All hunters must re-qualify annually before hunting on Fort Drum. The Archery and/or Crossbow Qualification Card must be in the hunter's possession while hunting in the Cantonment Area.
Check-in Using Sportsman's Hotline
Cantonment Area hunters must check-in daily telephonically with Range Branch, Bldg. P-4855, by calling the Sportsman's Hotline (315-772-7153) and pressing Option #2 for Cantonment Area Hunting and leaving their Fort Drum Recreational Access Pass number prior to hunting. Cantonment Area hunters are not required to physically check-in and check-out at Range Branch, but Deer Management Assistance Program (DMAP) Permits must still be picked up in person.
Hunting Areas
There are 33 designated hunting areas (Areas 10-22 and 38-55 within the perimeter fence of the Cantonment Area and 60, 61 and 63 outside the perimeter fence of the Cantonment Area). See Fort Drum Cantonment Area Hunting Map (updated 1 May 2016) for hunting area locations.
Area | Details of Area |
10-22 | Open only on weekends and federal holidays from September 27 to the end of the season. DMAPs are available to use. No hunting is allowed within 150 feet from the Sexton Field Trail or 150 feet from the edge of a road. |
39-52 | Open daily from September 27 to the end of the season. DMAPs are available to use. No hunting is allowed within 150 feet from the designated Remington Park Trail in Hunting Areas 40, 42, 50, 51, and 52. |
53-55 | [NEW IN 2017 (BUT SAME AS 2013)] Open on weekends, federal holidays, and training holidays from September 27 to the end of the season. DMAPs are available to use. No hunting is allowed within 150 feet of Pannels Road and North Star Spring Road behind the Guthrie Ambulatory Health Care between Hunting Areas 54 and 55. [NEW IN 2017] Hunting from a ground blind is an option in Hunting Area 54 only. |
60, 61, & 63 | Open daily from September 27 to the end of the season. These areas are outside of the perimeter fence. These areas have designated parking areas and are not eligible for DMAPs. |
There is no hunting in Remington Park or the skeet range. Hunters may not hunt closer than 150 feet from the designated Remington Park Trail in Hunting Areas 40, 42, 50, 51, and 52; Sexton Trail in Hunting Areas 10-14; or Pannels Road and North Star Spring Road behind the Guthrie Ambulatory Health Care Clinic.
Parking
All vehicles must be parked on the shoulder of roads or other areas in such a manner to allow other vehicles to pass and not cause an obstruction to traffic.
Parking for areas 60-63 outside the perimeter fence must be adjacent to Fort Drum (i.e. no parking on private property, school property, etc.). Parking for Hunting Area 60 and 61 must be along Co. Rte 129, Co. Rte. 283, or Military Road; parking for Hunting Area 62 must be at the intersection of Rte. 971V and First St.; parking for Hunting Area 63 must be at the end of Putney Lane.
Recreational Access Passes must be clearly displayed with the pass numbers facing up, on the vehicle dashboard, windshield, or driver side window.
Scouting & Trail Cameras
Cantonment Area scouting is allowed at any time as other uses are allowed (e.g., hiking, jogging, etc.) Check-in procedures are not required for scouting in the Cantonment Area.
NEW in 2014: Use of remote/trail cameras are allowed only in areas that are designated as hunting areas. Trail cameras can not be used in Remington Park or along the Remington Park Trail or other trails where hunting is not allowed. Leaving a camera overnight is at your own risk. All cameras and their security cases must be permanently marked with the full name and phone number of the owner. Permanently marked means with a permanent marker, etching, riveting a metal tag, or other means that cannot be removed.
Treestands
With the exception of Area 54, all hunters are required to hunt from commercially-available portable elevated tree stands or tripod stands (including turkey season). Stands are defined to include the platform and climbing device if it is affixed to the tree.
Still-hunting, stalking, or deer drives are NOT allowed. Arrows may not be nocked until bowhunters are safely in their treestands. Crossbows should be cocked before entering a stand, but not loaded until the hunter is in the stand. Crossbows must be cocked, unloaded, and decocked within 10 feet of the stand.
The use of a safety belt is required while in a stand.
A stand must be a minimum of ten feet off the ground and must be portable. Damage to trees to be hunted from must be minimized which includes no removal of more than ten branches and none greater than 2 inches in diameter. No cutting of vegetation for shooting lanes is allowed.
Stands may be left overnight, but the stands must be permanently marked with the first and last name and phone number of the owner in such a way to be visible and legible from the ground. Permanently marked means with a permanent marker, etching, riveting a metal tag, or other means that cannot be removed.
One individual may not have more than two stands in the Cantonment Area at any given time. Placing a stand in an area does not guarantee or reserve that site for the hunter. Stands are left overnight at your own risk -- Fort Drum is not responsible for any lost, stolen, or damaged stands. If a stand is missing, it should be reported to the Military Police (772-5156 or 772-5157).
Baiting
There is absolutely no baiting allowed while hunting in NYS including the Cantonment Area.
Deer Management Assistance Program (DMAP) Permits
DMAPs allow the harvest of anterless deer in addition to a hunter's regular deer tags. These are permits issued to Fort Drum by NYSDEC for use in the Cantonment Area ONLY. DMAP permits are available at Range Branch (Bldg. P-4855) on a “first come, first served” basis for 1-day use. DMAP permits are available anytime on the day of use. If a hunter wants to utilize a DMAP permit, the Archery Qualification Card must be exchanged for a DMAP permit while hunting; the Archery Qualification Card will be returned to the hunter when the DMAP permit is returned. An Archery Qualification Card or DMAP permit must be on the archer's person at all times while hunting in the Cantonment Area. If the DMAP permit is not filled that day, it must be returned to Range Branch by 9:00 pm of the day it was issued. There is no limit to the number of times a DMAP permit may be checked out at Range Branch. Hunters may fill up to four DMAP permits per license during the season. DMAP tags are available from October 1 through December 14, 2014.
Wounded Big Game
Hunters with wounded game that leave the designated Cantonment Archery Hunting Areas must notify Fort Drum Law Enforcement Officials before tracking the animal. For assistance, hunters may call the Military Police (772-5156 or 772-5157) or stop by the Directorate of Emergency Services in Bldg. P-10715.
Licensed leashed tracking dog handlers are allowed on the installation to track wounded animals. United Blood Trackers is one organization that provides contact information for licensed dog handlers including one on Fort Drum.
Reporting Harvested Game