Expandere Wildlife Management Area: hunting and access
Expandere Wildlife Management Area is 1,178 acres of state land managed by the Minnesota DNR in Cottonwood County, near Storden, inside Deer Permit Areas 238 and 295. The DNR's WMA data lists deer, pheasants, ducks and geese, mourning doves and small game for it. Hunters registered 114 deer in DPA 238 in 2025.
Data updated October 2026. Area facts: the DNR's wildlife management area data, read 2026-10. Harvest: DNR Deer Harvest Reports, 2021 to 2025.
State wildlife management areasNational wildlife refuges and waterfowl production areasExpandere WMACounty lineLakeHighway
| Size | 1,178 acres in 3 pieces |
|---|---|
| County | Cottonwood County |
| Deer Permit Area | DPA 238, DPA 295 |
| DNR lists for hunting | deer, pheasants, ducks and geese, mourning doves and small game |
| Nearest town (DNR) | Storden |
| DNR area office | Windom |
| Nearest towns | Storden (6 mi), Westbrook (6 mi) and Dundee (7 mi) |
What can you hunt on Expandere WMA?
The DNR's WMA data lists deer, pheasants, ducks and geese, mourning doves and small game for Expandere WMA. Each follows the statewide season and, for deer, the bag limit of the permit area.
What are the rules on Expandere WMA?
Open to hunting and trapping in the regular seasons under the DNR's statewide WMA rules.
How many deer are taken around Expandere WMA?
Expandere WMA lies in 2 deer permit areas. The DNR registered 114 deer in DPA 238 in 2025, against 104 in 2024.
| DPA | Expandere WMA acres in it | Deer, 2025 | Deer, 2024 | Deer, 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DPA 238 | 1,011 | 114 | 104 | 116 |
| DPA 295 | 167 | 904 | 835 | 827 |
Harvest for the whole deer permit area, not the WMA alone: Minnesota DNR Deer Harvest Reports (2021 to 2025, 2025 report).
How do you get to Expandere WMA?
From Storden, go 8 miles S on CSAH 5 then 1 mile W on TWN RD. From Storden, go 6 miles south on CSAH 5, then 3 miles west on CSAH 13.
Nearest towns: Storden (6 miles), Westbrook (6 miles), Dundee (7 miles) and Heron Lake (7 miles). Highways within 5 miles: MN 62.
What other public land is near Expandere WMA?
DNR WMAs within 10 miles:
- Pats Pasture WMA: 318 acres, 2.1 miles away
- Talcot Lake WMA: 5,319 acres, 3.1 miles away
- Winkler WMA: 119 acres, 4 miles away
- Cotton-Jack WMA: 254 acres, 4.6 miles away
- Voit WMA: 47 acres, 5 miles away
- Highwater Creek WMA: 80 acres, 6.4 miles away
Public land within 3 miles of Expandere WMA
Counting Expandere WMA itself, 1,707 of the 41,556 acres within 3 miles of its boundary are public land open to the public (4.1%), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public).
| Manager | Acres within 3 miles |
|---|---|
| State wildlife management areas | 1,471 |
| National wildlife refuges and waterfowl production areas | 236 |
Questions hunters ask
Where is Expandere WMA?
In Cottonwood County, near Storden. The DNR's directions: From Storden, go 8 miles S on CSAH 5 then 1 mile W on TWN RD. From Storden, go 6 miles south on CSAH 5, then 3 miles west on CSAH 13.
Which deer permit area is Expandere WMA in?
DPA 238 (1,011 acres) and DPA 295 (167 acres). Each part follows its own permit area's bag limit.
How much public land is around Expandere WMA?
1,707 acres within 3 miles of its boundary, Expandere WMA included, by PAD-US 4.1. 6 other WMAs are within 10 miles, the closest Pats Pasture WMA (2.1 miles).
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Where these facts come from
- Area description, species, rules and directions: DNR, Expandere WMA; Minnesota DNR Wildlife Management Area boundaries, publicly accessible.
- Boundary and acres: the DNR's map layer above. Surrounding public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public).
- Deer harvest: Minnesota DNR Deer Harvest Reports (2021 to 2025, 2025 report).
FilledTag is not part of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Check the DNR's rules and posted signs before you go.