Chisago County, Minnesota: public hunting land
Chisago County has 21,130 acres of public land open to the public, 7.5% of the county, the largest share state wildlife management areas (10,630 acres), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public). The DNR's map shows 5 wildlife management areas here covering 10,450 acres, the largest Carlos Avery WMA (8,716 acres in the county). Deer here are counted by deer permit area: DPA 225 (5,598 deer in 2025), DPA 236 (2,388 deer in 2025), DPA 235 (191 deer in 2025) and DPA 227 (4,198 deer in 2025).
Data updated October 2026. Land: PAD-US 4.1. Wildlife Management Areas and Walk-In Access: the DNR's map layers, read 2026-10. Harvest: DNR Deer Harvest Reports, 2021 to 2025.
State wildlife management areasState forest and other DNR landState parksNational park landCounty, city and regional landLand trusts and other open landChisago CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 283,111 acres (442 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Public land | 7.5% (21,130 acres) |
| WMAs | 5 (10,450 acres) |
| Walk-In Access | None mapped this year |
| Deer permit areas | DPA 225, DPA 236, DPA 235, DPA 227 |
| Towns | North Branch, Stacy, Wyoming, Harris, Braham and Rock Creek |
How much public hunting land is in Chisago County?
21,130 of the county's 283,111 acres are public land open to the public (7.5%). 11,132 acres of that are state wildlife, state forest or federal land, where hunting is the rule rather than the exception.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Chisago County |
|---|---|---|
| State wildlife management areas | 10,630 | 3.8% |
| State parks | 6,866 | 2.4% |
| National park land | 2,396 | 0.8% |
| County, city and regional land | 670 | 0.2% |
| State forest and other DNR land | 502 | 0.2% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 66 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 21,130 | 7.5% |
Measured by FilledTag inside the county line from USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public). State wildlife management areas, state forest land and national forests are open to hunting in season; refuges and waterfowl production areas follow U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rules; state parks allow hunting only in special hunts; national park land is closed to hunting; city and county parks set their own rules. PAD-US 4.1 leaves out most of the tax-forfeited land Minnesota counties manage, much of it open to hunting, so the public land here may be more than shown; the county land department has the maps.
The largest public areas in Chisago County by PAD-US, besides the WMAs: Lower Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway (1,260 acres), Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway (1,141 acres) and Chengwatana State Forest (234 acres).
Which wildlife management areas are in Chisago County?
5, largest first.
| WMA | Acres in the county | DNR lists for hunting |
|---|---|---|
| Carlos Avery WMA | 8,716 | deer, wild turkey, pheasants, ducks and geese, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds and mourning doves |
| Janet Johnson Memorial WMA | 787 | deer, wild turkey, pheasants, ducks and geese, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds and bear |
| Rush Lake WMA | 676 | deer, wild turkey, pheasants, ducks and geese, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds and bear |
| Wild Rose WMA | 199 | deer, wild turkey, pheasants, ducks and geese, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds and bear |
| Nessel WMA | 72 | deer, pheasants, ducks and geese, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds and small game |
How many deer are taken in Chisago County?
The DNR counts deer by permit area, not by county. Chisago County lies in 4 permit areas; the largest share is in DPA 225 (50.1% of the county). Each figure below is for the whole permit area.
| DPA | Share of the county | Deer harvested in the whole DPA | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| DPA 225 | 50.1% | 5,598 | 2025 |
| DPA 236 | 44.2% | 2,388 | 2025 |
| DPA 235 | 3.1% | 191 | 2025 |
| DPA 227 | 2.6% | 4,198 | 2025 |
Harvest: Minnesota DNR Deer Harvest Reports (2021 to 2025, 2025 report). Share of the county measured by FilledTag from the DNR's deer permit areas and the Census county line.
How do you get around Chisago County?
Highways: I-35 (about 60 miles in the county), US 61 (about 58 miles in the county), MN 95 (about 29 miles in the county) and US 8 (about 20 miles in the county). Towns: North Branch, Stacy, Wyoming, Harris, Chisago City, Rush City, Taylors Falls and Lindstrom.
Questions hunters ask
What is the largest public land in Chisago County besides the WMAs?
By PAD-US 4.1: Lower Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway (1,260 acres in the county), Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway (1,141 acres in the county) and Chengwatana State Forest (234 acres in the county). The largest kind of public land here is state wildlife management areas, 10,630 acres.
What is the largest WMA in Chisago County?
Carlos Avery WMA, with 8,716 acres inside the county. The county has 5 WMAs in all.
Does Chisago County have Walk-In Access land?
Not on the DNR's 2026 Walk-In Access map. The program is mostly in western and southern Minnesota.
Which deer permit area is Chisago County in?
DPA 225 (50.1%), DPA 236 (44.2%), DPA 235 (3.1%) and DPA 227 (2.6%). Bag limits and firearms dates follow the permit area.
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Where these numbers come from
- Public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public). Wildlife Management Areas: Minnesota DNR Wildlife Management Area boundaries, publicly accessible. Walk-In Access: Minnesota DNR Walk-In Access sites.
- Deer harvest: Minnesota DNR Deer Harvest Reports (2021 to 2025, 2025 report).
- County line: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 cartographic county boundaries. Highways and towns: U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024 primary and secondary roads.
FilledTag is not part of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Numbers are copied from the DNR and the federal sources above, or measured from their maps.
Minnesota hunting DPA 225 DPA 236 DPA 235 DPA 227 Pine County Anoka County Isanti County Kanabec County Washington County