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Northern Lower Peninsula · DNR wildlife region
Crawford County Hunting
A DNR-sourced look at Crawford County in the northern Lower Peninsula: 2026-27 dates, 1 DMU, reported deer by year, state and federal land, towns and the shops that serve hunters.
Photo: Werwin15 (CC BY 2.0)
Grayling is the seat of Crawford County, a 556 square mile county in the DNR Northern Lower Peninsula Region. 13,599 people live in the county by the 2024 estimate (+4.7% against 2020). Deer Zone 2 takes in every acre, and 1 DMU overlap there. Its nearest DNR customer service center is in Roscommon, 15 miles from the county centre. For conservation officers it falls in District 5. Open ground shows up on 4 mapped properties, with Hartwick Pines State Park the biggest of them.
Census 2024 Gazetteer and Vintage 2024 estimates (population), DNR region from the DNR wildlife region layer, deer zones from the DNR zone layer, law enforcement districts from the DNR district layer, customer service centers from the DNR contact page. Checked October 22, 2026.
Nearby
Places to hunt and shoot around Crawford County
Crawford County hunting calendar
Crawford County rows run from the September Liberty Hunt and bear periods through the late coyote, fox and bobcat dates.
| Game | Hunt | Unit | First day | Last day | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White-tailed deer | Early antlerless firearm | Listed antlerless county | Sep 12, 2026 | Sep 13, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | Liberty Hunt | Statewide | Sep 12, 2026 | Sep 13, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | Archery, early | Statewide | Oct 1, 2026 | Nov 14, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | Independence Hunt | Statewide | Oct 15, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | Regular firearm | Statewide | Nov 15, 2026 | Nov 30, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | Archery, late | Statewide | Dec 1, 2026 | Jan 1, 2027 | |
| White-tailed deer | December firearm | Lower Peninsula | Dec 4, 2026 | Dec 6, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | Late antlerless firearm | Listed antlerless county | Dec 7, 2026 | Jan 1, 2027 | |
| Black bear | Hunt period 1 (firearm/bait/dogs) | Red Oak BMU | Sep 12, 2026 | Sep 22, 2026 | |
| Black bear | Hunt period 1 (archery only) | Red Oak BMU | Oct 2, 2026 | Oct 8, 2026 | |
| Elk | Hunt period 1 | Elk unit X | Sep 23, 2026 | Oct 4, 2026 | |
| Elk | Hunt period 2 | Elk unit X | Dec 1, 2026 | Dec 15, 2026 | |
| Wild turkey | Fall | Fall unit I | Sep 15, 2026 | Nov 14, 2026 | |
| Ruffed grouse | Fall first part | Statewide | Sep 15, 2026 | Nov 14, 2026 | |
| Ruffed grouse | Fall second part | Statewide | Dec 1, 2026 | Jan 1, 2027 | |
| Woodcock | Fall | Statewide | Sep 15, 2026 | Oct 29, 2026 | |
| Pheasant | Fall | Zone 2 | Oct 20, 2026 | Nov 14, 2026 | |
| Fox and gray squirrel | Private-land season | Statewide | Apr 1, 2026 | Sep 14, 2026 | |
| Fox and gray squirrel | Regular | Statewide | Sep 15, 2026 | Mar 31, 2027 | |
| Cottontail | Private-land season | Statewide | Apr 1, 2026 | Sep 14, 2026 | |
| Cottontail | Regular | Statewide | Sep 15, 2026 | Mar 31, 2027 | |
| Snowshoe hare | Regular | Statewide | Sep 15, 2026 | Mar 31, 2027 | |
| Crow | Summer | Statewide | Aug 1, 2026 | Sep 30, 2026 | |
| Crow | Late winter | Statewide | Feb 1, 2027 | Mar 31, 2027 | |
| Teal | Early teal | Statewide | Sep 1, 2026 | Sep 9, 2026 | |
| Ducks | Split 1 | Middle Zone | Oct 3, 2026 | Nov 29, 2026 | |
| Ducks | Split 2 | Middle Zone | Dec 12, 2026 | Dec 13, 2026 | |
| Waterfowl | Veterans days | Statewide | Sep 19, 2026 | Sep 20, 2026 | |
| Waterfowl | Youth weekend | Statewide | Sep 19, 2026 | Sep 20, 2026 | |
| Dark geese | Dark goose part 1 | Middle Zone | Sep 1, 2026 | Sep 30, 2026 | |
| Dark geese | Dark goose part 2 | Middle Zone | Oct 3, 2026 | Dec 18, 2026 | |
| Light geese | Light goose part 1 | Middle Zone | Sep 1, 2026 | Sep 30, 2026 | |
| Light geese | Light goose part 2 | Middle Zone | Oct 3, 2026 | Dec 18, 2026 | |
| Raccoon | Management season | Statewide | Apr 1, 2026 | Sep 30, 2026 | |
| Raccoon | Hunting | Statewide | Oct 1, 2026 | Mar 31, 2027 | |
| Red and gray fox | Hunting | Statewide | Oct 15, 2026 | Mar 1, 2027 | |
| Coyote | Management season | Statewide | Mar 2, 2026 | Oct 14, 2026 | |
| Coyote | Regular hunting | Statewide | Oct 15, 2026 | Mar 1, 2027 | |
| Bobcat | Hunting | Bobcat Unit D | Jan 1, 2027 | Feb 1, 2027 | |
| Feral swine | Year-round | Statewide | Year-round | Year-round | Year-round |
| Opossum | Year-round | Statewide | Year-round | Year-round | Year-round |
| Skunk | Year-round | Statewide | Year-round | Year-round | Year-round |
| Woodchuck | Year-round | Statewide | Year-round | Year-round | Year-round |
From the Michigan Department of Natural Resources 2026 hunting regulation summaries (deer, bear, elk, turkey, small game, waterfowl and furbearer editions), checked October 22, 2026.
