Deer Permit Area 253, Minnesota
Unit info
- Game species
- White-tailed Deer, Wild Turkey, Pheasant
- Group
- Zone 200 — Central Minnesota
- Area
- 987 mi²
- Public land
- N/A
White-tailed Deer — season & harvest
- Reported harvest
- 867
Draw odds for White-tailed Deeraren't on file for this unit yet. Check your state wildlife agency website for current draw statistics.
Season & harvest data is published for White-tailed Deer so far. Wild Turkey, Pheasant also occur here — that data can be added as the community contributes.
About this unit
Sign in to contributeDPA 253 covers most of Faribault County and portions of eastern Martin, southern Blue Earth, Watonwan, and Waseca counties along the Iowa border — an intensively farmed landscape (83% row crops) that produces stable, at-goal deer numbers despite minimal public land. With only 10.9 square miles of public access in 974 total square miles, this DPA is predominantly a private-land hunt, though scattered WMAs, USFWS Waterfowl Production Areas, and walk-in access parcels offer limited public opportunity. Hunters should expect a productive but access-restricted area with an either-sex designation and modest hunting pressure at roughly 2 hunters per square mile.
Intensively farmed southern Minnesota agricultural landscape with 83% annual row crops, 5% grassland and wetlands, 4% woody cover, and 1% open water. Flat to gently rolling terrain characteristic of the Des Moines Lobe glacial till plain. The Blue Earth River drains the eastern portion. Woody cover is limited to scattered woodlots, shelterbelts, and riparian corridors along farm fields.
Extremely limited public land at only 10.9 sq mi out of 974 sq mi total (about 1%). Public access includes 8 sq mi of State Wildlife Management Areas, 2 sq mi of USFWS Waterfowl Production Areas, 0.3 sq mi walk-in access on private land, and no state forest or county managed land. The vast majority of hunting opportunity requires landowner permission on private agricultural land.
low
Deer are the primary big game species; population is stable and at goal per DNR Wildlife Manager. Turkey hunting is available in southern Minnesota including Faribault and Martin counties with both spring and fall seasons. Ring-necked pheasant are present in this southern ag zone with grassland and wetland edges providing habitat. No bear season in this far-southern agricultural DPA. Ruffed grouse are not present in meaningful numbers given the lack of forest cover.
Either-sex one-deer limit with no antlerless lottery draw required. Stable deer population at DNR management goal. 2024 total harvest of 785 deer with 31% hunter success rate. Archery season Sept 13-Dec 31, statewide firearms Nov 8-16, muzzleloader Nov 29-Dec 14. Mild winters (WSI of 9 in 2024) keep deer in good condition. Adjacent to Iowa border with consistent agricultural food sources year-round.
Questions, tips & discussion
Ask anything about Deer Permit Area 253— or drop a tip or trick: access points, where game holds, glassing spots, conditions, crowding, gear that worked. This is where the unit's species-specific intel gets built, hunter by hunter.
Nothing posted yet about Deer Permit Area 253.
Be the first — ask a question (“Best public access on the north end?”) or share a tip (“Glass the burn scars off the main ridge at first light”).
Boundaries: MN DNR official Deer Permit Areas. Community info last updated 114d ago.