Ward County, North Dakota: PLOTS, WMAs and public hunting land
Ward County has 19,948 acres of PLOTS, private land open to walk-in hunting, inside its line (70 tracts centered in the county), 1 wildlife management area with 40 acres, and 31,108 acres of other public land, by the 2026 maps NDGF publishes. Together that is 3.9% of the county's 1,315,844 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)Ward CountyNeighboring countiesLake or riverHighway
| Size | 1,315,844 acres (2,056 square miles) |
|---|---|
| PLOTS land inside the county line | 19,948 acres |
| PLOTS tracts centered in the county | 70 |
| Wildlife management areas | 1, 40 acres |
| Other public land | 31,108 acres |
| State trust land open to walk-in hunting | 10,799 acres (Trust Lands) |
| Deer units | Deer unit 3A3, Deer unit 3A2, Deer unit 2K1, Deer unit 3A4 |
| Towns | Minot, Surrey, Burlington, Kenmare and Berthold |
How much PLOTS walk-in land is in Ward County?
19,948 acres inside the county line, 1.5% of the county; 70 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 Ward County?
One WMA:
- Foxholm WMA: 40 acres
How much public land is in Ward County?
2.4% of the county is public land: 31,148 acres, counting the WMAs. The largest share is national wildlife refuge, 13,456 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of the county |
|---|---|---|
| PLOTS (private land open to hunting) | 19,948 | 1.5% |
| National wildlife refuge (rules vary) | 13,456 | 1% |
| State trust land | 10,864 | 0.8% |
| Waterfowl production area | 6,621 | 0.5% |
| BLM | 167 | under 0.1% |
| NDGF wildlife management area | 40 | under 0.1% |
State trust land by the access status the Department of Trust Lands gives each tract (the department's own acres): 10,799 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 Ward County?
Each unit's 2026 lottery, for the whole unit:
| Unit | Acres in the county | Share of the county | Licenses, 2026 | Applicants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deer unit 3A3 | 755,233 | 57.4% | 2,500 | 3,269 |
| Deer unit 3A2 | 202,695 | 15.4% | 2,400 | 1,887 |
| Deer unit 2K1 | 184,775 | 14% | 1,500 | 1,969 |
| Deer unit 3A4 | 173,141 | 13.2% | 2,000 | 3,075 |
Lottery: NDGF deer lottery statistics; NDGF pronghorn lottery statistics; NDGF elk lottery statistics.
How do you get around Ward County?
Highways: US 52 (about 93 miles in the county), US 2 (about 93 miles in the county), US 83 (about 79 miles in the county), ND 23 (about 43 miles in the county), ND 28 (about 19 miles in the county) and ND 53 (about 17 miles in the county). Towns: Minot, Surrey, Burlington, Kenmare, Berthold, Donnybrook, Carpio, Makoti and 8 more.
How do the counties around Ward compare?
| County | PLOTS acres | PLOTS tracts | WMA acres | Other public acres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burke | 33,891 | 150 | 528 | 51,123 |
| McHenry | 19,631 | 85 | 1,132 | 68,154 |
| McLean | 34,694 | 163 | 30,311 | 172,650 |
| Mountrail | 15,528 | 48 | 5,055 | 111,672 |
| Renville | 3,030 | 15 | 0 | 27,472 |
Questions hunters ask
How much PLOTS land is in Ward County?
NDGF's 2026 PLOTS map shows 70 tracts centered in Ward County, covering 19,948 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 Ward County?
Yes, 1: Foxholm (40 acres).
Which deer units are in Ward County?
Unit 3A3 (57.4% of the county), unit 3A2 (15.4% of the county), unit 2K1 (14% of the county) and unit 3A4 (13.2% of the county), by NDGF's unit map.
Can you hunt state trust land in Ward County?
Yes, where it is open. The Department of Trust Lands lists 10,799 acres as open in Ward 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.
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