DMU Racine, Wisconsin

Racine County covers 340.5 square miles of predominantly agricultural southeastern Wisconsin, bordering Lake Michigan to the east. The landscape is flat to gently rolling, tilting gradually toward the lake, with elevation ranging from roughly 580 feet near the lakeshore to around 870 feet in the western interior. Corn, soybean, and mixed row crop fields dominate, broken by scattered oak woodlots, fencerow brush, and wetland drainages. The Root River and Pike River cut through the county, carving shallow riparian corridors lined with wooded bottomland and cattail marsh. Tichigan Lake, Wind Lake, and Browns Lake anchor the northwest quadrant, surrounded by marsh, wet meadow, and upland shrub habitat. Forest cover is limited and fragmented -- this is classic Midwestern farm country with woodlot edges rather than contiguous timber stands.

Hunting pressure is high on the limited public land available. Tichigan Wildlife Area is the only significant public hunting tract in the county and concentrates foot traffic heavily during the nine-day gun season, November 22-30. The county is anchored by the City of Racine and dense suburban development along Lake Michigan, making private land access increasingly difficult to secure. Metro sub-unit designation reflects WDNR management of an elevated deer population in an urban-suburban landscape. Archery hunters who can access private land encounter significantly less competition than gun season hunters crowded onto Tichigan WAs open sections. Overall this unit ranks among the more pressured farmland DMUs in southeastern Wisconsin.

Racine County falls in the Southern Farmland Zone. Each 2026 deer hunting license includes 1 farmland antlerless harvest authorization for the Racine DMU, valid on public or private land as specified at purchase. Additional bonus antlerless authorizations go on sale August 19 on a first-come, first-served basis: 400 public-land tags and 350 private-land tags are available for the standard Racine DMU. The Racine Metro Subunit carries a separate allocation of 200 private-land bonus tags (0 public-land tags in the metro subunit). All authorizations are unit- and land-type-specific -- buyers must declare public or private at purchase and cannot switch. No earn-a-buck program applies in Wisconsin. A standard license includes a buck tag; antlered deer may be taken with any legal weapon during open seasons. Racine County is in a CWD zone -- mandatory registration and carcass transportation restrictions apply, and hunters should confirm testing requirements before the season.

Deer archery and crossbow season runs September 13 through January 4, extended to January 31 in the Racine Metro Subunit. Youth gun hunt is October 11-12. General firearms (nine-day gun season) runs November 22-30. Muzzleloader season is December 1-10. Antlerless-only season runs December 11-14. An antlerless-only holiday hunt runs December 24 through January 1 in eligible farmland units. Turkey hunting is available at Tichigan Wildlife Area and on private farmland -- spring and fall seasons apply statewide. Stocked pheasant hunting occurs at Tichigan WA with a noon shooting closure in effect. Waterfowl hunting is supported by a 25-acre impoundment at Tichigan WA and the county lake and river corridors. Small game and dove hunting are permitted where access allows. Tichigan Creek hosts a brook trout restoration project offering additional angling opportunity.

Racine DMU is not a destination for trophy-class whitetails but offers consistent deer numbers in a farmland setting with generous antlerless tag availability. Deer densities are elevated due to metro sub-unit management pressures, and hunters with private land access to cornfield edges, river-bottom woodlots along the Root or Pike Rivers, or riparian oak stands will find reliable deer activity, especially during the November rut. The extended metro archery season through January 31 is a genuine advantage for bowhunters who want to hunt well past the gun crowd. On public land, focus on the oak woodland and marsh edge areas at Tichigan WA outside the closed refuge sections -- arrive early during gun season. The single biggest unlock for any serious hunter in Racine DMU is securing private farmland permission, which transforms hunting quality from crowded to productive.