Home › Michigan › Public land › Portland State Game Area
State game area · Southwest Lower Peninsula
Portland State Game Area: where, what and how to hunt
A hunter's summary of Portland State Game Area in Ionia and Clinton counties: units and limits, rules, CWD numbers and local help.
Photo: Christian Collins (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Getting to Portland State Game Area
Parking, trailheads and gates near Portland State Game Area
- Parking areaParking · 0.3 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 0.3 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 0.3 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 0.4 mi from the centreDirections
- Erdman Road EndBoat ramp · 0.5 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 0.7 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 1.1 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 1.6 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 2.0 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 2.1 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 3.6 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking · 3.6 mi from the centreDirections
Parking, trailhead and gate locations come from OpenStreetMap contributors. Roads into public land can be gated or seasonal; check with the managing agency before you go.
Portland State Game Area: the record card
Portland State Game Area counts as a DNR state game area, and it lies in Ionia and Clinton counties. Its home region at the DNR is the Southwest Lower Peninsula Region. The DNR Wildlife Division sets the rules on site. By acreage (2,625) it ranks 33rd in a group of 95 state game areas. DNR page figure: 2,373 acres. It is one of the 180 rows on the DNR state game and wildlife areas list. Roughly 4 miles south of Portland.
From the source page (MI DNR Wildlife Property Boundary GIS Acres field); region from the DNR wildlife region layer. Checked October 22, 2026.
Nearby
Places to hunt and shoot around Portland State Game Area
Who can hunt Portland State Game Area, and on what terms
Entry terms, Portland State Game Area
On Portland State Game Area the state seasons and licenses are the whole story, apart from posted refuges, safety zones and closures. State land rules, set by the Wildlife Conservation Order and Land Use Orders, apply to stands and blinds.
Michigan rules that follow you to Portland State Game Area
- The DNR stand rule for public land: portable, ID affixed, Sept. 1 to March 1, no nails, screws or bolts.
- From Sept. 1 to the end of deer season blinds are allowed; constructed blinds need ID and are prohibited on game areas, parks and recreation areas in Zone 3.
- From mid-August to the end of April, a hunter orange outer layer is the law in daylight; camouflage counts if half of it is orange. Turkey and waterfowl hunters are exempt.
- Harvest reporting is required for deer and turkey inside 72 hours; failing to report is a civil infraction.
- Firearm hunters keep 150 yards from occupied dwellings, cabins and farm buildings.
- Planting a food plot on public land is not legal.
- This is Lower Peninsula ground, where deer baiting and feeding are banned.
- ORV quiet hours on public hunting land, Nov. 15-30: 7 to 11 a.m. and 2 to 5 p.m.
Portland State Game Area: licenses to carry
Buy in the Hunt Fish app, at an agent or on eLicense. Every hunter needs the base license; antlerless licenses (up to 10) obey the county or DMU use limit.
Access from the source page; public-land stand, blind, safety-zone and food-plot rules from the DNR deer regulations summary; hunter orange from MCL 324.40116; prices from the 2026 license fee tables. Checked October 22, 2026.
Portland State Game Area and nearby public ground
Portland State Game Area at the big pin; the nearest 10 public places around it. Between them the nearby tracts list 30,567 acres.
| Public land | Type | Acres | Distance | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tamarack Lake | State game area | 266 | 8.6 mi | southwest |
| Grand River | State game area | 1,023 | 12 mi | north |
| Ionia | Recreation area | 4,230 | 14 mi | northwest |
| Potterville | State game area | 445 | 15 mi | southeast |
| Lake Interstate | State game area | 122 | 16 mi | southeast |
| Windsor Township | State game area | 328 | 16 mi | southeast |
| Muskrat Lake | State game area | 207 | 19 mi | east |
| Saranac-Lowell | State game area | 2,152 | 22 mi | northwest |
| Maple River | State game area | 9,972 | 24 mi | northeast |
| Flat River | State game area | 11,822 | 25 mi | northwest |
Points from the DNR wildlife, GEMS, parks, forest, USFS, USFWS and NPS layers (MI DNR Wildlife Property Boundary GIS (point inside polygon (centroid falls outside))). Straight-line distances. Statewide public land map.
