Adams County, North Dakota: PLOTS, WMAs and public hunting land
Adams County has 26,573 acres of PLOTS, private land open to walk-in hunting, inside its line (108 tracts centered in the county), 3 wildlife management areas with 624 acres, and 17,204 acres of other public land, by the 2026 maps NDGF publishes. Together that is 7% of the county's 632,768 acres.
Data updated October 2026. PLOTS, WMAs, trust land and federal land: NDGF map layers, 2026. Lottery: NDGF 2026.
NDGF wildlife management areaBLMState trust landPLOTS (private land open to hunting)Adams CountyNeighboring countiesLake or riverHighway
| Size | 632,768 acres (989 square miles) |
|---|---|
| PLOTS land inside the county line | 26,573 acres |
| PLOTS tracts centered in the county | 108 |
| Wildlife management areas | 3, 624 acres |
| Other public land | 17,204 acres |
| State trust land open to walk-in hunting | 16,492 acres (Trust Lands) |
| Deer units | Deer unit 3F1, Deer unit 3F2 |
| Pronghorn units | Pronghorn unit 06A, Pronghorn unit 05A, Pronghorn unit 04C |
| Towns | Hettinger, Reeder, Bucyrus and Haynes |
How much PLOTS walk-in land is in Adams County?
26,573 acres inside the county line, 4.2% of the county; 108 PLOTS tracts are centered in the county. PLOTS (Private Land Open To Sportsmen) is private land the owner has opened to walk-in hunting through NDGF. The NDGF PLOTS Guide map (2026) shows each tract.
Which wildlife management areas are in Adams County?
3 WMAs, 624 acres in all, largest first:
- Schotzko WMA: 480 acres
- North Lemmon Lake WMA: 108 acres
- Dog Town WMA: 36 acres
How much public land is in Adams County?
2.8% of the county is public land: 17,828 acres, counting the WMAs. The largest share is state trust land, 17,164 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of the county |
|---|---|---|
| PLOTS (private land open to hunting) | 26,573 | 4.2% |
| State trust land | 17,164 | 2.7% |
| NDGF wildlife management area | 624 | 0.1% |
| BLM | 40 | under 0.1% |
State trust land by the access status the Department of Trust Lands gives each tract (the department's own acres): 16,492 acres open and 606 acres closed.
Measured by FilledTag inside the Census county line from NDGF PLOTS Guide map layers (WMAs, PLOTS, trust land, federal land); overlapping maps are counted once.
Which hunting units are in Adams County?
Each unit's 2026 lottery, for the whole unit:
| Unit | Acres in the county | Share of the county | Licenses, 2026 | Applicants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deer unit 3F1 | 373,580 | 59% | 1,300 | 897 |
| Deer unit 3F2 | 259,097 | 40.9% | 2,800 | 1,641 |
| Pronghorn unit 06A | 259,112 | 40.9% | 160 | 1,017 |
| Pronghorn unit 05A | 252,485 | 39.9% | 100 | 607 |
| Pronghorn unit 04C | 121,096 | 19.1% | 50 | 322 |
Lottery: NDGF deer lottery statistics; NDGF pronghorn lottery statistics; NDGF elk lottery statistics.
How do you get around Adams County?
Highways: US 12 (about 33 miles in the county), ND 22 (about 28 miles in the county) and ND 8 (about 26 miles in the county). Towns: Hettinger, Reeder, Bucyrus and Haynes.
How do the counties around Adams compare?
| County | PLOTS acres | PLOTS tracts | WMA acres | Other public acres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bowman | 28,379 | 79 | 1,044 | 68,418 |
| Grant | 35,179 | 105 | 480 | 44,995 |
| Hettinger | 18,227 | 83 | 1,170 | 11,379 |
| Sioux | 18,036 | 23 | 297 | 55,844 |
| Slope | 55,441 | 71 | 964 | 165,081 |
Questions hunters ask
How much PLOTS land is in Adams County?
NDGF's 2026 PLOTS map shows 108 tracts centered in Adams County, covering 26,573 acres inside the county line. PLOTS is private land the owner has opened to walk-in hunting; NDGF's PLOTS Guide shows each tract and its rules.
Are there wildlife management areas in Adams County?
Yes, 3: Schotzko (480 acres), North Lemmon Lake (108 acres) and Dog Town (36 acres).
Which deer units are in Adams County?
Unit 3F1 (59% of the county) and unit 3F2 (40.9% of the county), by NDGF's unit map.
Can you hunt state trust land in Adams County?
Yes, where it is open. The Department of Trust Lands lists 16,492 acres as open and 606 acres as closed in Adams County. Its map shows each tract's status.
Get a North Dakota hunt plan when they open
Hunt plans for North Dakota are coming. Join the list and you'll hear first. The first 50 hunters in each new state get their plan free.
Until then, the free FilledTag app for iPhone has a map that works in every state, North Dakota included.
Where these numbers come from
- PLOTS, WMAs, trust land and federal land: NDGF PLOTS Guide map layers (WMAs, PLOTS, trust land, federal land); NDGF PLOTS Guide map (2026).
- Units and lottery: NDGF hunting unit maps; NDGF deer lottery statistics.
- County line, highways and towns: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 boundaries, TIGER/Line and Gazetteer.
FilledTag is not part of the North Dakota Game and Fish Department. PLOTS tracts change each year; check NDGF's current PLOTS Guide before you go.
North Dakota hunting Bowman County Grant County Hettinger County Sioux County Slope County