JASPER – The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission drew the names of 18 Arkansans on the stage of the Buffalo River Elk Festival Saturday to participate in this fall’s annual public land elk hunts.
More than 6,600 applicants applied for elk permits online during the May application window, and 15 of the permits allotted for public land were drawn from those entries. An additional 620 people applied on-site at the festival for three additional permits reserved for attendees of the event. Permits were drawn from a squirrel cage in front of an anxious crowd throughout the day. Winners of the three on-site permits had to be present to win during the final drawing of the festival.
Hunters are allowed to choose their weapons from archery (including crossbows), muzzleloaders, modern rifles, modern shotguns and handguns.
All public land hunts occur on the Buffalo National River, Gene Rush Wildlife Management Area and Bearcat Hollow Wildlife Management Area. Hunters are assigned specific zones within these public lands. Public land permit holders are encouraged to attend an orientation before the hunt and will be notified of the time and location.
Arkansas also holds private land elk hunts, managed through a quota system, for hunters who have landowner permission in Arkansas’s Core Elk Management Zone. Visit www.agfc.com/elk for more information.
Official Arkansas 2024 elk hunt permit winners:
Oct. 7-11 Hunt
Zone 2 Antlerless — Jessica Ward, Jerusalem
Zone 2 Antlerless — Bobby Flow, Magnolia
Zone 2 Antlerless — Clayton Yazza, Austin
Zone 3 Antlerless — Ronald Leming, Malvern
Zone 3 Antlerless — Gary Melson, Clarksville
Zone 3 Antlerless — Jonathan Stein, Garfield
Zone 4 Antlerless — Matthew Kingston, Paragould
Zone 4 Antlerless — Kayla Williams, Russellville
Zone 4 Antlerless — Mark Glover, Greenbrier
Oct. 28-Nov. 1 Hunt
Zone 2 Either Sex — Keith Hennarichs, Fayetteville
Zone 2 Either Sex — James Moorhouse, London
Zone 2 Antlerless — Justin Mitchell, Mena
Zone 3 Either Sex — Paige Hamilton, Tumbling Shoals
Zone 3 Either Sex — James Wray, Jonesboro
Zone 3 Antlerless — Michael Smoke, Bismark
Zone 4 Either Sex — Thomas Bridges, Harrison
Zone 4 Either Sex — James Butler, Alpena
Zone 4 Antlerless — William Jones, Prairie Grove
