Hunting

Browse the Official
2020-2021 South Dakota Sportsman's Guide
Request your own copy of the South Dakota Sportsman's Guide here!
LIST OF HUNTING BUSINESSES: GUIDES, LODGING & MORE
You won't find a better place than Southeast South Dakota for your next hunting excursion! In our region, pheasants are abundant along with geese, ducks, turkey and deer. Hunters can also find partridge, quail, dove, coyote and fox. Southeast South Dakota offers access to nearly 4.5 million acres of public land for your hunting pleasure. Many private land owners will allow you to hunt on their property if you ask permission first and honor the privilege of hunting their land. We also have private reserves that offer guided hunts along with lodging and meals.
South Dakota Pheasant Hunting
Traditional Southeast South Dakota pheasant hunting season usually starts in mid-October. Preserve season, September through March. Although pheasants are found statewide, the main pheasant range encompasses the eastern two-thirds of the state. Pheasants prefer agricultural fields, wooded draws, tree strips, wetlands and set-aside acres. Most of South Dakota is privately owned and permission is required to hunt, but public lands such as Game Production Areas and Walk-In Areas offer choice habitat for pheasants. Early in the season, pheasants are scattered in small flocks, but winter's fury pushes birds into heavy cover and concentrates them. Tree strips, cattail sloughs and dense weed patches hold pheasants this time of year.
East River Deer
Traditional Southeast South Dakota hunting season for deer is:
◦ Firearm, mid-November through early December.
◦ Archery, late September through December.
Range and Habitat:
East of the Missouri River, deer hunters will find crops such as corn, oats, wheat, sunflowers and soybeans attracting the whitetail deer population. South Dakota hunting for mule deer is limited to counties bordering the Missouri River. Rolling pastures, tree strips, river bottoms and cattail sloughs provide escape cover for the deer. Non-resident firearm hunting opportunities are limited, and non-residents are only able to apply for South Dakota hunting licenses after three resident drawings. Archery east river deer licenses are unlimited.
South Dakota Goose Hunting
Southeast South Dakota hunting season for canada goose is September to December. (November to mid-February in some areas)
Spring Light Goose Season: Mid-February to early-May.
Fall Light Goose Season: Late September to mid-January.
Range and Habitat:
Geese can be found and hunted statewide. The Missouri River corridor is the main route for more than 400,000 migrating Canada geese, and eastern South Dakota attracts 350,000 snow- and blue-geese migrants.
South Dakota Duck Hunting
Traditional Southeast South Dakota hunting season for duck is late-September to December.
Range and Habitat:
More than 15 million ducks migrate annually through South Dakota. They include mallards, gadwall, pintails and teal. Along the Missouri River, the migration peaks in mid-November with 600,000 ducks, primarily mallards.
South Dakota Prairie Turkey Hunting
Traditional Southeast South Dakota hunting season for turkey is:
Spring firearm and archery, April to mid-May.
Fall prairie turkey, November through January.
Range and Habitat:
In the eastern South Dakota, turkeys prefer the woods and brushy hillsides of rivers, as well as tree belts.
South Dakota Hunting Licenses
Visit www.gfp.sd.gov for fees and more information.
Or call South Dakota Dept. of Game, Fish & Parks at 605-223-7660.
Please refer to the current South Dakota Hunting & Trapping Handbook for all South Dakota hunting regulations.

Discover Bon Homme County, SD
Avon, Scotland, Springfield,
Tabor, Tyndall
SD
www.discoverbonhomme.com
Dimock
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Ringneck Country Lodge
40769 272nd Street
Dimock, SD 57331
www.ringneckcountryhunting.com
(605) 661-4277
Madison
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Madison Chamber of Commerce
315 S. Egan Avenue
Madison, SD 57042
www.chamberofmadisonsd.com
(605) 256-2454
Mitchell
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Mike Kuchera’s S.D. Guide Service, Inc.
135 E. 2nd Avenue
P.O. Box 10
Mitchell, SD 57301
www.sdpheasants.com
(605) 996-1120 -
Mitchell Convention & Visitors Bureau
601 N. Main Street
Mitchell, SD 57301
www.visitmitchell.com
(605) 996-6223 or 1-866-273-CORN (2676)
Plankinton
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Plankinton City Council
I-90, Exit 308
Plankinton, SD 57368
www.plankinton.com
605-942-7767
Platte
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Platte Area Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 393
Platte, SD 57369
www.plattesd.org
1-888-297-8175 or (605) 337-2275
Sioux Falls
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Aerostay Hotel
2821 N Jaycee Lane
Sioux Falls Regional Airport
Sioux Falls, SD 57104
aerostay.com
(605) 335-1800 -
Clubhouse Hotel & Suites
2320 S. Louise Avenue
I-29 Exit 78
Sioux Falls, SD 57106
www.SiouxFalls.ClubHouseInn.com
(605) 361-8700 -
Quality Inn & Suites
5410 N. Granite Lane
Sioux Falls, SD 57107
www.qualityinn.com/hotel/sd062
(605) 336-1900 -
Tower Campground
4609 W. 12th Street
I-29 Exit 79
Sioux Falls, SD 57106
www.towercampground.com
(605) 332-1173
Springfield
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Broken Willow Lodge
31149 SD Hwy 37
Springfield, SD 57062
www.brokenwillowlodge.net
(605) 369-2565 -
Dakota Custom Hunt
31133 Bon Homme Road
Tabor, SD 57063
www.thecoganhouse.com
(605) 464-0238 -
Springfield Chamber of Commerce
P.O. Box 329
Springfield, SD 57062
www.springfieldsd.com
(605) 369-2309 -
The Cogan House
31133 Bon Homme Road
Tabor, SD 57063
www.thecoganhouse.com
(605) 464-0238
Wessington Springs
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Wessington Springs Area Development
P.O. Box 132
Wessington Springs, SD 57382
www.wessingtonsprings.com
(605) 539-1929
Yankton
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Dakota Archery & Outdoor Sports
2305 E. Hwy. 50
Yankton, SD 57078
www.dakotarchery.com
(605) 665-8340 or 1-800-658-3094 -
Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites
2607 Broadway Avenue
Yankton, SD 57078
www.hiexpress.com/esyanktonsd
(605) 665-3177 -
Yankton Chamber and Visitors Center
803 E. 4th Street
Yankton, SD 57078
www.VisitYanktonSD.com
(605) 665-3636 or 1-800-888-1460