County guide · Minnesota · MN WPAs

Waterfowl Production Areas & Public Hunting Land in Jackson County, MN

Jackson County has 26 named Waterfowl Production Areas covering 5,465 acres of federally owned, walk-in public land. The largest is Sioux Forks WPA at 1,002 acres; the average tract is about 210 acres, and 3 are smaller than 80 acres.

WPAs here are managed by the Windom Wetland Management District, which sets any district-specific rules (vehicle access, blinds, nontoxic shot, closed areas).

The county covers about 719 square miles and has roughly 9,989 residents. WPAs make up about 1.2% of its land area.

26named WPAs
5.5Kacres of WPA land
1,002largest WPA (ac)
1refuges & districts

Map of WPAs in Jackson County

Gold outlines are fee-title Waterfowl Production Areas — federally owned public land. Land outside them is almost always private. Switch to satellite to check water conditions and cover, and click any tract for coordinates.

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Waterfowl Production Area (public)County lineRefuge / station Tip: switch to Satellite or USGS Topo in the layer menu · click the map for GPS coordinates
Take every tract with you:KML (Google Earth / onX)GPX waypoints

All Waterfowl Production Areas in Jackson County

Largest WPAs (acres)
How big are the tracts? (number of WPAs by acres)
<40: 33<4040–8080–160: 9980–160160–320: 1111160–320320+: 33320+
WPAAcresNearest townGPSGo
Sioux Forks WPA
994 deeded ac
1,002 23 mi S of Windom 43.54477, -95.20502 Map · Directions
Timber Lake WPA 532 6.8 mi SW of Windom 43.79946, -95.21642 Map · Directions
Boot Lake WPA 435 13 mi S of Windom 43.67819, -95.08456 Map · Directions
Holy Trinity WPA 317 19 mi S of Windom 43.59237, -95.14960 Map · Directions
Minnesota WPA 316 27 mi N of Spencer 43.50474, -95.31476 Map · Directions
Christiania WPA 302 5.2 mi SE of Windom 43.82627, -95.03481 Map · Directions
Skunk Creek WPA 235 26 mi S of Windom 43.52348, -95.30161 Map · Directions
String Lake WPA 231 4.1 mi SW of Windom 43.84223, -95.19348 Map · Directions
Hunter WPA 199 18 mi S of Windom 43.60941, -95.15081 Map · Directions
Moore Slough WPA 195 25 mi S of Windom 43.50612, -95.07924 Map · Directions
Loon Lake WPA 193 24 mi S of Windom 43.52820, -95.09406 Map · Directions
Little Sioux WPA 183 25 mi S of Windom 43.51713, -95.19990 Map · Directions
Spirit Lake WPA
156 deeded ac
163 25 mi S of Windom 43.50483, -95.10959 Map · Directions
Jerry Schotzko WPA 162 25 mi S of Windom 43.51394, -95.09858 Map · Directions
Round Lake WPA 141 26 mi SW of Windom 43.56409, -95.41465 Map · Directions
Pletz Marsh WPA 129 20 mi S of Windom 43.57806, -95.19211 Map · Directions
Sioux Valley WPA 103 26 mi SW of Windom 43.51822, -95.32200 Map · Directions
La Crosse WPA 100 14 mi W of Windom 43.80668, -95.39082 Map · Directions
Fish Lake WPA 99 3.1 mi SE of Windom 43.84293, -95.07031 Map · Directions
Rush Lake WPA
80 deeded ac
88 22 mi S of Windom 43.54690, -95.12590 Map · Directions
West Fork WPA 83 26 mi S of Windom 43.52447, -95.31058 Map · Directions
Bisaillon WPA 82 21 mi S of Windom 43.57168, -95.18970 Map · Directions
Ulbricht WPA 80 19 mi SW of Windom 43.62740, -95.28230 Map · Directions
Rost WPA 33 17 mi SW of Windom 43.64842, -95.28360 Map · Directions
Minneota WPA 32 22 mi S of Windom 43.55062, -95.16168 Map · Directions
Skunk Lake WPA 28 25 mi S of Windom 43.52785, -95.27830 Map · Directions

Acreage from USFWS realty GIS polygons. Coordinates are a point inside each tract — not necessarily a parking area. Look for designated parking and boundary signs on the ground.

Hunting WPAs in Jackson County: rules & tips

Typically allowed

  • Hunting waterfowl, upland birds, deer and other game in season under Minnesota regulations
  • Walk-in access from roads and designated parking areas
  • Fishing and trapping where state and district rules allow
  • Wildlife watching, photography and dog training outside restricted periods

Common restrictions

  • No camping, fires or overnight use on most tracts
  • Motor vehicles only on designated roads and parking areas
  • Blinds and portable stands usually removed at the end of each day
  • Nontoxic shot required for waterfowl; many districts require it for all shotgun hunting
  • Some tracts have closed areas, refuge-style rules or seasonal restrictions

Getting to Jackson County

Distances below are straight-line from the center of the county. Most WPAs are reached by county and township gravel roads — download the GPX file and load it into your phone or GPS before you lose cell coverage.

  • Windom, MN14 mi — county center is S of town
  • Spencer, IA37 mi — county center is N of town
  • Marshall, MN62 mi — county center is SE of town
  • Mankato, MN67 mi — county center is SW of town

Shooting hours in Jackson County

Today at Jackson County

Legal light*–
Sunrise–
Sunset–

*½ hour before sunrise — the standard federal shooting-hour start for migratory game birds. Times in Chicago local time.

Full season calculator →

2026–2027 season sun table

DateShooting lightSunriseSunsetDaylight
Tue, Sep 1, 20266:13 AM6:43 AM7:58 PM13h 16m
Tue, Sep 15, 20266:28 AM6:58 AM7:33 PM12h 35m
Thu, Oct 1, 20266:46 AM7:16 AM7:03 PM11h 47m
Thu, Oct 15, 20267:03 AM7:33 AM6:39 PM11h 06m
Sun, Nov 1, 20266:25 AM6:55 AM5:13 PM10h 18m
Sun, Nov 15, 20266:44 AM7:14 AM4:56 PM9h 43m
Tue, Dec 1, 20267:03 AM7:33 AM4:45 PM9h 12m
Tue, Dec 15, 20267:16 AM7:46 AM4:44 PM8h 58m
Fri, Jan 1, 20277:24 AM7:54 AM4:53 PM8h 59m
Fri, Jan 15, 20277:21 AM7:51 AM5:07 PM9h 16m
Mon, Feb 1, 20277:08 AM7:38 AM5:29 PM9h 51m

Computed for 43.673, -95.161 (CDT / DST-aware). Check state rules — big game hours vary.

7-day forecast for Jackson County

Loading National Weather Service forecast…

Forecast from the National Weather Service. Wind direction matters — plan your approach downwind of where game beds.

Refuges & districts with land in Jackson County

Windom WMD

Cottonwood County, MN

1 special1 closed
🦌🦆🦃🐦🕊️🐇🐗🎣

17.8K huntable acres

Neighboring counties with WPAs

Source: USFWS Realty Tracts (fee-title interest) and Esri county boundaries. Page updated October 28, 2026.