Straight Wall or Smokepole? Arkansas’s Alternative Firearms Season Opens Oct. 17

A cold front may finally give Arkansas hunters some relief from 90-degree high temperatures just in time for the opening of the alternative firearms deer season this Saturday.

Formerly open only to muzzleloaders, the alternative firearms season is entering its third year allowing straight-wall cartridge firearms as well as traditional black-powder guns, and interest in the hunt has picked up steadily.

“Between this season and the early buck archery season, we’ve seen an increase in early harvest, but the overall deer harvest has remained relatively stable,” Ralph Meeker, AGFC Deer Program coordinator, said. “The increase is likely just the result of shifting a portion of the harvest that would have happened during modern gun season earlier. With the expected cooldown hitting this week, I imagine we’ll continue to see that increased interest in the hunt this weekend.”

Meeker says early-season hunt results can be finicky based on the shifting weather, and many hunters who have been reluctant to go to the woods during the recent triple-digit heatwave will be excited for this opportunity to enjoy an experience more akin to traditional “deer hunting weather.” Despite the heat, hunter harvest is ahead of last year’s numbers so far.

“Last year was a down year, with about 186,000 deer harvested,” Meeker said. “It’s way too early in the year to make any predictions on the final harvest, but the deer herd is in good shape, numbers-wise.”

Meeker says hunters can help balance the herd by removing a few more does than in recent years.

“The added opportunities of early buck archery and straight-wall firearms has shifted some of our buck harvest to earlier in the season,” Meeker said. “If we skew the numbers too far to the female component prior to the rut, then those rutting activities hunters enjoy will be less pronounced. I encourage everyone to try and harvest a doe early to help balance this out. If your target buck doesn’t show up, take a doe; and if you get that buck, go back out and get a doe anyway. If you don’t need that much venison, you can donate that second deer to Arkansas Hunters Feeding the Hungry to help needy families. Harvesting the right amount of does is the key to a healthy and productive deer herd.”

Meeker says the drought may have affected portions of the state, but the effects have not been as pronounced as originally expected on a statewide level.

“We really thought we’d have a decimated acorn crop, but it’s been pretty variable, and we’ve found pockets here and there that still have fair to good acorn production,” Meeker said. “We’ve seen several trees still holding onto persimmons.”

According to Meeker, red oak species produce acorns that take two years to mature, so last year’s acorns will be available; acorns of white oak species mature in one year and are a bit more spotty.

“We’re still seeing some places where post oaks and even some white oaks have acorns, mostly in areas near more permanent sources of water that had at least some water throughout summer,” Meeker said. “It’s not what it’s been the last two years, so get out and find an acorn tree around any place that has held water and focus on that. This cool weather and maybe a little rain will get those acorns to start dropping, and the deer will find them quickly.”

Hunters participating in the alternative firearms hunt may use the following:

• Muzzleloading rifles with a barrel 18 inches or longer and .40 caliber or larger;

• Muzzleloading handguns with barrels 9 inches or longer, firing either conical bullets 200 grains or heavier (.45 caliber minimum) or round balls (.530 caliber minimum);

• Large-bore air rifles at least .40 caliber that shoot a single expandable slug, produce at least 400 foot-pounds of muzzle energy, and charge from an external tank; and

• Non-semiautomatic centerfire firearms (including handguns with barrels 4 inches or longer) firing a straight-wall metallic cartridge .30 caliber or larger.

Shotguns are not allowed during the alternative firearms season.

Visit www.agfc.com/guidebooks for a complete copy of hunting regulations, limits and seasons dates by deer zone. Check out in-depth regulations and maps of WMAs throughout the state at www.agfc.com/wheretohunt.

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CUTLINES:

LEVER ACTION HUNTER
Saturday will open the third year of Arkansas’s alternative firearms deer hunting season, which allows not only muzzleloaders, but also non-semiautomatic rifles that fire straight-wall cartridges. AGFC photo.

WOMAN HUNTER
Modern muzzleloaders are still popular with many hunters during alternative firearms deer hunting season. AGFC photo.

INFOGRAPHIC
The 2026-27 Arkansas Hunting Guidebook illustrates the exact cartridges hunters may use during the alternative firearms deer hunting season. AGFC photo.