LANSING, MI — Michigan elk hunters could see longer seasons beginning in 2026 under draft proposals released by the Department of Natural Resources.

The agency is proposing to expand both elk hunting periods in the northern Lower Peninsula, more than doubling the total harvest time from 21 to 45 days.

If approved by the Natural Resources Commission, the first hunt would run continuously for 30 days, from the second Saturday in September through the second Sunday in October, instead of three short four-day hunts spread across late summer.

The second period would lengthen to 15 days, from December 1 to 15, moving earlier in the month to avoid overlapping with Christmas and Hanukkah.

“Shifting the period later in the year should give hunters more favorable weather conditions,” said Scott

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