Steele County, Minnesota: public hunting land
Steele County has 4,203 acres of public land open to the public, 1.5% of the county, the largest share state wildlife management areas (2,347 acres), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public). The DNR's map shows 11 wildlife management areas here covering 2,331 acres, the largest Aurora WMA (897 acres in the county). Deer here are counted by deer permit area: DPA 232 (745 deer in 2025), DPA 233 (652 deer in 2025), DPA 254 (1,373 deer in 2025) and DPA 293 (775 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 areasState parksCounty, city and regional landSteele CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 276,622 acres (432 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Public land | 1.5% (4,203 acres) |
| WMAs | 11 (2,331 acres) |
| Walk-In Access | None mapped this year |
| Deer permit areas | DPA 232, DPA 233, DPA 254, DPA 293 |
| Towns | Owatonna, Blooming Prairie, Medford, Ellendale, Geneva and Claremont |
How much public hunting land is in Steele County?
4,203 of the county's 276,622 acres are public land open to the public (1.5%). 3,247 acres of that are state wildlife, state forest or federal land, where hunting is the rule rather than the exception.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Steele County |
|---|---|---|
| State wildlife management areas | 2,347 | 0.8% |
| National wildlife refuges and waterfowl production areas | 881 | 0.3% |
| State parks | 528 | 0.2% |
| County, city and regional land | 428 | 0.2% |
| State forest and other DNR land | 19 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 4,203 | 1.5% |
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 Steele County by PAD-US, besides the WMAs: Steele County Waterfowl Production Area (882 acres) and Kaplans Woods Park (157 acres).
Which wildlife management areas are in Steele County?
11, largest first.
| WMA | Acres in the county | DNR lists for hunting |
|---|---|---|
| Aurora WMA | 897 | deer, wild turkey, pheasants, ducks and geese, mourning doves and small game |
| Somerset WMA | 440 | deer, wild turkey, pheasants, ducks and geese, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds and mourning doves |
| Swan WMA | 238 | wild turkey, pheasants, ducks and geese and small game |
| Straight River WMA | 198 | deer, wild turkey, pheasants, ducks and geese, mourning doves and small game |
| Faribault WMA | 159 | deer, wild turkey, pheasants, ducks and geese, mourning doves and small game |
| Prairie Rose WMA | 118 | deer, wild turkey, pheasants, ducks and geese, mourning doves and small game |
| Pogones Marsh WMA | 113 | deer, wild turkey, pheasants, ducks and geese, mourning doves and small game |
| Oak Glen WMA | 87 | deer, wild turkey, pheasants, mourning doves and small game |
| Marsh Wren WMA | 40 | deer, wild turkey, pheasants, mourning doves and small game |
| Chapa-kak-say-za WMA | 21 | |
| Little Fawn WMA | 20 | deer, pheasants, mourning doves and small game |
How many deer are taken in Steele County?
The DNR counts deer by permit area, not by county. Steele County lies in 4 permit areas; the largest share is in DPA 232 (59.3% 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 232 | 59.3% | 745 | 2025 |
| DPA 233 | 28.1% | 652 | 2025 |
| DPA 254 | 7.6% | 1,373 | 2025 |
| DPA 293 | 5% | 775 | 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 Steele County?
Highways: I-35 (about 49 miles in the county), US 14 (about 36 miles in the county), US 218 (about 22 miles in the county) and MN 30 (about 18 miles in the county). Towns: Owatonna, Blooming Prairie, Medford and Ellendale.
Questions hunters ask
What is the largest public land in Steele County besides the WMAs?
By PAD-US 4.1: Steele County Waterfowl Production Area (882 acres in the county) and Kaplans Woods Park (157 acres in the county). The largest kind of public land here is state wildlife management areas, 2,347 acres.
What is the largest WMA in Steele County?
Aurora WMA, with 897 acres inside the county. The county has 11 WMAs in all.
Does Steele 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 Steele County in?
DPA 232 (59.3%), DPA 233 (28.1%), DPA 254 (7.6%) and DPA 293 (5%). 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 232 DPA 233 DPA 254 DPA 293 Rice County Dodge County Mower County Waseca County Freeborn County