Poweshiek County, Iowa: deer harvest and public hunting land
Poweshiek County covers 586 square miles around Grinnell. Hunters reported 736 deer here in the 2025 season, 392 of them antlered bucks, through the DNR's harvest reporting. That is up 3% from 2024. 0.6% of Poweshiek County is public land open to the public, the largest share public hunting areas on the DNR atlas (1,536 acres), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and the DNR's public hunting area boundaries.
Data updated October 2026. Harvest: the DNR's harvest reporting results, 2021 to 2025. Land: PAD-US 4.1 and the DNR's Hunting Atlas layer.
Public hunting areas on the DNR atlasNational wildlife refuges and waterfowl production areasCounty conservation board and city landLand trusts and other open landIHAP landPoweshiek CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 375,105 acres (586 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer reported, 2025 | 736 (392 antlered bucks, 47 button bucks, 288 does and doe fawns) |
| Deer zone (2026) | Zone A |
| Public land | 0.6% (2,262 acres) |
| Hunting areas | 8 (1,534 acres inside Poweshiek County) |
| IHAP land | None mapped this year |
| Towns in and near it | Grinnell, Montezuma, Brooklyn, Barnes City, Victor and Lynnville |
How many deer are harvested in Poweshiek County?
Hunters reported 736 deer in Poweshiek County in 2025: 392 antlered bucks, 47 button bucks, 288 does and doe fawns and 9 bucks that had shed their antlers.
| Season | Deer reported | Antlered bucks | Button bucks | Does | Doe fawns | Shed-antler bucks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 736 | 392 | 47 | 280 | 8 | 9 |
| 2024 | 718 | 392 | 45 | 258 | 17 | 6 |
| 2023 | 751 | 390 | 47 | 290 | 16 | 8 |
| 2022 | 833 | 428 | 56 | 329 | 15 | 5 |
| 2021 | 776 | 409 | 48 | 305 | 9 | 5 |
Source: Iowa DNR harvest reporting (2021 to 2025 seasons), Poweshiek County. Every county's numbers add up to the DNR's statewide row for each season shown.
How much public land is in Poweshiek County?
2,262 of Poweshiek County's 375,105 acres are public land open to the public (0.6%). The biggest share is public hunting areas on the DNR atlas: 1,536 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Poweshiek County |
|---|---|---|
| Public hunting areas on the DNR atlas | 1,536 | 0.4% |
| County conservation board and city land | 690 | 0.2% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 36 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 2,262 | 0.6% |
Measured by FilledTag inside the county line from USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and the DNR's public hunting area boundaries. Hunting rules differ by manager: DNR wildlife management areas and state forests are open to hunting unless posted as a refuge; Corps of Engineers lake land is open in many places under each project's own rules; national wildlife refuges and waterfowl production areas follow U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rules; county conservation boards set the rules on their own land; state parks are closed to most hunting.
Public hunting areas in Poweshiek County
Public hunting areas in Poweshiek County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Fox Forest Wildlife Area: 613 acres
- Millgrove Access Wildlife Area: 434 acres
- Deep River Timber Wildlife Area: 315 acres
- Barclay Timber: 56 acres
- Cecil Rivers Timber: 48 acres
- Lincoln WMA: 37 acres
- Bryan Woods: 21 acres
- Robertson's Access: 10 acres
How do you get to Poweshiek County?
Highways through it: I-80 (about 48 miles inside), IA 146 (about 30 miles inside), US 63 (about 28 miles inside), US 6 (about 24 miles inside) and IA 21 (about 19 miles inside). Towns inside: Grinnell, Montezuma, Brooklyn, Malcom, Guernsey and Searsboro. Nearby: Barnes City (on the line), Victor (on the line), Lynnville (2 miles) and Gilman (2 miles).
Which counties border Poweshiek County?
Poweshiek County touches 7 other counties. Their latest DNR harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land | IHAP land sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Iowa County | 1,355 | 2025 | 3.9% | 2 |
| Tama County | 1,239 | 2025 | 2.2% | |
| Benton County | 1,060 | 2025 | 1.2% | |
| Jasper County | 934 | 2025 | 3.1% | |
| Keokuk County | 1,152 | 2025 | 1.1% | 5 |
| Mahaska County | 959 | 2025 | 1.6% | 2 |
| Marshall County | 608 | 2025 | 0.9% | 1 |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Poweshiek County in 2025?
Hunters reported 736 deer: 392 antlered bucks, 47 button bucks and 288 does and doe fawns (DNR). In 2024: 718.
Is there public hunting land in Poweshiek County?
Yes. 2,262 acres, 0.6% of the county, are public land open to the public by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and the DNR's public hunting area boundaries, the largest share public hunting areas on the DNR atlas (1,536 acres). The DNR's atlas shows 8 public hunting areas here.
Does Poweshiek County have IHAP land?
Not on the DNR's IHAP layer.
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Where these numbers come from
- Deer harvest: Iowa DNR harvest reporting (2021 to 2025 seasons).
- Public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and the DNR's public hunting area boundaries. public hunting areas: Iowa DNR public hunting areas (Hunting Atlas layer). IHAP land: Iowa DNR Iowa Habitat and Access Program (IHAP) tracts.
- Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 cartographic county boundaries. Highways and towns: U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024 primary and secondary roads; U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer, places.
FilledTag is not part of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Numbers are copied from the DNR and the federal sources above, or measured from their maps; nothing on this page is estimated by FilledTag.
Iowa hunting Iowa County Tama County Benton County Jasper County Keokuk County Mahaska County Marshall County