Antlerless licenses and bait rules in Crawford County
Michigan sells universal antlerless licenses over the counter, up to 10 a hunter, but only 3 of them may be used in Crawford County. Crawford County gets the early (Sep 12 to Sep 13, 2026) and late (Dec 7, 2026 to Jan 1, 2027) antlerless firearm hunts. Single licenses take any antlered deer here; the restricted combo tag still needs 4 points on a side.
| DMU | Name | Category | Use limit | Point rule | 2025 total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DMU 020 | Crawford county | County unit | 3 | Statewide only | 1,535 |
Firearm deer
Mark Nov 15 to Nov 30 for firearm deer, and Dec 4 to Dec 6, 2026 for the December hunt.
Archery and crossbow
Bowhunters get Oct 1 to Nov 14, 2026 plus Dec 1, 2026 to Jan 1, 2027.
Liberty Hunt
Hunters with disabilities get the Independence Hunt, Oct 15 to Oct 18, 2026, on top of the Liberty Hunt.
Feeding deer
Bait is illegal for deer here; only qualifying hunters with disabilities in the Liberty and Independence hunts are exempt.
DMUs statewide · Antlerless deer guide
Units from the Wildlife Conservation Order chapter XII and the county-to-unit list, use limits from the 2026 deer summary, early and late antlerless counties from the WCO list, antler rules from WCO 3.101l, baiting from the deer summary, reported harvest by unit from the DNR harvest report summary. Checked October 22, 2026.
Where Crawford County opens to the public
4 entries on our Michigan land list put open hunting ground inside Crawford County; biggest come first. State forest covers 161,963 acres here, open to hunting unless posted. 38,139 acres of Huron-Manistee National Forest fall inside the county. 462 acres on 12 Commercial Forest parcels are open to public foot access for hunting.
- State parks: 2Hartwick Pines State Park (8,425 acres), North Higgins Lake State Park (166 acres)
- Floodings (SWMAs) (2)Conner's Marsh Flooding Wildlife Management Area (1,052 acres), Barker Creek Flooding State Wildilfe Management Area (49 acres)
- State forest unitsGaylord Forest Management Unit (80 acres in county), Grayling Forest Management Unit (161,446 acres in county), Traverse City Forest Management Unit (437 acres in county)
- National forest unitsHuron-Manistee National Forest (38,139 acres in county), Mio Ranger District (Huron-Manistee National Forest)
Big multi-county holdings with acres in Crawford: Kirtland's Warbler Wildlife Management Area.
Close neighbours on the list: Goose Creek Flooding Wildlife Management Area 161 acres, 13 miles out; Robinson Creek Floodings Wildlife Management Area 2,572 acres, 17 miles out; South Higgins Lake State Park 1,367 acres, 18 miles out; Addis Creek Flooding Wildlife Management Area 438 acres, 19 miles out; Grass Lake Marsh Flooding Wildlife Management Area 968 acres, 20 miles out.
Statewide land finder · State forest rules · Forest Service land · CF program
Public land from the DNR wildlife property, park hunting-land and managed-lands layers and federal records; state forest acres from the DNR state forest lands (LOTS parcels); national forest acres from USFS land statistics; Commercial Forest acres from the DNR Commercial Forest program; HAP from the DNR HAP property list. Acres within 10 miles of the county seat are a GIS measure. Checked October 22, 2026.
