Best Hunting Property in MN

[pheasantsforme]

If you could buy 40 acres in MN, where woould it be and why? I'm interested in:

- bucks

- waterfowl

- upland (pheasants or grouse)

- turkeys

bear, wolves, moose would be cool, but not buying the property just for these for these animals.

Starting to look into property across MN... which is the best area, best value, most scenic location?

Location does not matter, just would like a getaway. SE MN, up by Ely, Duluth, Brainerd, Detroit Lakes all are options. I'm curious to see why people like certain areas. Thanks!

[Jameson]

If I could buy 40 acres in the metro it would be awesome!!!

[mrklean]

haha i agree with jameson hold onto it for a few years then sell it then buy 500 acres up north someplace

[fishorgolf]

You are asking and allot of 40 acres. Narrow it down to two and I can give you some thoughts.

[pheasantsforme]

thanks for the comments guys.

Lets narrow it down to three different regions to be more clear:

- Detroit Lakes

- Northeast MN (Dulth to Ely)

- Southeast bluff country

thanks again.

Tom

[Bear55]

Thats easy, Hillview, Minnesota!!!

Edit: Link Removed - Sorry it looks like the HSOforum has a virus.

[jcpmn82]

Warning: clicked on the link and my anti-virus software said it was an attack site with a trojan horse...

[crothmeier]

southwest mn! minnesota river valley. Pheasants, ducks, deer, and turkey.

and fishing

[picksbigwagon]

just 40? Easy, SE MN bluff country, the steeper the bluff the better

[pheasantsforme]

Just 40 for now... at least for the starting point. Why is steeper better? Thanks.

[picksbigwagon]

keep out the riff raff, and will hopefully hold Grouse along with the deer.....put it right between corn/soy bean fields and a CRP protected field and I would be in heaven.....

[fishinfey8]

I would have to say northeast mn duluth to ely. Depending on the piece of land you could have deer, bear, grouse, wolf, and moose. That doesn't even include the fishing...also if you look at a map of public huntable land, st. louis/lake/cook county together they have TONS of it. I have lived all over this state from sw mn to ne mn and I think this area has the most resources available to use without running into any crowds. Oh ya and waterfowl too.

[Steve Foss]

While I moved to Ely for the wilderness feel, I'm a LaCrosse native and love the bluff country. Based on your preferred list of hunting species, the bluff country is your best bet.

[landscaper]

Southwest MN!!

[Archerysniper]

Chisago county,town of sunrise the closer to the state park the better,the only thing you should not see is a moose but all the others we have.

[gurkster]

Great question. I had property in Northern Pine County for 10 years and just sold it this year and I am also looking. Here is what I learned.

- Get as versitle peice of proprty as you can, which sounds like you are trying to do.

- No 40 acre parcel will provide everything. Try and hit 2-3 things real well.

- For me I want it within 2 hours of home, so that limits my area. It was great to be able to go up for a single day to hunt, scout, hang stands, etc. and not drive all day or blow the whole weekend.

- Try and get it close to or adjoining public land. In Pine Co, and north there is tons of county owned land. If it is next to that or that land is close by your 40 turns into many more huntable acres almost exclusivly to yourself. Smaller tracks of unposted tax forfeit land doesn't get hit hard by the general public like WMA's, WPS's, State Forests, National Forests, etc.

- If you fish, look for a decent near by lake that you can access.

My old spot bordered 200 acres of tax forfeit land to the north. Great Deer, grouse and Bear hunting (however I don't bear hunt). Ok waterfowl hunting, as there were several beaver ponds, turkeys were present and seen fairly often, but it was a small local population. No pheseants. Wolves, coyotes, fox, etc were all seen over the years. Sturgeon and Oak Lake were close by.

So for me, for all around property I would look to Pine and Carlton couties. Also prices in these areas are pretty decent in comparision to other areas. (SE MN will be twice as much per acre).

That said if money and distance from home were not an issue, and I was after good Deer and Turkey land with grouse and/or pheasant mixed in (which is my list). I would do SE MN as many others have stated. Cons for me in SE MN is price, distance, lack of lakes, and lack of tax forfeit property.

If you are interested in comparing notes shoot me an email rrgierke at yahoo dot com.

[InTheNorthwoods]

If you could buy 40 acres in MN' date=' where woould it be and why?

[fishorgolf]

[picksbigwagon]

2-3000? really? the last time I looked, non agricultural land, "recreational land" was $4500 an acre minimum in SE MN, Caledonia, Houston, anywhere with trees and water.....

[Musky Buck]

Ottertail county. Top waterfowl county,likely more bucks killed in this county than any other, has grouse/pheasants/turkeys but 40 acres isn't much you could walk it and hunt it an hour tops. I have 80 acres for sale in that county, it has bucks,ducks,grouse and sometimes honkers roost there overnight, for pheasants I drive south of battle lake/ashby/morris etc.

[96trigger]

I would say closer to 3500 an acre in SEMN. The problem is, a 40 is going to go for $4500 an acre, while an 80 might go for $3500 an acre. It's really hard to find a decent 40 down here.

[fishuhalik]

[fishorgolf]

2-3000? really? the last time I looked, non agricultural land, "recreational land" was $4500 an acre minimum in SE MN, Caledonia, Houston, anywhere with trees and water.....

That is why I said min. This was a few years ago but the farmer who's land I hunt (close to area you mention) was buying land at $3000. but then this was some years ago and he was buying more land than 40 acres. I agree that small rec. land parcels are going for $4000 PLUS.

[pheasantsforme]

Hey everyone, thanks for the input. Lots of good info here: Not being set on a single size land (40 acres could cost the same as 240), looking at property next to state land, food plots...

Gurkster- thanks for the input of Pine County. Looks like that land may be the most versatile/best value.

The next step for me is to start the homework phase, work with realtors in all 3 parts of the state and look at properties as they come up! thanks again. Tom

[scsavre]

I vote for detroit lakes area. They seem to have it all there. decent pockets of pheasants. Tons of deer, with big bucks. pockets of grouse. The best waterfowl in MN, for locals and migration. More and more turkeys every year. And a few moose that are pretty easy to find. Dont forget about the fishing.

A few posts here are right about where you want your land to be. Ajoining to public land is a good idea most of the time. It makes your land bigger. Another thing i looked for was farm land. Make sure you have some good corn and other crops around you.

I am in ottertail county and have 120 acres. To my west is public hunting, and my south and east is all farmed. Every year i am guaranteed to have corn and beans around me. I have 2 ponds and can basically shoot ducks any day and kick up a rooster or 2 or shoot a deer.

Good luck and do your due diligence.