As the archery season for black bears opens this Saturday in all bear hunting zones, TWRA wishes to remind hunters that all black bears harvested in Tennessee must by physically checked in at a TWRA approved checking station. Electronic checking through TWRA’s website or mobile application is not permissible.
TWRA has established at least one bear checking station in each county that is open for bear hunting. At some of these checking stations that are setup for bears only, hunters will receive a paper tag upon having their bear checked.
Traditional checking stations that also check other big game species will operate under their normal process.
For a list of approved physical checking stations, visit www.tnwildlife.org. Hunters without Internet access may call the TWRA Region 3 Office in the Cumberland Plateau area at 931 484-9571 or the Region 4 Office in East Tennessee at 423 587-7037 for checking station locations.
TWRA also recommends calling the checking station before taking your bear to ensure their hours of operation.