Crawford County deer numbers since 2022
In 2025, Crawford County hunters reported 706 antlered and 829 antlerless deer, 1,535 in all. 2022 tops the short series at 2,409, while the first reporting year gave 2,409. This season to Oct. 22: 150 deer reported from the county.
| Season | Bucks | Antlerless | Sum |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (partial) | 63 | 87 | 150 |
| 2025 | 706 | 829 | 1,535 |
| 2024 | 1,004 | 1,102 | 2,106 |
| 2023 | 977 | 790 | 1,767 |
| 2022 | 1,160 | 1,249 | 2,409 |
DNR Harvest Report Summary (reported deer by county, all seasons, read October 22, 2026; 2026 is in progress). Checked October 22, 2026.
CWD and bovine TB in Crawford County
No CWD-positive free-ranging deer has been reported from Crawford County. Testing from Crawford County is reported only inside the statewide remainder figure. The DNR collects TB samples from deer in Crawford County this year. The donation program asks for a bovine TB test on Crawford County deer.
DMU 452 and CWD rules · Bait law by peninsula
CWD areas and county lists from the 2026 deer summary and the WCO; tests by county from the DNR CWD testing data (results current to 10/16/2026 for 2026); TB from the deer summary; donation testing from the Hunters Feeding Michigan county lists. Checked October 22, 2026.
Crawford County game past the whitetail
Crawford bear drawing
Bear hunting here falls under Red Oak BMU, drawn with preference points. Preliminary 2025 registrations for Red Oak: 282 bears.
| BMU | Period | Season | 2026 quota | Nonresident | First choice 2025 | Resident points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red Oak | 1 | Sept. 12–22 and Oct. 2–8 | 685 | 34 | 9,336 | 9–10 |
| Unit | Bears (2024) | Bears (2025, prelim.) | Success (2024) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Oak | 346 | 282 | 57% |
Spring and fall turkey
Crawford County falls in spring unit NN; these are the spring 2026 hunts while the DNR prepares 2027. Fall unit I runs Sep 15 to Nov 14, 2026 (hunt 0401). Crawford County hunters reported 101 turkeys in 2026 to date, 90 in spring. The fall 2025 survey estimated 178 hunters and 52 birds in Crawford County.
| Spring unit | 2026 dates | Quota | No. |
|---|---|---|---|
| NN | April 18–May 1 | 18,000 | 0134 |
| Statewide | May 2–May 31 | Unlimited | 0234 |
Elk
Part of Crawford County is elk country, unit X, open only to drawn Michigan residents. 2025 results for these hunts: 161 elk from 250 hunters.
| Hunt | Elk units | Opens | Through |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hunt period 1 | unit X | Sep 23, 2026 | Oct 4, 2026 |
| Hunt period 2 | units H and X | Dec 1, 2026 | Dec 15, 2026 |
| Hunt period 2 | units I and X | Dec 1, 2026 | Dec 15, 2026 |
Waterfowl and upland units
All 11 bear units · Spring and fall units · Elk details
Bear units from the DNR bear unit layer; quotas, applicants and points from the 2026 bear summary; registrations from the same summary (2025 preliminary) and survey success from the DNR bear harvest reports; turkey hunts from the spring 2026 and fall 2026 summaries, reported turkeys from the turkey harvest report summary, fall 2025 survey from the DNR turkey report; elk from the elk summary and DNR elk report; bird units from the small game, waterfowl and furbearer summaries. Checked October 22, 2026.
Crawford County shooting time on key dates
Deer hunters at Crawford County get legal light from 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset, read from the DNR table for the date.
| Date | Moment | Zone A hours | Zone B hours | Zone C hours | Zone D hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1, 2026 | Archery opener | 6:59 a.m. to 7:46 p.m. | 7:05 a.m. to 7:52 p.m. | 7:11 a.m. to 7:58 p.m. | 7:17 a.m. to 8:04 p.m. |
| Oct 15, 2026 | Independence Hunt | 7:15 a.m. to 7:24 p.m. | 7:21 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. | 7:27 a.m. to 7:36 p.m. | 7:33 a.m. to 7:42 p.m. |
| Nov 15, 2026 | Firearm opener | 6:53 a.m. to 5:48 p.m. | 6:59 a.m. to 5:54 p.m. | 7:05 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. | 7:11 a.m. to 6:06 p.m. |
| Nov 30, 2026 | Firearm close | 7:11 a.m. to 5:40 p.m. | 7:17 a.m. to 5:46 p.m. | 7:23 a.m. to 5:52 p.m. | 7:29 a.m. to 5:58 p.m. |
| Dec 5, 2026 | December hunts | 7:16 a.m. to 5:39 p.m. | 7:22 a.m. to 5:45 p.m. | 7:28 a.m. to 5:51 p.m. | 7:34 a.m. to 5:57 p.m. |
| Jan 1, 2027 | Late archery close | 7:31 a.m. to 5:40 p.m. | 7:37 a.m. to 5:46 p.m. | 7:43 a.m. to 5:52 p.m. | 7:49 a.m. to 5:58 p.m. |
Zone A times from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources deer hunting hours table, zone offsets from the DNR hunting hours map legend, checked October 22, 2026. Hunting hours for every zone.
