Outdoor Life Magazine recently ranked Kirksville Missouri as the number one spot for whitetail deer in the country. The large amount of land that is open for public hunting allows Kirksville to use different regions for various hunting methods such as archery and muzzleloading. Michael Jones, the Wildlife Regional Supervisor at the Northeast Regional Office of the Missouri Department of Conservation attributes the number one ranking to deer genetics and the excellent quality of habitat in northern Missouri. "Some of the factors that affect the growth, size of deer and deer antlers are fertile soils and year round food supply, and when you add in that we've got good genetics, we've kind of got a good combination that makes for a real good deer heard here." I’m not quite sure how you can adequately define the absolutely best place for whitetail hunting, but if Outdoor Life says it, it must be so! Grab your gear and head to Missouri!!! Kill a giant whitetail buck and send your story to us. We’ll post it in our Deer Tales section.