Adams County, Ohio: deer harvest and public hunting land
Adams County covers 586 square miles around West Union. Hunters checked 3,895 deer here in the 2025-26 season, 1,979 of them by archers, by the Division of Wildlife's final report. That is up 7% from 2024, and the most in the 4 years shown. 6.5% of Adams County is public land open to the public, the largest share land on ODNR's hunting map (22,184 acres), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and ODNR's land boundaries.
Data updated October 2026. Harvest: the Division of Wildlife's harvest reports, 2021-22 to 2025-26. Land: PAD-US 4.1 and ODNR's land layer.
Land on ODNR's hunting mapOther state landMetro parks, county and city landLand trusts and other open landAdams CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 375,221 acres (586 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer checked, 2025-26 | 3,895 (1,679 antlered, 2,216 antlerless) |
| Archery and gun, 2025-26 | 1,979 archery, 1,916 gun |
| Public land | 6.5% (24,564 acres) |
| ODNR hunting areas | 5 (22,182 acres inside Adams County) |
| Towns in and near it | West Union, Winchester, Manchester, Sinking Spring, Rarden and Aberdeen |
How many deer are harvested in Adams County?
Hunters checked 3,895 deer in Adams County in 2025-26: 1,679 antlered and 2,216 antlerless. Archers took 1,979 and gun hunters 1,916.
| Season | Deer checked | Antlered | Antlerless | Archery | Gun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 3,895 | 1,679 | 2,216 | 1,979 | 1,916 |
| 2024-25 | 3,637 | 1,624 | 2,013 | 1,777 | 1,860 |
| 2023-24 | 3,100 | 1,422 | 1,678 | 1,590 | |
| 2021-22 | 3,138 |
Source: the Division of Wildlife's 2025-26, 2024-25 and 2023-24 final deer harvest reports and Publication 5304 (2021-22), Adams County. 2022-23 is not shown. For 2021-22 Publication 5304 gives 1,503 bucks, 1,404 does and 231 button bucks; the final reports of later seasons count bucks with shed or very short antlers as antlerless.
How much public land is in Adams County?
24,564 of Adams County's 375,221 acres are public land open to the public (6.5%). The biggest share is land on ODNR's hunting map: 22,184 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Adams County |
|---|---|---|
| Land on ODNR's hunting map | 22,184 | 5.9% |
| Other state land | 1,442 | 0.4% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 909 | 0.2% |
| Metro parks, county and city land | 28 | under 0.1% |
| National wildlife refuges | 1 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 24,564 | 6.5% |
Measured by FilledTag inside the county line from USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and ODNR's land boundaries with hunting status. Hunting rules differ by manager: ODNR wildlife areas, hunting areas and forests marked open follow Ohio's statewide seasons, and those marked restricted limit hunting by place, season or permit; national forest is open; refuges follow U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rules; Corps of Engineers lake land is open in many places under each project's own rules; metro parks and city land are closed to most hunting.
ODNR areas open to hunting in Adams County
ODNR areas open to hunting in Adams County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Shawnee State Forest: 12,681 acres
- Brush Creek Forest: 4,706 acres
- Tranquility Wildlife Area: 4,553 acres
- Edge of Appalachia Preserve System: 145 acres
- Adams Lake State Park: 97 acres
How do you get to Adams County?
Highways through it: OH 32 (about 50 miles inside), OH 41 (about 35 miles inside), US 52 (about 29 miles inside), OH 125 (about 26 miles inside) and OH 136 (about 25 miles inside). Towns inside: West Union, Winchester, Manchester, Peebles, Seaman and Bentonville. Nearby: Sinking Spring (on the line), Rarden (on the line), Aberdeen (4 miles) and Otway (4 miles).
Which counties border Adams County?
Adams County touches 4 other counties. Their latest ODNR harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pike County | 2,156 | 2025 | 5.2% |
| Brown County | 3,023 | 2025 | 1.5% |
| Scioto County | 2,576 | 2025 | 18.8% |
| Highland County | 3,389 | 2025 | 5% |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Adams County in 2025-26?
3,895: 1,679 antlered and 2,216 antlerless (Division of Wildlife). In 2024-25: 3,637.
Is there public hunting land in Adams County?
24,564 acres, 6.5% of the county, are public land open to the public by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and ODNR's land boundaries, the largest share land on ODNR's hunting map (22,184 acres). ODNR's layer shows 5 areas open to hunting here.
How many deer do archers take in Adams County?
1,979 of the 3,895 deer checked in 2025-26 were taken with a crossbow or longbow (Division of Wildlife).
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Where these numbers come from
- Deer harvest: the Division of Wildlife's 2025-26, 2024-25 and 2023-24 final deer harvest reports and Publication 5304 (2021-22).
- Public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and ODNR's land boundaries with hunting status. ODNR areas open to hunting: ODNR lands hunting status.
- Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 cartographic county boundaries. Highways and towns: U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024 primary and secondary roads; U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer, places.
FilledTag is not part of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Wildlife. Numbers are copied from ODNR and the federal sources above, or measured from their maps; nothing on this page is estimated by FilledTag.
Ohio hunting Pike County Brown County Scioto County Highland County