ILLINOIS DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES

J.B. Pritzker, Governor | illinois.gov

Wildlife Illinois

Hunt Planner

Announcements

Public Duck and Goose Hunting Area Permit First Lottery Begins August 16!

Sand Ridge State Forest

    Site Contact Info

    Site Map

    Site Characteristics

    • Huntable acres: 6,600
    • Habitat: This site is characterized by flat to gently rolling terrain with a mix of hardwoods and pine with open prairie areas and wildlife management fields. Active habitat management will be occurring throughout the year on the site, including prescribed burning.

    Site Specific Regulations

    • All statewide hunting regulations apply at site unless noted hereafter.
    • Site requires use of windshield card, displayed on vehicle dashboard, to report hunting effort and harvest by 15 February.
    • Use Hunt Planner to find hunting seasons open at this site.
    • Species-specific rules:

    Deer

    • Hunters must remove tree stands or ground blinds from the area at the end of the day’s hunt.
    • Only one tree stand or ground blind per hunter.
    • Archery
      • Statewide regulations
    • Firearm
      • Site-specific permit is required as issued through the annual permit lottery system by Springfield office.
    • Muzzleloader
      • Statewide regulations
      • Closed during second firearm deer season.
    • Youth
      • Statewide regulations

    Turkey

    • Youth Turkey Hunting
      • Will be open to holders of a valid Youth Turkey Hunt Permit for the county in which the site is located
    • Youth Spring
      • Statewide regulations apply.
      • Open to holders of a valid Youth Turkey Hunt Permit for the county in which the site is located.
      • Site permits are required through the Permit Lottery System.
    • Fall Archery
      • Statewide regulations apply.
      • Site requires use of windshield card, displayed on vehicle dashboard, to report hunting effort and harvest by 15 February.

    Waterfowl – Clear Lake only

    • The site’s 10 waterfowl blinds are allocated at an annual drawing held on the last Sunday in July at the site office.
    • Site-specific rules apply at the Clear Lake Public Blinds. Contact site for details

    Squirrels/Rabbits

    • Squirrels
      • Statewide regulations apply.
      • Use of a windshield card is required.
      • Hunting with a .22 or smaller caliber rimfire rifle, .25 or smaller caliber air rifle, or muzzleloading black powder rifle is permitted.
    • Rabbits
      • Statewide regulations apply
      • Rabbit hunting requires a free upland game permit. When the daily quota is not met during controlled hunting season, a drawing will occur at the site after check-in hours. If the quota is not filled then, permits will be issued on a first come, first serve basis until 12:00 noon unless an earlier time is posted at the site’s hunter check station.
      • Bag limit of 4 rabbits per hunter
      • Hours are 9 a.m – 4 p.m. Also open to statewide hours January 16 – February 15.
      • Every Friday – Sunday and Thanksgiving during the controlled season.
      • Check-in is between 8-8:30 am

    Upland Birds

    • Pheasant and Quail
      • Check-in is between 8-8:30 am
      • When the daily quota is not met during controlled hunting season, a drawing will occur at the site after check-in hours. If the quota is not filled then, permits will be issued on a first come, first serve basis until 12:00 noon unless an earlier time is posted at the site’s hunter check station.
    • Bag Limits:
      • 2 pheasants of either sex
      • 8 quail
    • Hours are 9 a.m – 4 p.m.
    • Every Friday – Sunday and Thanksgiving during the controlled season.
    • Daily fee required
    • Youth Pheasant
      • Statewide regulations apply.
      • Site permit reservation is required and can be applied for 3 ways: at the IDNR website here, by emailing dnr.pheasant@illinois.gov, or writing the IDNR Division of Parks and Recreation
      • Hunting hours: 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
      • Only one permit per person will be issued until the daily quota is filled.
      • Open on the first Saturday following the opening of the statewide upland game season.
      • All hunters must be between the ages of 10 and 17 inclusive and are not required to pay a daily fee.
      • Supervising adults are required to wear a cap and upper outer garment of solid and vivid blaze  orange of a least 400 square inches. Hunters must wear a back patch issued by the check station.
      • All hunting must be done with shotguns. Only shot shells with a shot size of #5 lead or a nontoxic shot size ballistically equivalent to No. 5 lead or smaller may be used.
      • Bag Limit: Two pheasants of either sex
    • Woodcock
      • Upland bird hunting requires free upland game permit.
      • Season is site specific. Contact site for details.
      • Hours are 9 a.m – 4 p.m.
      • Every Friday – Sunday and Thanksgiving during the controlled season.
      • Season ends December 2.
    • Dove
      • Season opens Sept. 1.
      • Shot size is restricted to # 7 1/2, 8 or 9 lead shot and # 6 steel or smaller.
      • Hunting is restricted to field borders only.
      • Dove season closes October 31.
      • Remaining statewide regulations apply.
    • Crow
      • Statewide regulations apply.
      • Free windshield card required
      • All harvested crows must be removed from site by the hunter.
    • Upland Falconry Hunting
      • Statewide regulations except that hunting is permitted on Mondays and Tuesday only during the Controlled Daily Drawing Pheasant Program season
      • Only pheasant, quail, partridge, and rabbits can be falconry hunted.
      • It is unlawful to hunt by falconry methods in the vicinity of pheasant releases as pheasants are being released.
      • Falconry hunters must obtain a free permit from site office before hunting and report harvest by April 15; failure to report harvest by April 15 will result in loss of hunting privileges the following year.
      • Falconers must wear a cap and outer garment of solid and vivid blaze orange during upland game season when upland game hunting is in progress.

    Furbearers

    • Hunting
      • Permitted to hunt: raccoon, opossum, striped skunk, red and gray fox, woodchuck and coyote.
      • Statewide regulations
      • Rimfire rifles .22 caliber and smaller may be used from sunset to sunrise.
      • Furbearer hunting closed during Firearm Deer Season
        • Hunters with a valid, unfilled firearm deer permit for the hunt area may take coyotes during legal hours of the firearm deer season. Otherwise, the use of shotgun slugs to take furbearing mammals is prohibited on state sites.
      • Coyote and striped skunk season opens with state raccoon season and closes the day before statewide spring turkey season.
      • Windshield Card required
    • Trapping
      • Permitted to trap: Muskrat, mink, raccoon, opossum, striped skunk, red and gray fox, coyote, badger, bobcat, woodchuck and weasel.
      • Site-specific permit is required. Permit is issued via a public drawing at the site office.
      • Contact site for date and time of drawing.
      • Permits must be in possession while trapping on the area.
      • Must report harvest within 20 days following close of trapping season.
      • Body-gripping traps with a 10-inch jaw spread or larger must be totally submerged in water when set.
      • Only Egg Traps®, D-P (Dog-Proof) Traps®, Lil Grizz Get’rz®, box traps, cage traps, and traps of similar design may be used for land sets.
      • .22 caliber or smaller rimfires permitted unless otherwise specified.

    Amenities