull. The success rate for cow elk was 35 percent for archery and crossbow hunters and 67 percent among hunters using a firearm.
“A drawn hunter isn’t guaranteed an elk but a little planning goes a long way,” Jenkins said. “Whether you’re a do-it-yourselfer or hire a guide, putting in the time and effort goes a long way and increases your chances of success.”
The bull firearms season generates the greatest interest at application time, understandably so. The past two seasons have produced two state records and five of the 10 largest bull elk taken in Kentucky since the species’ reintroduction in 1997.
The bull firearms season consists of two week-long hunts, one starting in September and one starting in October. Likewise, the cow firearms season is broken into two week-long hunts in December.
The bull archery/crossbow seasons open in September and the cow archery/crossbow seasons open in October. Each runs through December 31. However, hunters drawn for a cow or bull elk archery/crossbow permit cannot hunt when an elk firearms season is open.
Applicants’ names will be drawn at random by the Commonwealth Office of Technology in May and randomly assigned a permit type based on their application choices. Hunters drawn for an elk hunting permit are blocked from re-applying for three years.
To learn more about the basics of elk hunting in Kentucky, visit Kentucky Elk University online.
The online tutorial is designed to educate hunters of all experience levels, and covers preparations before an elk hunt, what to expect in the field and what to do after the shot.