Roseau County, Minnesota: public hunting land
Roseau County has 207,276 acres of public land open to the public, 19.3% of the county, the largest share state wildlife management areas (114,115 acres), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public). The DNR's map shows 28 wildlife management areas here covering 113,685 acres, the largest Roseau River WMA (75,111 acres in the county). Deer here are counted by deer permit area: DPA 105 (2,485 deer in 2025), DPA 267 (772 deer in 2025), DPA 201 (270 deer in 2025) and DPA 268 (801 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 landNational wildlife refuges and waterfowl production areasLand trusts and other open landRoseau CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 1,074,039 acres (1,678 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Public land | 19.3% (207,276 acres) |
| WMAs | 28 (113,685 acres) |
| Walk-In Access | None mapped this year |
| Deer permit areas | DPA 105, DPA 267, DPA 201, DPA 268, DPA 263, DPA 101, DPA 111, DPA 264 |
| Towns | Warroad, Roseau, Greenbush, Badger, Strandquist and Karlstad |
How much public hunting land is in Roseau County?
207,276 of the county's 1,074,039 acres are public land open to the public (19.3%). 206,655 acres of that are state wildlife, state forest or federal land, where hunting is the rule rather than the exception.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Roseau County |
|---|---|---|
| State wildlife management areas | 114,115 | 10.6% |
| State forest and other DNR land | 64,328 | 6% |
| National wildlife refuges and waterfowl production areas | 28,212 | 2.6% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 546 | 0.1% |
| County, city and regional land | 75 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 207,276 | 19.3% |
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 Roseau County by PAD-US, besides the WMAs: Lost River State Forest (51,999 acres) and Beltrami Wildlife Management Area (28,215 acres).
Which wildlife management areas are in Roseau County?
28, largest first.
| WMA | Acres in the county | DNR lists for hunting |
|---|---|---|
| Roseau River WMA | 75,111 | deer, ducks and geese, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, sharp-tailed grouse, bear and small game |
| Palmville WMA | 13,502 | deer, ducks and geese, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, sharp-tailed grouse, bear and small game |
| Nereson WMA | 9,861 | deer, ducks and geese, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, sharp-tailed grouse, bear and small game |
| Roseau Lake WMA | 8,023 | deer, ducks and geese, sharp-tailed grouse and small game |
| Cedar Bend WMA | 1,473 | deer, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, sharp-tailed grouse, bear and small game |
| South Shore WMA | 1,160 | deer, ducks and geese, sharp-tailed grouse and small game |
| Skime WMA | 870 | deer, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, bear and small game |
| Bonasa WMA | 847 | |
| Lind WMA | 653 | deer, sharp-tailed grouse and small game |
| Border WMA | 385 | deer, ducks and geese, sharp-tailed grouse, bear and small game |
| Polonia WMA | 357 | deer, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, bear and small game |
| Bear Creek WMA | 285 | deer, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, sharp-tailed grouse, bear and small game |
| Hereim WMA | 184 | deer, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, bear and small game |
| Ondatra WMA | 122 | deer, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, sharp-tailed grouse, bear and small game |
| Taxidae WMA | 121 | deer, sharp-tailed grouse and bear |
| Marbel WMA | 86 | deer, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, bear and small game |
| R.C. #3 WMA | 81 | deer, sharp-tailed grouse and small game |
| Clear River WMA | 80 | deer, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, bear and small game |
| Wannaska WMA | 79 | deer, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, bear and small game |
| Enstrom WMA | 79 | deer, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, sharp-tailed grouse, bear and small game |
| Moose Marsh WMA | 77 | deer, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, sharp-tailed grouse, bear and small game |
| Hayes WMA | 74 | deer, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, bear and small game |
| East Branch WMA | 39 | deer, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, bear and small game |
| Rosver WMA | 37 | deer, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, sharp-tailed grouse, bear and small game |
| Beaches Lake WMA | 37 | deer, ducks and geese, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, sharp-tailed grouse, bear and small game |
| Deer WMA | 35 | deer, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds and small game |
| Thief Lake WMA | 19 | deer, ducks and geese, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, sharp-tailed grouse, bear and small game |
| Grimstad WMA | 8 | deer, ducks and geese and small game |
How many deer are taken in Roseau County?
The DNR counts deer by permit area, not by county. Roseau County lies in 8 permit areas; the largest share is in DPA 105 (28.3% 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 105 | 28.3% | 2,485 | 2025 |
| DPA 267 | 28.1% | 772 | 2025 |
| DPA 201 | 10.1% | 270 | 2025 |
| DPA 268 | 7.5% | 801 | 2025 |
| DPA 263 | 7.4% | 1,024 | 2025 |
| DPA 101 | 7.3% | 759 | 2025 |
| DPA 111 | 6.2% | 412 | 2025 |
| DPA 264 | 5.1% | 1,995 | 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 Roseau County?
Highways: MN 11 (about 69 miles in the county), MN 89 (about 40 miles in the county), MN 32 (about 11 miles in the county), MN 310 (about 10 miles in the county) and MN 313 (about 6 miles in the county). Towns: Warroad, Roseau, Greenbush, Badger, Roosevelt and Strathcona.
Questions hunters ask
What is the largest public land in Roseau County besides the WMAs?
By PAD-US 4.1: Lost River State Forest (51,999 acres in the county) and Beltrami Wildlife Management Area (28,215 acres in the county). The largest kind of public land here is state wildlife management areas, 114,115 acres.
What is the largest WMA in Roseau County?
Roseau River WMA, with 75,111 acres inside the county. The county has 28 WMAs in all.
Does Roseau 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 Roseau County in?
DPA 105 (28.3%), DPA 267 (28.1%), DPA 201 (10.1%), DPA 268 (7.5%), DPA 263 (7.4%), DPA 101 (7.3%), DPA 111 (6.2%) and DPA 264 (5.1%). 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 105 DPA 267 DPA 201 DPA 268 DPA 263 DPA 101 DPA 111 DPA 264 Kittson County Beltrami County Marshall County Lake of the Woods County