Portland State Game Area deer units, bear units and zones
It is Zone 3 ground in the Southern Lower Peninsula. An older layer marks it inside the Limited Firearm Deer Zone; for 2026 the DNR dropped that zone, so all legal deer firearms work here. Ionia County allows 10 universal antlerless licenses per hunter. Ionia County is an early and late antlerless county. For turkeys it is unit ZZ (spring) and I (fall); the 2027 spring calendar has not been printed. Waterfowl: South Zone, regular duck season Oct 17-Dec 13 and Dec 26-Dec 27. Ionia and Clinton counties: CWD found in free-ranging deer. The core CWD area takes in Ionia County.
The deer units around Portland State Game Area
| DMU | Unit name | Antlerless status | Antlerless use limit | APR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DMU 486 | Southern Lower Peninsula multicounty | – | County rule | No APR |
| DMU 333 | Core CWD area | – | County rule | No APR |
| DMU 034 | Ionia county | Open | 10 | No APR |
| DMU 019 | Clinton county | Open | 5 | No APR |
| DMU 419 | CWD Management Zone | – | County rule | No APR |
Portland State Game Area bear units
| Bear unit | Hunts | Quota | Points (res.) | 2025 bears |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dansville | No season | – | – | – |
Portland State Game Area turkey units
| Unit | Reported harvest | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Spring ZZ | 13,292 | All of unit, 2026 |
| Fall I | 822 | Unit-wide, fall to date |
Zones from the DNR 2026 zone layers as recorded in lands.json; DMU status and APR from the Wildlife Conservation Order; use limits from the 2026 deer summary; BMU hunts and quotas from the 2026 bear summary and bear registration data; turkey from the DNR turkey harvest report; CWD lists from the DNR CWD rules. Checked October 22, 2026.
Game you can hunt at Portland State Game Area
There is no species list for Portland State Game Area in the sources; the open seasons for its county and units decide what you can hunt.
Seasons for 23 species reach Ionia County; White-tailed deer, Wild turkey, Ruffed grouse and Woodcock lead the 45-row table.
Species from the source (The DNR list gives no species for this area; open seasons follow statewide/zone regulations.); bag limits from the DNR regulation summaries. Checked October 22, 2026.
Portland State Game Area openers and closers in one table
Private ground and public ground share these dates in Portland State Game Area; a state park, refuge or national lakeshore can set its own limits.
| Animal | Segment | Area | Starts | Ends | Open now? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | |
| 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 3 | Oct 20, 2026 | Nov 14, 2026 | |
| Pheasant | December | Zone 3 | Dec 1, 2026 | Jan 1, 2027 | |
| Bobwhite quail | Fall | Open quail county | 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 | South Zone | Oct 17, 2026 | Dec 13, 2026 | |
| Ducks | Split 2 | South Zone | Dec 26, 2026 | Dec 27, 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 | South Zone | Sep 1, 2026 | Sep 30, 2026 | |
| Dark geese | Dark goose part 2 | South Zone | Oct 17, 2026 | Dec 13, 2026 | |
| Dark geese | Dark goose part 3 | South Zone | Dec 26, 2026 | Jan 3, 2027 | |
| Dark geese | Dark goose part 4 | South Zone | Feb 6, 2027 | Feb 15, 2027 | |
| Light geese | Light goose part 1 | South Zone | Sep 1, 2026 | Sep 30, 2026 | |
| Light geese | Light goose part 2 | South Zone | Oct 17, 2026 | Dec 13, 2026 | |
| Light geese | Light goose part 3 | South Zone | Dec 26, 2026 | Jan 3, 2027 | |
| Light geese | Light goose part 4 | South Zone | Feb 6, 2027 | Feb 15, 2027 | |
| 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 H | Jan 1, 2027 | Jan 11, 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.
