Photo by Ron Sinfelt

There was a time over the last couple of decades when parts of Florida just did not have that many deer. All you had to do was sit by Interstate 75 headed north out of Florida and watch the weekend exodus of hunters to Georgia, South Carolina and anywhere else that welcomed non-resident hunters.

Times have changed, though.

While we all know Florida, and just about every other state in the country, is selling fewer hunting licenses these days, deer have never been more plentiful. They are not only all over the forests, both public and private, but they are on practically every farm. In some areas, they make a nuisance out of themselves consuming shrubbery around homes at night. Yes, times have improved for the deer hunter in Florida.

Many deer hunters today have turned to private leases or hunting clubs, and for good reason. There are fewer hunters around, you can generally pick your own area and it is easier to put in place quality deer hunting rules.

If you do not want to pay the dollars to belong to a hunting lease, Florida has over 100 wildlife management areas open to the public, most for the cost of a hunting license and a $26.50 WMA permit. Let's take a look at some of the WMAs open to hunting this December where you do not need a quota permit that have put some racks on the Florida Buck Registry for trophy deer. First, however, we will look at the larger list of WMAs that can be hunted this month

In the Northwest Region, there is an abundance of public areas open to hunting. A few of these WMAs are Apalachee in Jackson County; Apalachicola in Franklin, Liberty, Leon and Wakulla counties; Choctawhatchee River in Bay, Holmes, Washington and Washington counties; Joe Budd in Gadsden County; Tyndall AFB in Bay County; and Eglin AFB in Okaloosa and Walton counties.

The North Central Region has more WMAs than do some other states. Those areas where you see both dog and still hunters this time of year are Big Bend's Hickory Mound, Snipe Island, Spring Creek and Tide Swamp units in Taylor County; Camp Blanding in Clay County; Citrus WMA in Citrus and Hernando counties; Lochloosa in Alachua County; and Osceola in Baker and Columbia counties.

There is an abundance of WMAs in the Northeast Region as well. These include Bull Creek in Osceola County; Half Moon in Sumter County; Juniper Creek in Sumter County; Lake George in Putnam and Volusia counties; Richloam in Hernando, Pasco, Sumter and Lake counties; and Ocala in Marion, Putnam and Lake counties.

In the Southwest Region some of the more high-quality areas are Avon Park AFR in Polk and Highlands counties; Croom WMA in Hernando and Sumter counties; Green Swamp in Polk, Sumter and Lake counties; and Hiloochee in Lake and Polk counties.

In the South Region there are several public areas, but most have rigid quota permit requirements. Big Cypress in Collier, Dade and Monroe counties is large and draws a considerable number of south Florida hunters, but has less deer.

Assuming most hunters can hunt only a finite number of days, it is necessary to hone down the list for the best odds for expending that time. The following five highlighted public areas almost guarantee you a shot at a nice buck deer this season, assuming you can spend several days on them.