Geauga County, Ohio: deer harvest and public hunting land
Geauga County covers 408 square miles around Chardon. Hunters checked 3,215 deer here in the 2025-26 season, 1,887 of them by archers, by the Division of Wildlife's final report. That is up 15% from 2024, and the most in the 4 years shown. 10.1% of Geauga County is public land open to the public, the largest share land on ODNR's hunting map (10,684 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 mapNational park landOther state landMetro parks, county and city landLand trusts and other open landGeauga CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 261,378 acres (408 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer checked, 2025-26 | 3,215 (1,147 antlered, 2,068 antlerless) |
| Archery and gun, 2025-26 | 1,887 archery, 1,328 gun |
| Public land | 10.1% (26,502 acres) |
| ODNR hunting areas | 4 (10,684 acres inside Geauga County) |
| Towns in and near it | Chardon, South Russell, Middlefield, Chagrin Falls, Gates Mills and Bentleyville |
How many deer are harvested in Geauga County?
Hunters checked 3,215 deer in Geauga County in 2025-26: 1,147 antlered and 2,068 antlerless. Archers took 1,887 and gun hunters 1,328.
| Season | Deer checked | Antlered | Antlerless | Archery | Gun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 3,215 | 1,147 | 2,068 | 1,887 | 1,328 |
| 2024-25 | 2,790 | 994 | 1,796 | 1,566 | 1,224 |
| 2023-24 | 2,708 | 979 | 1,729 | 1,573 | |
| 2021-22 | 2,177 |
Source: the Division of Wildlife's 2025-26, 2024-25 and 2023-24 final deer harvest reports and Publication 5304 (2021-22), Geauga County. 2022-23 is not shown. For 2021-22 Publication 5304 gives 885 bucks, 989 does and 303 button bucks; the final reports of later seasons count bucks with shed or very short antlers as antlerless.
How much public land is in Geauga County?
26,502 of Geauga County's 261,378 acres are public land open to the public (10.1%). The biggest share is land on ODNR's hunting map: 10,684 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Geauga County |
|---|---|---|
| Land on ODNR's hunting map | 10,684 | 4.1% |
| Metro parks, county and city land | 9,601 | 3.7% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 5,309 | 2% |
| Other state land | 908 | 0.3% |
| All public land open to the public | 26,502 | 10.1% |
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 Geauga County
ODNR areas open to hunting in Geauga County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Ladue Hunting Area: 9,319 acres
- Hambden Orchard Wildlife Area: 840 acres
- Auburn Marsh Wildlife Area: 465 acres
- Aquilla Wildlife Area: 60 acres
How do you get to Geauga County?
Highways through it: US 422 (about 30 miles inside), OH 528 (about 23 miles inside), OH 44 (about 22 miles inside), OH 87 (about 21 miles inside) and US 322 (about 20 miles inside). Towns inside: Chardon, South Russell, Middlefield, Burton, Aquilla and Chesterland. Nearby: Chagrin Falls (on the line), Gates Mills (on the line), Bentleyville (on the line) and Hunting Valley (on the line).
Which counties border Geauga County?
Geauga County touches 6 other counties. Their latest ODNR harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lake County | 1,245 | 2025 | 8.5% |
| Summit County | 1,922 | 2025 | 14.3% |
| Portage County | 3,498 | 2025 | 8% |
| Cuyahoga County | 822 | 2025 | 9.6% |
| Trumbull County | 5,324 | 2025 | 9% |
| Ashtabula County | 7,161 | 2025 | 2.5% |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Geauga County in 2025-26?
3,215: 1,147 antlered and 2,068 antlerless (Division of Wildlife). In 2024-25: 2,790.
Is there public hunting land in Geauga County?
26,502 acres, 10.1% 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 (10,684 acres). ODNR's layer shows 4 areas open to hunting here.
How many deer do archers take in Geauga County?
1,887 of the 3,215 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 Lake County Summit County Portage County Cuyahoga County Trumbull County Ashtabula County