Ross County, Ohio: deer harvest and public hunting land
Ross County covers 693 square miles around Chillicothe. Hunters checked 3,402 deer here in the 2025-26 season, 1,532 of them by archers, by the Division of Wildlife's final report. That is up 2% from 2024, and the most in the 4 years shown. 7.6% of Ross County is public land open to the public, the largest share land on ODNR's hunting map (30,521 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 mapFederal land, mostly Corps of Engineers lakesNational park landOther state landMetro parks, county and city landLand trusts and other open landRoss CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 443,597 acres (693 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer checked, 2025-26 | 3,402 (1,625 antlered, 1,777 antlerless) |
| Archery and gun, 2025-26 | 1,532 archery, 1,870 gun |
| Public land | 7.6% (33,545 acres) |
| ODNR hunting areas | 14 (30,514 acres inside Ross County) |
| Towns in and near it | Chillicothe, Bainbridge, Frankfort, Laurelville, Greenfield and New Holland |
How many deer are harvested in Ross County?
Hunters checked 3,402 deer in Ross County in 2025-26: 1,625 antlered and 1,777 antlerless. Archers took 1,532 and gun hunters 1,870.
| Season | Deer checked | Antlered | Antlerless | Archery | Gun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 3,402 | 1,625 | 1,777 | 1,532 | 1,870 |
| 2024-25 | 3,338 | 1,593 | 1,745 | 1,522 | 1,816 |
| 2023-24 | 2,749 | 1,350 | 1,399 | 1,267 | |
| 2021-22 | 3,053 |
Source: the Division of Wildlife's 2025-26, 2024-25 and 2023-24 final deer harvest reports and Publication 5304 (2021-22), Ross County. 2022-23 is not shown. For 2021-22 Publication 5304 gives 1,497 bucks, 1,347 does and 209 button bucks; the final reports of later seasons count bucks with shed or very short antlers as antlerless.
How much public land is in Ross County?
33,545 of Ross County's 443,597 acres are public land open to the public (7.6%). The biggest share is land on ODNR's hunting map: 30,521 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Ross County |
|---|---|---|
| Land on ODNR's hunting map | 30,521 | 6.9% |
| National park land | 1,154 | 0.3% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 658 | 0.1% |
| Other state land | 455 | 0.1% |
| Metro parks, county and city land | 404 | 0.1% |
| Federal land, mostly Corps of Engineers lakes | 353 | 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 33,545 | 7.6% |
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 Ross County
ODNR areas open to hunting in Ross County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Tar Hollow State Forest: 12,898 acres
- Scioto Trail State Forest: 9,257 acres
- Paint Creek State Park: 1,964 acres
- Great Seal State Park: 1,849 acres
- Pleasant Valley Wildlife Area: 1,469 acres
- Ross Lake Wildlife Area: 1,107 acres
- Paint Creek Lake Wildlife Area: 909 acres
- Tar Hollow State Park: 546 acres
- Kinnikinnick Wildlife Area: 162 acres
- Wildlife Production Area 1 Wildlife Area: 119 acres
- Wildlife Production Area 33 Wildlife Area: 63 acres
- Wildlife Production Area 23 Wildlife Area: 59 acres
- Wildlife Production Area 35 Wildlife Area: 59 acres
- Wildlife Production Area 48 Wildlife Area: 53 acres
Other large public areas here, by PAD-US: Paint Creek Recreation Area (2,806 acres).
How do you get to Ross County?
Highways through it: US 35 (about 74 miles inside), OH 104 (about 35 miles inside), US 50 (about 24 miles inside), OH 138 (about 17 miles inside) and OH 28 (about 17 miles inside). Towns inside: Chillicothe, Bainbridge, Frankfort, Kingston, Adelphi and South Salem. Nearby: Laurelville (on the line), Greenfield (on the line), New Holland (3 miles) and Waverly (4 miles).
Which counties border Ross County?
Ross County touches 7 other counties. Their latest ODNR harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pike County | 2,156 | 2025 | 5.2% |
| Vinton County | 1,931 | 2025 | 18.9% |
| Fayette County | 591 | 2025 | 1.4% |
| Hocking County | 2,643 | 2025 | 17.5% |
| Jackson County | 2,643 | 2025 | 6.5% |
| Highland County | 3,389 | 2025 | 5% |
| Pickaway County | 1,153 | 2025 | 3.3% |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Ross County in 2025-26?
3,402: 1,625 antlered and 1,777 antlerless (Division of Wildlife). In 2024-25: 3,338.
Is there public hunting land in Ross County?
33,545 acres, 7.6% 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 (30,521 acres). ODNR's layer shows 14 areas open to hunting here.
How many deer do archers take in Ross County?
1,532 of the 3,402 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 Vinton County Fayette County Hocking County Jackson County Highland County Pickaway County