Reminders

• All vehicles must stay on maintained roads.
• No vehicles are allowed on the lakebed.
• The refuge is closed to all activities, including shed hunting, till April 1.
• There is no target practice on the Wildlife Area. The range is scheduled to open March 17.
• Camping is only allowed in Deweese Area and Fish Cove.
• Please remove all trash when you are done enjoying the area.

Vehicle Use: Kansas public lands regulations require all vehicles to remain on maintained roads and parking areas at all times, including at the state park.. ATVs, UTVs, and e-bikes are illegal anywhere on public lands, including maintained roads. Help protect our natural resources by complying with this law. Please call 911 if you observe any violation on our Public Areas.

Refuge: The refuge is closed to all activities Sept. 1 - April 1 and is closed to hunting year-round. The refuge gates will open April 1 for fishing access.  

Baiting, Tree Stands and Blinds: Baiting on public lands is prohibited. Each hunter is also allowed to place only 2 tree stands, 2 portable blinds or a combination of a portable blind and a stand. All stands and blinds must be tagged with the owner's name and address or KDWPT number on it, portable blinds shall not be left unattended overnight. Stands may not be placed more than 14 days prior to the season and shall be removed within 14 days of the close of the season.

UPDATE MAY 2025: The Cheney Shooting Range is currently closed while we await lead testing results. The Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks is committed to protecting natural resources while providing shooting sports opportunities. This includes taking steps to prevent and monitor potentially harmful lead contamination. We will re-open the Cheney range only when we know it is safe to do so.

Range Rules

Read all posted range rules and obtain your shooting permit (on-site) before shooting.

• Target practice is not allowed anywhere else in the reservoir. This law applies to all KDWP Public Lands AND Walk-In Hunting Areas (WIHAs). Target practice can only occur in designated areas.
• Target stands, backers, and tacks are provided. Bring paper targets only, no exploding targets.
• This is a marksmanship range, no rapid fire allowed. One shot every 4 seconds. Rapid-fire and misplaced shots have created serious damage to the wooden ricochet bunker posts and target stands. Range officers will warn you once about rapid firing or misplaced shots that hit the target stands or bunker posts. If there continues to be a problem after you've been warned, you will be asked to leave the range. Intentionally shooting the target stands, wooden bunker posts, or any other range structure will not be tolerated. Do your part to ensure this range remains open to the public by making sure your shots are hitting your paper target and by not rapid-firing.
• .50 BMG rifles/rounds and exploding targets are not allowed.
• Muzzleloaders are allowed
• Armor-piercing and tracer rounds are prohibited. Armor-piercing ammunition includes but is not limited to: M2 .30-06 163gr., M61 7.62 NATO 150.5gr., M993 7.62 126.6gr., M995 5.56x45mm NATO 52gr., FNP80 7.62 150gr., AP485 .338 Lapua Magnum 248gr., S.m.K. 7.92x57 Mauser 178.25gr..