Prairie-Big Woods Wildlife Management Area: hunting and access
Prairie-Big Woods Wildlife Management Area is 282 acres of state land managed by the Minnesota DNR in Meeker County, near Cedar Mills, inside Deer Permit Area 685. The DNR's WMA data lists deer, wild turkey, pheasants, ducks and geese, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, mourning doves and small game for it.
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 areasOther federal landState parksPrairie-Big Woods WMACounty lineLakeHighway
| Size | 282 acres |
|---|---|
| County | Meeker County |
| Deer Permit Area | DPA 685 |
| DNR lists for hunting | deer, wild turkey, pheasants, ducks and geese, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, mourning doves and small game |
| Nearest town (DNR) | Cedar Mills |
| DNR area office | New London |
| Nearest towns | Cedar Mills (5 mi), Darwin (6 mi) and Litchfield (6 mi) |
What is Prairie-Big Woods WMA like?
This unit is a good multi-species WMA for public viewing/hunting with emphasis on local woodland species such as wild turkey and white-tail deer.
In addition to the turkey and deer hunting opportunities, there is good pheasant habitat on the former pasture and in the emergent wetland. The former cropland should yield excellent pheasant hunting habitat in pretty short order. Forest upland game birds are listed due to the possibility of connecting with local or migrant woodcock during the peak of the migration. This unit is a good multi-species WMA for public viewing/hunting. It is particularly good for wild turkey and white-tail deer. There are pheasant hunting opportunities on the former pasture and in the emergent wetland. The former cropland should yield excellent pheasant hunting habitat in pretty short order. Forest upland game birds are listed due to the possibility of connecting with local or migrant woodcock during the peak of the migration.
In the DNR's words, from its wildlife management area data.
What can you hunt on Prairie-Big Woods WMA?
The DNR's WMA data lists deer, wild turkey, pheasants, ducks and geese, ruffed grouse and other forest upland birds, mourning doves and small game for Prairie-Big Woods WMA. Each follows the statewide season and, for deer, the bag limit of the permit area.
What are the rules on Prairie-Big Woods WMA?
Open to hunting and trapping in the regular seasons under the DNR's statewide WMA rules.
How many deer are taken around Prairie-Big Woods WMA?
Prairie-Big Woods WMA lies in Deer Permit Area 685.
| DPA | Prairie-Big Woods WMA acres in it |
|---|---|
| DPA 685 | 282 |
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 Prairie-Big Woods WMA?
Travel 1 mile east of Cedar Mills on St. Hwy 7. Take a left and proceed to head north on St. Hwy. 22 for 3.5 miles. Take a right onto County Road 18 and travel east for 1 mile. Take a left onto 640th Ave and proceed north for 2 miles. Destination will be on the left (west).
There is an approach 1/4 mile south of the NE corner of the WMA, which is the intersection of 640th Ave and 195th St.
Nearest towns: Cedar Mills (5 miles), Darwin (6 miles), Litchfield (6 miles) and Dassel (9 miles). Highways within 5 miles: MN 22.
What other public land is near Prairie-Big Woods WMA?
DNR WMAs within 10 miles:
- Provencher WMA: 86 acres, 1.7 miles away
- Minnie-Man WMA: 41 acres, 1.8 miles away
- Greenleaf WMA: 437 acres, 3.9 miles away
- Mahlon W. James Memorial WMA: 59 acres, 5.3 miles away
- Thoen Lake WMA: 155 acres, 7 miles away
- Hen Haven WMA: 40 acres, 7.7 miles away
Public land within 3 miles of Prairie-Big Woods WMA
Counting Prairie-Big Woods WMA itself, 1,396 of the 25,560 acres within 3 miles of its boundary are public land open to the public (5.5%), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public).
| Manager | Acres within 3 miles |
|---|---|
| National wildlife refuges and waterfowl production areas | 561 |
| State wildlife management areas | 427 |
| State parks | 384 |
| Other federal land | 24 |
Questions hunters ask
Where is Prairie-Big Woods WMA?
In Meeker County, near Cedar Mills. The DNR's directions: Travel 1 mile east of Cedar Mills on St. Hwy 7. Take a left and proceed to head north on St. Hwy. 22 for 3.5 miles. Take a right onto County Road 18 and travel east for 1 mile. Take a left onto 640th Ave and proceed north for 2 miles. Destination will be on the left (west).
Which deer permit area is Prairie-Big Woods WMA in?
Deer Permit Area 685. Its bag limit and firearms dates apply.
How much public land is around Prairie-Big Woods WMA?
1,396 acres within 3 miles of its boundary, Prairie-Big Woods WMA included, by PAD-US 4.1. 6 other WMAs are within 10 miles, the closest Provencher WMA (1.7 miles).
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Where these facts come from
- Area description, species, rules and directions: DNR, Prairie-Big Woods 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.