Lorain County, Ohio: deer harvest and public hunting land
Lorain County covers 494 square miles around Lorain. Hunters checked 2,799 deer here in the 2025-26 season, 1,438 of them by archers, by the Division of Wildlife's final report. That is down 8% from 2024. 5.1% of Lorain County is public land open to the public, the largest share metro parks, county and city land (10,098 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 landLorain CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 316,260 acres (494 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer checked, 2025-26 | 2,799 (1,160 antlered, 1,639 antlerless) |
| Archery and gun, 2025-26 | 1,438 archery, 1,361 gun |
| Public land | 5.1% (16,160 acres) |
| ODNR hunting areas | 3 (1,608 acres inside Lorain County) |
| Towns in and near it | Lorain, North Ridgeville, Avon, Olmsted Falls, Berea and Westlake |
How many deer are harvested in Lorain County?
Hunters checked 2,799 deer in Lorain County in 2025-26: 1,160 antlered and 1,639 antlerless. Archers took 1,438 and gun hunters 1,361.
| Season | Deer checked | Antlered | Antlerless | Archery | Gun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 2,799 | 1,160 | 1,639 | 1,438 | 1,361 |
| 2024-25 | 3,040 | 1,258 | 1,782 | 1,554 | 1,486 |
| 2023-24 | 2,629 | 1,156 | 1,473 | 1,455 | |
| 2021-22 | 2,374 |
Source: the Division of Wildlife's 2025-26, 2024-25 and 2023-24 final deer harvest reports and Publication 5304 (2021-22), Lorain County. 2022-23 is not shown. For 2021-22 Publication 5304 gives 1,044 bucks, 1,091 does and 239 button bucks; the final reports of later seasons count bucks with shed or very short antlers as antlerless.
How much public land is in Lorain County?
16,160 of Lorain County's 316,260 acres are public land open to the public (5.1%). The biggest share is metro parks, county and city land: 10,098 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Lorain County |
|---|---|---|
| Metro parks, county and city land | 10,098 | 3.2% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 4,404 | 1.4% |
| Land on ODNR's hunting map | 1,608 | 0.5% |
| Other state land | 50 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 16,160 | 5.1% |
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 Lorain County
ODNR areas open to hunting in Lorain County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Findley State Park: 935 acres
- Camp Belden Wildlife Area: 470 acres
- Wellington Wildlife Area: 203 acres
How do you get to Lorain County?
Highways through it: I-90 (about 46 miles inside), OH 2 (about 45 miles inside), I-80 (about 41 miles inside), OH 57 (about 38 miles inside) and US 20 (about 35 miles inside). Towns inside: Lorain, North Ridgeville, Avon, Elyria, Avon Lake and Sheffield. Nearby: Olmsted Falls (on the line), Berea (2 miles), Westlake (2 miles) and Bay Village (2 miles).
Which counties border Lorain County?
Lorain County touches 5 other counties. Their latest ODNR harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land |
|---|---|---|---|
| Erie County | 1,161 | 2025 | 5.3% |
| Huron County | 3,520 | 2025 | 0.9% |
| Medina County | 3,133 | 2025 | 4.3% |
| Ashland County | 5,108 | 2025 | 3.8% |
| Cuyahoga County | 822 | 2025 | 9.6% |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Lorain County in 2025-26?
2,799: 1,160 antlered and 1,639 antlerless (Division of Wildlife). In 2024-25: 3,040.
Is there public hunting land in Lorain County?
16,160 acres, 5.1% of the county, are public land open to the public by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and ODNR's land boundaries, the largest share metro parks, county and city land (10,098 acres). ODNR's layer shows 3 areas open to hunting here.
How many deer do archers take in Lorain County?
1,438 of the 2,799 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 Erie County Huron County Medina County Ashland County Cuyahoga County