Sanborn County, South Dakota: Walk-In Areas, GPAs and public hunting land
Sanborn County has 4,998 acres of private land open to public hunting through GFP's Walk-In Area and CREP programs inside its line (32 tracts centered in the county), 10 game production areas covering 3,165 acres, and 94 acres of other public land, by the maps GFP publishes. That is 2.3% of the county's 365,147 acres.
Data updated October 2026. Walk-In Areas, CREP, school and public land, federal land and GPAs: GFP map layers. Units: GFP 2026 applications and harvest projections.
Game production area (GFP)Waterfowl production areaWalk-In Area or CREP (private land open to hunting)Sanborn CountyNeighboring countiesLake or riverHighway
| Size | 365,147 acres (571 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Walk-In and CREP land inside the county line | 4,998 acres |
| Walk-In Area tracts centered in the county | 4 (571 acres in all) |
| CREP tracts centered in the county | 28 (4,429 acres in all) |
| Game production areas | 10, 3,165 acres |
| School and public land | 0 acres |
| Other public land | 94 acres |
| Deer units | Deer unit 56A |
| Towns | Woonsocket, Letcher, Artesian and Forestburg |
How much Walk-In Area land is in Sanborn County?
4,998 acres inside the county line, 1.4% of the county. 4 Walk-In Area tracts are centered in the county (571 acres in all), and 28 CREP tracts (4,429 acres). Walk-In Areas and CREP land are private ground GFP leases for public hunting. GFP's public hunting atlas shows each tract.
Which game production areas are in Sanborn County?
10 GPAs, 3,165 acres in all, largest first:
- Rifle-Calahan GPA: 1,502 acres
- Pintail Pass GPA: 397 acres
- Chip Allen - Sanborn GPA: 373 acres
- Looby School GPA: 197 acres
- McCoy Lake GPA: 158 acres
- Redstone GPA: 157 acres
- Horrigan GPA: 156 acres
- Long Lake 2 GPA: 143 acres
- Twin Lakes - Sanborn GPA: 45 acres
- Forestburg GPA: 32 acres
How much public land is in Sanborn County?
0.9% of the county is public land: 3,259 acres, counting the GPAs. The largest share is game production area, 3,165 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of the county |
|---|---|---|
| Walk-In Area or CREP (private land open to hunting) | 4,998 | 1.4% |
| Game production area (GFP) | 3,165 | 0.9% |
| Waterfowl production area | 94 | under 0.1% |
Measured by FilledTag inside the Census county line from GFP public hunting atlas layers (Walk-In Areas, CREP, school and public land, federal land) and GFP Managed Lands; overlapping maps are counted once.
Which hunting units are in Sanborn County?
The units GFP names for Sanborn County, with their 2026 licenses and latest harvest projection, for the whole unit:
| Unit | GFP's description | Licenses, 2026 | Taken (GFP projection) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deer unit 56A | Sanborn | 150 | 94 (2025) |
Sources: GFP 2026 draw applications; GFP harvest projections.
How do you get around Sanborn County?
Highways: SD 37 (about 61 miles in the county), SD 34 (about 36 miles in the county) and SD 224 (about 6 miles in the county). Towns: Woonsocket, Letcher, Artesian and Forestburg.
How do the counties around Sanborn compare?
| County | Walk-In and CREP acres | Tracts | GPA acres | Other public acres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aurora | 1,685 | 8 | 2,320 | 5,857 |
| Beadle | 8,613 | 51 | 3,144 | 7,573 |
| Davison | 1,228 | 11 | 437 | 229 |
| Hanson | 4,268 | 41 | 588 | 1,063 |
| Jerauld | 1,025 | 5 | 1,746 | 2,422 |
| Miner | 633 | 4 | 4,680 | 1,593 |
Questions hunters ask
How much Walk-In Area land is in Sanborn County?
GFP's public hunting atlas shows 4,998 acres of Walk-In Area and CREP land inside Sanborn County's line, from 32 tracts centered in the county. No permission is needed to hunt a Walk-In Area; travel there is on foot except on signed trails, by GFP's handbook.
Are there game production areas in Sanborn County?
Yes, 10: Rifle-Calahan (1,502 acres), Pintail Pass (397 acres), Chip Allen - Sanborn (373 acres), Looby School (197 acres), McCoy Lake (158 acres) and Redstone (157 acres), and 4 more.
What hunting units are in Sanborn County?
GFP names deer unit 56A for Sanborn County in its 2026 applications.
How much public land is in Sanborn County?
0.9% of the county, 3,259 acres, is public land open to hunting under its manager's rules; the largest share is game production area at 3,165 acres.
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Until then, the free FilledTag app for iPhone has a map that works in every state, South Dakota included.
Where these numbers come from
- Walk-In Areas, CREP, school and public land, federal land and GPAs: GFP public hunting atlas layers (Walk-In Areas, CREP, school and public land, federal land) and GFP Managed Lands.
- Units: GFP 2026 draw applications and harvest projections.
- County line, highways and towns: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 boundaries, TIGER/Line and Gazetteer.
FilledTag is not part of South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks. Walk-In Areas change each year; check GFP's current atlas before you go.
South Dakota hunting Aurora County Beadle County Davison County Hanson County Jerauld County Miner County