Public Service Announcement - Sale of private property closes Ashland WMA to public access

​​​​FRANKFORT, Ky. (March 31, 2025) — Due to the sale of private property included in an agreement between the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources and Ashland, Inc., the Ashland Wildlife Management Area (WMA) in Lee County is now closed to public access.

​​Ashland, Inc., entered into a memorandum of understanding with Kentucky Fish and Wildlife in August 2005 to allow public access on 2,506 acres of company-owned property for hunting, fishing and related outdoor recreation. With its sale of the land, the agreement establishing a WMA has now been terminated.

Under WMA agreements, landowners retain ownership while allowing public access for hunting, fishing and wildlife watching, and Kentucky Fish and Wildlife provides property management guidance, patrols by game wardens and implements conservation practices on the property in coordination with the landowner. Partnership agreements help provide public access to woods and waters across Kentucky and allow the agency to conserve native wildlife and habitat.​​

​​Find other public lands available in the area by visiting the Kentucky Fish and Wildlife (fw.ky.gov) Wildlife Management Area & Public Lands Search webpage.

​​Did You Know? The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources owns, leases or manages nearly 1.7 million acres across more than 130 public land areas to conserve fish and wildlife resources and provide public access. Most of the WMA and public hunting area acreage in Kentucky is made possible through partnerships with other governmental or private landowners. Managed by biologists, they are categorized into high, moderate and low management levels depending on their infrastructure and ongoing management activities, including wildlife monitoring and research, removal of nonnative invasive species, and prescribed burns.