These are the new SOA hunts listed this year. Does anyone a review on them and where they are and if they are worth signing up for?

Prairie Glades (Montgomery County)
Little River State Forest SOA (Monroe County)
Blackwater River (Baldwin County)

Prairie Glades in Montgomery is a 165 acre ag field out past the airport. It was used for state dove hunts last year.

I've never actually been to Blackwater River but if it's anything like Lillian Swamp Forever Wild (which it's very nearby) it won't be the most fun place to hunt

They are free, sounds worth signing up for to me.

My cousin got drawn for Blackwater River last year. Said it was eat up with trails and rubs but never got to seal the deal. From my understanding its basically two sections that are like 1200+ acres each.

There is nothing about Little or Blackwater River that screams SOA. In my opinion both should be just like Lillian Swamp or Splinter Hill Bog. They will be the least producing SOAs in the state. A friend of mine killed the only buck on Blackwater last year.

I like some of the SOAs but I agree that these seem like a reach and, in the case of Blackwater, should just be a Forever Wild property.

Tired of the SOA scam. Booked a hunt to South Texas in December during their rut. The public benefit is a ruse IMO for a select few to get the most benefit.

Absolutely and its a scam to sell more wildlife management licenses, that you are required to purchase before you can apply. That gives the state more license sells to obtain the matching federal dollars.

I agree. I would rather have good quality WMA's for everyone to hunt than a few great quality SOA's that only the chosen few get to hunt.

I have hated the SOA system since its inception. Really scared of the day they start annexing in current open permit public land. I have been told my Chuck himself that won't happen but there are members of the Democratic party I trust more than I trust that man

Nothings free. Every time you see a new SOA pop up for us to hunt just know that’s another line item in a budget somewhere eating our tax dollars. These SOA’s are just becoming a jobs program. They have to staff personnel to manage the land, the law enforcement and the application process for each one. Compared to WMA’s members of the state don’t get access to the land near as much. I’m all for public lands but these SOA’s are garbage

Management area permits are not included in the federal excise tax returns.

Anything with "License" in the name is included - hunting license, fishing license, baiting privilege license, etc.

That is specifically why the "baiting privilege license" has the word license in it, so they could include it for more money AND require it for anyone of any age hunting with bait, despite the age requirements for a license (16 to 64). IMO that's fraud, but they're getting away with it. If we tried to pull something like that in the civilian world and double-dip with a Hunting License and Baiting Privilege License to get more fed money, we'd be put in prison.


Permits are not included in the federal excise tax returns. SOA permits, WMA permits, the migratory bird HIP permit, etc.




"Why, you have 39,000 acres of land at Skyline WMA. You're complaining because we took out 10,000 for SOA "opportunities" for others?"

"Lowndes WMA is huge. That little section for the SOA hunts won't hurt anything."

If they can figure out a way to make more money on application fees and another permit, it'll happen. If they get money from people every year to put out bait they can con them into anything.

I love the SOA system, I hope they keep expanding it and adding properties. BUT I do not want to see existing WMAs turned into SOAs. I'm also afraid that eventually they will try to further monetize it by making you pay a fee for each individual registration like they did on the gator hunts, duck blind draws, and now the dove hunts.

Absolutely they will. Actually surprised they haven't done it yet. They will find a way to squeeze every single dime out of hunting

YEP.... read that chit in facebook comments all the time.. makes my blood boil...most people do not understand the ramifications of what we could open the door to. People THINK they want AL to look like western states with draw areas everywhere UNTIL you can only draw a permit for premier black belt "public" land every 3-5 years....infuriates me.


I asked my district rep to introduce legislation making it illegal to annex existing open permit land into the SOA system.....Mr Rich Wingo is great former football player and exemplary evangelical Christian, but he did not care to help me with this one

The SOA program sucks!

Little river state forest is disability hunting only. Unless they let a couple hunt behind park side. Called montgomery wS told disability area will not change

I saw Little River State Forest on the 22-23 list of SOAs. I heard is that they added a big chunk of land and expanded it.

It's a new area off of co rd 30 Nothing to do with disability area. Could be great hunting in few years the people who hunted it killed a lot of deer the last two years. Deer numbers will be slack till built backup.