Crawford County seat, towns and border counties
Every Crawford County town below links to a guide with nearby land, shops and legal light by date.
- Graylingseat · 1,949 townspeople · 135,803 public acres in a 10-mile circle
Crawford County meets 8 in-state counties.
Towns: Census 2024 Gazetteer and Vintage 2024 estimates; adjacency from the Census county adjacency file.
Crawford County: processing, mounts and gear
When Crawford County is short on a service, the closest shop next door is listed instead.
Agency desks nearby
Field offices and Forest Service desks below are the nearest agency doors.
Venison processing
Taxidermists nearby
Hunting preserves
Gun and bow shops near Crawford
DNR customer service centers and field offices from the DNR contact page; processors from the Hunters Feeding Michigan list, DNR disease sample sites and directory listings; preserves from the DNR game bird preserve directory; shops from the DNR license agent map (license-only counters removed) and directories. Checked October 22, 2026; call ahead. All Michigan hunting services.
Burn bans and permits in Crawford County
See the Michigan county list for Crawford County today.
- When a permit is needed: Any time the ground is not snow-covered.
- Counties where DNR burn permits are not issued electronically (southern Lower Peninsula; local fire dept/government issues permits): Crawford County is not on this list.
- Who sets a ban: (1) The DNR sets daily burn permit status by county and township ('No' = no open debris burning allowed).
- Public land fires: Campfires for cooking or recreation need no DNR permit.
Range time in Crawford County
Crawford County has 3 in this guide; each card states who may shoot.
Shoots: trap, skeet, shotgun
Shoots: trap, shotgun
For a state-run range, Voyer Lake Shooting Range (Montmorency County) is roughly 37 miles away. Hours and rules
Ranges from the DNR shooting page, the DNR range list and directory listings, checked October 22, 2026.
Small public hunting areas in Crawford County
1 smaller public area in Crawford County, 49 acres together, each with its own section below: acres, office, zones, DNR map and the facts its agency documents give.
Barker Creek Flooding State Wildilfe Management Area
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Type | State Wildlife Management Area |
| Acres | 49 (MI DNR Wildlife Property Boundary GIS Acres field) |
| County | Crawford |
| Map point | 44.6792, -84.5136 (directions) |
| Zones | Deer Zone 2; Bear Management Unit Red Oak; Spring Turkey Hunt Unit NM; Waterfowl Middle Zone |
Crawford County, answered
Are food plots legal for Crawford County deer hunters?
Yes on private land; the DNR bars plots and gardens on public land.
Is Crawford County in the CWD management zone?
No.
Does fall unit I or M cover Crawford County?
Unit I, open Sep 15 to Nov 14, 2026.
How many points do I need for a Crawford County bear license?
Red Oak period 1 took 9–10 resident points in 2025.
What happens if I skip the harvest report in Crawford County?
It is a civil infraction, up to $150.
Can I hunt Commercial Forest land in Crawford County?
Yes, on foot: 462 open acres.
Is there a December hunt in Crawford County?
Yes, December firearm Dec 4 to Dec 6, 2026.
Are Crawford County waterfowlers exempt from hunter orange?
Yes, migratory bird hunters are, but woodcock hunters are not.
Which elk unit reaches Crawford County?
Unit X.
Can I bait deer during the Liberty Hunt in Crawford County?
Only qualifying hunters with disabilities; youth may not bait in the Lower Peninsula.
Answers from the DNR 2026 regulation summaries, harvest reporting rules, MCL 324.40116, DNR harvest and CWD data and the sources cited above. Checked October 22, 2026.
Crawford County, final word
State game areas post safety zones and refuges; read the property page before you go. Some townships in Crawford County post their own hunting or firearm restrictions.
Sources: DNR 2026 hunting regulation summaries, Wildlife Conservation Order, township restrictions list, Michigan DNR hunting, Census and the agencies linked in each section. Checked October 22, 2026.
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