Receiving more hunting pressure, but nevertheless still providing excellent opportunities for wild turkey hunting, are the many commission game lands open on a general basis to anyone with a hunting license, big-game permit and game lands use permit or an appropriate combination license covering these hunting privileges. Here are some of the top choices.

Toxaway Game Land is located in Jackson and Transylvania counties. It contains 11,651 acres of high-relief mountain terrain. Turkeys may be found anywhere on the game land. The foot travel hunting trails primarily run the ridgetops and stream bottoms. There is a vehicle access agreement with Gorges State Park that allows hunters to access Toxaway Game Land through the park to get to the four-wheel-drive vehicle trailhead beginning at Turkey Pen Gap. This access road is called Auger Hole Road and is the only vehicle access inside the Toxaway Game Land. But there is some walk-in access from N.C. 281 along the northern boundary of the game land.

When driving through the park to access the Toxaway Game Land, guns must be unloaded and cased with ammo stored separately. Hunters must drive straight through the park without stopping and must follow all park rules while in the park. At the end of turkey hunting season, the lock is changed on the gate and hunters turn in their keys. Hunters must have a four-wheel-drive vehicle licensed for highway use. The road through the park is gravel surfaced. But hunters must ford the Toxaway River and Bear Wallow Creek within the park.

They must also camp within the game land if staying overnight. There are five primitive campgrounds inside Toxaway that can be used by hunters, including one at Bear Creek, another one at Horsepasture River, two at Bear Camp Creek and one near the South Carolina border. Hunters can call the Gorges Park ranger's office at (828) 966-9099 for access information on how to obtain a gate key.

Buffalo Cove Game Land is located in Caldwell and Wilkes counties. The 6,634-acre tract is a relatively new addition to the game lands program and has some good turkey hunting. It is mountainous terrain but has some good access along Buffalo Cove Road and Cove Branch Road.

Located in Haywood County, Cold Mountain Game Land has 3,295 acres of high-relief terrain. Cold Mountain has an excellent system of access trails and roads, with many of them gated for foot travel only during turkey season. The excellent access is a rarity among many of the mountain game lands with rugged terrain.