Portage County, Wisconsin: deer harvest and public hunting land
Portage County is its own deer management unit, 823 square miles around Stevens Point. Hunters registered 8,384 deer here in 2025, 3,648 of them bucks, by the DNR's Deer Metrics. That is up 10% from 2024. 7.6% of Portage County is public land open to the public, the largest share state wildlife areas, forests and other DNR land (38,552 acres), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public).
Data updated October 2026. Harvest: DNR Deer Metrics. Land: PAD-US 4.1, the DNR's managed lands and VPA layers.
State wildlife areas, forests and other DNR landCounty forestOther federal landOther county, city and regional landLand trusts and other open landPortage CountyNeighboring deer management unitsLakeHighway
| Counties | Portage County |
|---|---|
| Size | 526,720 acres (823 square miles) |
| Deer registered, 2025 | 8,384 (3,648 bucks, 4,736 antlerless) |
| Yearly average, 2016 to 2025 | 6,882 deer |
| Public land | 7.6% (39,776 acres) |
| Properties | 16 (37,615 acres inside Portage County) |
| Voluntary Public Access land | None mapped this year |
| Towns in and near it | Stevens Point, Plover, Whiting, Milladore, Rudolph and Plainfield |
How many deer are harvested in Portage County?
The DNR registered 8,384 deer in Portage County in 2025: 3,648 bucks and 4,736 antlerless deer, 56% of the harvest antlerless. Over the 10 years shown, the harvest averaged 6,882 deer a year; the most bucks were registered in 2025 (3,648).
| Year | Deer registered | Bucks | Antlerless | Antlerless share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 8,384 | 3,648 | 4,736 | 56% |
| 2024 | 7,641 | 3,626 | 4,015 | 53% |
| 2023 | 6,559 | 2,967 | 3,592 | 55% |
| 2022 | 7,535 | 3,361 | 4,174 | 55% |
| 2021 | 6,750 | 3,053 | 3,697 | 55% |
| 2020 | 7,488 | 3,141 | 4,347 | 58% |
| 2019 | 6,115 | 2,743 | 3,372 | 55% |
| 2018 | 6,243 | 2,919 | 3,324 | 53% |
| 2017 | 5,841 | 2,734 | 3,107 | 53% |
| 2016 | 6,265 | 2,887 | 3,378 | 54% |
Source: Wisconsin DNR Deer Metrics, harvest history for Portage County. Deer registered is the DNR's buck and antlerless harvest added together. The DNR's Deer Metrics shows every year back to 1960 for most counties.
How much public land is in Portage County?
39,776 of Portage County's 526,720 acres are public land open to the public (7.6%). The biggest share is state wildlife areas, forests and other DNR land: 38,552 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Portage County |
|---|---|---|
| State wildlife areas, forests and other DNR land | 38,552 | 7.3% |
| Other county, city and regional land | 1,161 | 0.2% |
| Other federal land | 42 | under 0.1% |
| State parks | 15 | under 0.1% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 6 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 39,776 | 7.6% |
Measured by FilledTag inside the DNR's boundary from USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public). Hunting rules differ by manager: DNR wildlife areas and state forests are open to hunting unless posted; county forests are open to hunting in most cases (check the county forest's rules); national forest land is open in season; refuges follow U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rules; state parks allow hunting only in listed seasons and areas; national park land is closed to hunting.
DNR properties in Portage County
DNR properties in Portage County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Buena Vista Wildlife Area: 12,552 acres
- Mead Wildlife Area: 10,790 acres
- Dewey Marsh Wildlife Area: 6,042 acres
- Paul Olson Wildlife Area: 2,059 acres
- Little Wolf River Fishery Area: 1,655 acres
- Richard A Hemp Fishery Area: 1,401 acres
- Emmons Creek Fishery Area: 1,281 acres
- Hartman Creek State Park: 432 acres
- Radley Creek Fishery Area: 286 acres
- Little Plover River Fishery Area: 246 acres
- State Ice Age Trail Area (SIATA): 210 acres
- Tomorrow River State Trail: 187 acres
- New Hope Pines State Natural Area: 171 acres
- Pickerel Lake State Natural Area: 143 acres
- Ten Mile Creek-North Branch SHA: 101 acres
- Little Bear Hemlocks State Natural Area: 59 acres
Other large public areas here, by PAD-US: Green Circle Trail (381 acres), Natural Area (315 acres) and Ice Age Trail - Wd (193 acres).
How do you get to Portage County?
Highways through it: US 10 (about 76 miles inside), I-39 (about 66 miles inside), US 51 (about 66 miles inside), WI 54 (about 37 miles inside) and WI 66 (about 36 miles inside). Towns inside: Stevens Point, Plover, Whiting, Junction City, Amherst and Amherst Junction. Nearby: Milladore (on the line), Rudolph (on the line), Plainfield (2 miles) and Biron (2 miles).
Which deer management units border Portage County?
Portage County touches 6 other deer management units. Their latest DNR harvest and public land, for comparison:
| DMU | Deer harvested | Year | Public land | Voluntary Public Access land sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DMU Wood | 5,416 | 2025 | 6.6% | |
| Adams County | 6,148 | 2025 | 8.1% | |
| Shawano County | 9,880 | 2025 | 2.8% | 1 |
| Waupaca County | 10,740 | 2025 | 2.3% | 3 |
| Marathon County | 12,041 | 2025 | 6.6% | 8 |
| Waushara County | 8,678 | 2025 | 4.9% | 1 |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Portage County in 2025?
8,384 deer were registered: 3,648 bucks and 4,736 antlerless deer (DNR Deer Metrics). In 2024: 7,641.
Is there public hunting land in Portage County?
Yes. 39,776 acres, 7.6% of the unit, are public land open to the public by PAD-US 4.1, the largest share state wildlife areas, forests and other DNR land (38,552 acres). The DNR's map shows 16 DNR properties open to hunting here.
Does Portage County have VPA land?
Not on the DNR's 2026 lease map.
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Where these numbers come from
- Deer harvest: Wisconsin DNR Deer Metrics (registered harvest by deer management unit).
- Public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public). DNR properties: Wisconsin DNR managed lands open to hunting. Voluntary Public Access land: Wisconsin DNR Voluntary Public Access and Turkey Hunting Program lands.
- Boundaries: Wisconsin DNR deer management units. 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 Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Numbers are copied from the DNR and the federal sources above, or measured from their maps; nothing on this page is estimated by FilledTag.
Wisconsin hunting Adams County Shawano County Waupaca County Marathon County Waushara County