Wright County, Iowa: deer harvest and public hunting land
Wright County covers 582 square miles around Eagle Grove. Hunters reported 365 deer here in the 2025 season, 220 of them antlered bucks, through the DNR's harvest reporting. That is about the same as 2024. 2.1% of Wright County is public land open to the public, the largest share public hunting areas on the DNR atlas (7,141 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 atlasCounty conservation board and city landWright CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 372,660 acres (582 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer reported, 2025 | 365 (220 antlered bucks, 20 button bucks, 113 does and doe fawns) |
| Deer zone (2026) | Zone A |
| Public land | 2.1% (7,869 acres) |
| Hunting areas | 33 (7,140 acres inside Wright County) |
| IHAP land | None mapped this year |
| Towns in and near it | Eagle Grove, Clarion, Belmond, Renwick, Alexander and Goodell |
How many deer are harvested in Wright County?
Hunters reported 365 deer in Wright County in 2025: 220 antlered bucks, 20 button bucks, 113 does and doe fawns and 12 bucks that had shed their antlers.
| Season | Deer reported | Antlered bucks | Button bucks | Does | Doe fawns | Shed-antler bucks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 365 | 220 | 20 | 108 | 5 | 12 |
| 2024 | 364 | 191 | 20 | 146 | 6 | 1 |
| 2023 | 402 | 235 | 32 | 120 | 6 | 9 |
| 2022 | 385 | 243 | 24 | 107 | 7 | 4 |
| 2021 | 387 | 226 | 30 | 120 | 7 | 4 |
Source: Iowa DNR harvest reporting (2021 to 2025 seasons), Wright County. Every county's numbers add up to the DNR's statewide row for each season shown.
How much public land is in Wright County?
7,869 of Wright County's 372,660 acres are public land open to the public (2.1%). The biggest share is public hunting areas on the DNR atlas: 7,141 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Wright County |
|---|---|---|
| Public hunting areas on the DNR atlas | 7,141 | 1.9% |
| County conservation board and city land | 703 | 0.2% |
| National wildlife refuges and waterfowl production areas | 21 | under 0.1% |
| Other DNR land | 2 | under 0.1% |
| State parks and recreation areas | 2 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 7,869 | 2.1% |
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 Wright County
Public hunting areas in Wright County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Lower Morse Lake WPA: 1,646 acres
- Big Wall Lake Wildlife Area: 1,469 acres
- Elm Lake Wildlife Area: 792 acres
- Lower Morse Lake Wildlife Area: 306 acres
- Boone River Greenbelt Middleton Access: 273 acres
- Morse Lake Wildlife Area: 231 acres
- Lower Morse Lake WMA: 220 acres
- Big Wall Lake WPA: 215 acres
- Four Seasons Wildlife Area: 211 acres
- Groom Wildlife Management Area: 158 acres
- Elm Lake WPA: 147 acres
- Horse Grove-Rietz Forest Area: 132 acres
- Indian Pipes WMA: 130 acres
- Whitetail Flats Wildlife Area - Wright, Franklin: 128 acres
- Oakdale Recreation Area: 125 acres
- Edwin McClenahan Wildlife Area: 121 acres
- Snarl Street Wetlands: 119 acres
- Homestead Ridge Area: 108 acres
- White Fox Creek Wildlife Area: 100 acres
- Cambier River Bend: 92 acres
- Otter Creek Wildlife Management Area: 72 acres
- Sullivan Wildlife Management Area: 65 acres
- Elm Lake Access: 59 acres
- Helmke WMA: 50 acres
- Olaf WPA: 38 acres
- Rolling Acres Potholes: 38 acres
- George Elder Woods: 23 acres
- Morse Lake WMA: 20 acres
- Sportsman Wildlife Area: 17 acres
- Prairie Smoke Wildlife Area West Unit: 16 acres
- Prairie Smoke Wildlife Area East Unit: 9 acres
- Gun Club Corner: 5 acres
- Saylor Timber Area: 5 acres
Other large public areas here, by PAD-US: Wright County Waterfowl Production Area Of Ia (1,916 acres).
How do you get to Wright County?
Highways through it: IA 3 (about 25 miles inside), US 69 (about 25 miles inside), IA 17 (about 21 miles inside) and I-35 (about 10 miles inside). Towns inside: Eagle Grove, Clarion, Belmond, Goldfield, Woolstock and Dows. Nearby: Renwick (on the line), Alexander (on the line), Goodell (on the line) and Meservey (on the line).
Which counties border Wright County?
Wright County touches 8 other counties. Their latest DNR harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land | IHAP land sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hardin County | 958 | 2025 | 1.2% | |
| Hancock County | 334 | 2025 | 2.4% | 6 |
| Kossuth County | 382 | 2025 | 1.6% | 8 |
| Webster County | 835 | 2025 | 2.5% | |
| Franklin County | 527 | 2025 | 0.9% | |
| Hamilton County | 395 | 2025 | 1.3% | 1 |
| Humboldt County | 214 | 2025 | 0.5% | 1 |
| Cerro Gordo County | 544 | 2025 | 3.4% |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Wright County in 2025?
Hunters reported 365 deer: 220 antlered bucks, 20 button bucks and 113 does and doe fawns (DNR). In 2024: 364.
Is there public hunting land in Wright County?
Yes. 7,869 acres, 2.1% 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 (7,141 acres). The DNR's atlas shows 33 public hunting areas here.
Does Wright 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 Hardin County Hancock County Kossuth County Webster County Franklin County Hamilton County Humboldt County Cerro Gordo County