A Sportsman’s Paradise: 2025 – 2026 Adirondack Hunting Seasons

Why do hunters love owning hunting property in the Adirondack Mountains? The proximity to the vast array of wildlife is certainly one of them! As avid hunters ourselves, we know the thrill of the hunt–but you must make sure you’re following New York State law to help conserve Adirondack wildlife for future generations to enjoy.

As fall quickly approaches, locals know it’s time to make sure their hunting and fishing licenses are ready to go. We’re avid sportsmen ourselves and our clients who own hunting properties here in the mountains enjoy a wilderness experience every outdoorsman dreams about.

Key Changes in Tag Procedures and Requirements

NYS Department of Environmental Conservation has made changes in the past year to sporting license and tag procedures that all hunters and fishermen should know.

Buy and Print Your Own Licenses: Currently in place is the change from valeron to plain paper for all hunting, trapping, and fishing licenses, including carcass tags. This means licenses purchased online or by telephone can be emailed for home printing or accessed and printed from a DECALS account.

No More Backtags: Longtime hunters have all lost a backtag in the woods at some point (remember the year DEC used a camouflage color for tags?) A change to New York State law removed the requirement for hunters to wear a physical backtag so hunters no longer need to worry about losing or replacing.

Electronic Carcass Tags are Coming: DEC plans to enable hunters to use the HuntFishNY mobile app to report harvests and get an electronic tag for deer, bear, and turkey. This eliminates the need for a physical paper tag while hunters are in possession of the carcass. Electronic tags aren’t available for the upcoming seasons, but are in the works for the near future.

Polular Hunting Seasons in the Adirondack Mountains

Below is an overview of the primary 2025-2026 hunting season dates for the NYSDEC’s Northern Zone, which covers the Adirondack region. For specific questions, refer to NYSDEC’s 2025-2026 Hunting and Trapping Regulations Guide. Hunting seasons and restrictions in New York State are governed by region. The following are hunting seasons by species for the Adirondack region only.

Deer

Early Bowhunting (All WMUs): September 27, 2025 – October 24, 2025

Crossbow: October 15, 2025 – October 24, 2025

Regular: October 25, 2024 – December 7, 2025

Late Bowhunting (Only WMUs 5A, 5G, 5J, 6A, 6C, 6G, and 6H): December 8, 2025 – December 14, 2025

Hunting hours: 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset

Black Bear

Bowhunting: September 13, 2025 – October 24, 2025

Crossbow: October 15, 2025 – October 24, 2025

Muzzleloading: October 18, 2025 – October 24, 2025

Regular: September 13, 2025 – December 7, 2025

Hunting hours: 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset

2025 Fall Turkey

October 1-14, 2025 

Statewide Bag Limit: 1 bird of either sex
Hunting hours: From sunrise to sunset

2026 Spring Turkey

May 1-31, 2026

Statewide Bag Limit: 2 bearded birds
Hunting hours: 30 minutes before sunrise to noon

Bobcat

October 25, 2025 – February 15, 2026

Daily Bag Limit: None

Hunting hours: After sunrise on opening day; and at any hour, day or night, for the rest of the hunting season.

Cottontail Rabbit

October 1, 2025 – March 15, 2026

Daily Bag Limit: 6

Hunting hours: From sunrise to sunset

Pheasant

October 1, 2025 – February 28, 2026

Cocks and hens allowed

Daily Bag Limit: 2

Hunting hours: From sunrise to sunset

Adirondack Anglers Enjoy the Best Fishing in New York State 

With all the lakes, ponds, rivers, and streams throughout the Adirondack region, keeping track of fishing regulations can be challenging.

The New York State Freshwater Fishing Regulations Guide provides a useful overview that covers specific regions throughout the State (Regions 5 and 6 are Adirondacks).

The guide includes:

  • Statewide species regulations.
  • General regulations (definitions, taking and possessing of fish, methods of taking fish, regulations for harvested fish, push and sale of fish).
  • Baitfish regulations.
  • Special regulations.
  • Fish health advisories.

For bodies of water with specific regulations, the guide includes information on species and uses easy-to-follow symbols to denote season, minimum length, and daily limit as well as whether ice fishing is permitted.

Hunt from Your Backyard in Your Own NY Hunting Property!

At Adirondack Mountain Land we’ve been telling hunting and fishing tales for decades. Call Mike Black today to learn more about how you can find an Adirondack property that any sportsman would be proud to call home. As hunters ourselves, we know just what features make Adirondack land great for a cabin. We have a handful of properties that would make great hunting land in sought-after locations throughout the Adirondacks. Browse our available Adirondack hunting properties today!