Kidder County, North Dakota: PLOTS, WMAs and public hunting land
Kidder County has 21,021 acres of PLOTS, private land open to walk-in hunting, inside its line (73 tracts centered in the county), 10 wildlife management areas with 4,749 acres, and 43,844 acres of other public land, by the 2026 maps NDGF publishes. Together that is 7.6% of the county's 917,001 acres.
Data updated October 2026. PLOTS, WMAs, trust land and federal land: NDGF map layers, 2026. Lottery: NDGF 2026.
NDGF wildlife management areaWaterfowl production areaNational wildlife refuge (rules vary)BLMState trust landPLOTS (private land open to hunting)Kidder CountyNeighboring countiesLake or riverHighway
| Size | 917,001 acres (1,433 square miles) |
|---|---|
| PLOTS land inside the county line | 21,021 acres |
| PLOTS tracts centered in the county | 73 |
| Wildlife management areas | 10, 4,749 acres |
| Other public land | 43,844 acres |
| State trust land open to walk-in hunting | 28,644 acres (Trust Lands) |
| Deer units | Deer unit 2J2, Deer unit 2I, Deer unit 2J1 |
| Towns | Tappen, Steele, Dawson, Tuttle and Pettibone |
How much PLOTS walk-in land is in Kidder County?
21,021 acres inside the county line, 2.3% of the county; 73 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 Kidder County?
10 WMAs, 4,749 acres in all, largest first:
- Dawson WMA: 2,938 acres
- Haven Hills WMA: 590 acres
- Horsehead Lake WMA: 528 acres
- Tappen Slough WMA: 258 acres
- McPhail Slough WMA: 164 acres
- Frettim Township WMA: 86 acres
- Tuttle WMA: 81 acres
- Lake Williams WMA: 48 acres
- Mallard Marsh WMA: 41 acres
- Alkaline Lake WMA: 15 acres
How much public land is in Kidder County?
5.3% of the county is public land: 48,594 acres, counting the WMAs. The largest share is state trust land, 28,757 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of the county |
|---|---|---|
| State trust land | 28,757 | 3.1% |
| PLOTS (private land open to hunting) | 21,021 | 2.3% |
| Waterfowl production area | 8,165 | 0.9% |
| National wildlife refuge (rules vary) | 6,854 | 0.7% |
| NDGF wildlife management area | 4,750 | 0.5% |
| BLM | 68 | under 0.1% |
State trust land by the access status the Department of Trust Lands gives each tract (the department's own acres): 28,644 acres open.
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 Kidder County?
Each unit's 2026 lottery, for the whole unit:
| Unit | Acres in the county | Share of the county | Licenses, 2026 | Applicants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deer unit 2J2 | 450,388 | 49.1% | 1,100 | 1,799 |
| Deer unit 2I | 319,242 | 34.8% | 1,200 | 2,200 |
| Deer unit 2J1 | 147,372 | 16.1% | 900 | 1,372 |
Lottery: NDGF deer lottery statistics; NDGF pronghorn lottery statistics; NDGF elk lottery statistics.
How do you get around Kidder County?
Highways: ND 3 (about 66 miles in the county), I-94 (about 61 miles in the county) and ND 36 (about 30 miles in the county). Towns: Tappen, Steele, Dawson, Tuttle, Pettibone and Robinson.
How do the counties around Kidder compare?
| County | PLOTS acres | PLOTS tracts | WMA acres | Other public acres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burleigh | 56,293 | 131 | 13,288 | 54,594 |
| Emmons | 24,546 | 93 | 4,228 | 45,735 |
| Logan | 10,037 | 52 | 597 | 21,642 |
| Sheridan | 24,551 | 100 | 28,151 | 42,970 |
| Stutsman | 26,869 | 102 | 2,907 | 71,505 |
| Wells | 23,307 | 88 | 11,854 | 17,525 |
Questions hunters ask
How much PLOTS land is in Kidder County?
NDGF's 2026 PLOTS map shows 73 tracts centered in Kidder County, covering 21,021 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 Kidder County?
Yes, 10: Dawson (2,938 acres), Haven Hills (590 acres), Horsehead Lake (528 acres), Tappen Slough (258 acres), McPhail Slough (164 acres) and Frettim Township (86 acres), and 4 more.
Which deer units are in Kidder County?
Unit 2J2 (49.1% of the county), unit 2I (34.8% of the county) and unit 2J1 (16.1% of the county), by NDGF's unit map.
Can you hunt state trust land in Kidder County?
Yes, where it is open. The Department of Trust Lands lists 28,644 acres as open in Kidder County, and none closed. 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 Burleigh County Emmons County Logan County Sheridan County Stutsman County Wells County