Public lands in Kentucky

9 units whose boundary reaches Kentucky. They are 4 national wildlife refuges, 2 wilderness areas and 3 national forests and grasslands, largest first within each type.

National wildlife refuges: 16,772 acres
Wilderness areas: 17,187 acres
National forests and grasslands: 2,204,707 acres

Each figure is the acreage inside Kentucky for one kind of unit, summed over the units listed below. A unit that crosses into another state counts only the part of its boundary that lies in Kentucky. Wilderness often lies inside one of the other kinds, so the figures overlap and should not be added together.

National wildlife refuges

All national wildlife refuges →

Refuge · USFWS

Clarks River National Wildlife Refuge

11,818 acresNational Wildlife Refuge

Refuge · USFWS

Reelfoot National Wildlife Refuge

10,411 acresAlso TN

Refuge · USFWS

Ohio River Islands National Wildlife Refuge

3,218 acres3 campgrounds near

Refuge · USFWS

Green River National Wildlife Refuge

2,179 acresNational Wildlife Refuge

Wilderness areas

All wilderness areas →

Wilderness · USFS

Clifty Wilderness

12,371 acres2 campgrounds near

Wilderness · USFS

Beaver Creek Wilderness

4,816 acres6 campgrounds near

National forests and grasslands

All national forests and grasslands →

George Washington and Jefferson National Forest

3.5 million acres57 campgrounds near

Daniel Boone National Forest

2.0 million acres29 campgrounds near

Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area

171,281 acres4 campgrounds near

Boundaries come from the agencies’ own layers. A unit is listed in every state or territory its boundary reaches. Data refreshed November 1, 2026.