Lodging, fuel and a processor near Portland State Game Area
Pick a town for the night, then a processor for the deer.
| Town | County | Miles | Population | Public land near |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portland | Ionia | 3.9 mi | 3,770 | 3,443 |
| Mulliken | Eaton | 4.0 mi | 550 | 2,585 |
| Lyons | Ionia | 12 mi | 777 | 5,137 |
| Ionia | Ionia | 13 mi | 12,265 | 6,192 |
Each county here has its own page: Ionia County, Clinton County.
Who handles a deer from Portland State Game Area
Office phone numbers that handle Portland State Game Area
Managing office: Flat River State Game Area Field Office.
Towns and populations from Census 2024 estimates; public acres within 10 miles from the land layers; businesses from store locators and listings (license-only agents left out); offices from DNR, USFS and USFWS pages. Checked October 22, 2026. Call ahead.
What hunters reported from the county around Portland State Game Area
2025 in Ionia County: 2,876 antlered, 3,269 antlerless, 6,145 in all. The reporting era peaked at 6,183 in 2022 and bottomed at 5,541 in 2023. Season to date (Oct. 22, 2026): 1,051 deer. The DNR sampled 31 deer from Ionia County in 2026, with 3 CWD positives. With mandatory reporting new in 2026, Ionia County logged 270 spring turkeys. Shown: Ionia County, home to the largest piece of Portland State Game Area. These are county or unit totals, not Portland State Game Area alone; the DNR does not report harvest by property.
Ionia County harvest table
| Season | Antlered | Does and fawns | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026* | 460 | 591 | 1,051 |
| 2025 | 2,876 | 3,269 | 6,145 |
| 2024 | 3,020 | 3,151 | 6,171 |
| 2023 | 2,981 | 2,560 | 5,541 |
| 2022 | 3,544 | 2,639 | 6,183 |
Reported by DMU, Portland State Game Area
CWD samples, Ionia County
| Year | Tested | Positive |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (partial) | 31 | 3 |
Turkeys reported in Ionia County
| Figure | Turkeys |
|---|---|
| Spring 2026 reported | 270 |
| Fall 2026 | 11 |
| Fall 2025 survey | 36 |
| Fall 2025 hunters | 226 |
Deer from the DNR Harvest Report Summary (mandatory reporting; 2026 season to date); CWD from the DNR CWD testing data; turkeys from the turkey harvest report and the 2025 fall survey. Checked October 22, 2026.
Nearest ranges to Portland State Game Area
From Portland State Game Area, Barry County Shooting Range is the closest range on DNR land (23 miles). Clubs inside 30 miles are included.
Offers rifle, handgun, muzzleloader, shotgun
Offers rifle, shotgun
Offers trap, shotgun
From the DNR shooting page and its range pages, checked October 22, 2026.
Portland State Game Area hunting-hour table for key season dates
Use the column for the hunting-time zone that covers Portland State Game Area on the DNR map. Zone D is the far western Upper Peninsula.
| 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.
Portland State Game Area: quick answers
Which town makes a good base for a Portland State Game Area hunt?
Ionia and Clinton counties; Portland, the nearest town we cover, is 4 miles away.
Which seasons count on Portland State Game Area?
Every open Michigan season applies under the area rules; no list narrows it.
What deer rules apply on Portland State Game Area?
It lies in DMU 486, 333 and 034. In Ionia County a hunter may use up to 10 universal antlerless licenses.
How do I get a bear license for Portland State Game Area?
Bear unit: Dansville. The Dansville unit is closed to bear hunting.
Which unit do I pick for turkeys at Portland State Game Area?
The fall license ($15) is for unit I; spring hunts follow unit ZZ.
What are the waterfowl rules at Portland State Game Area?
It is South Zone ground. Waterfowl hunters need the state waterfowl license, HIP and a federal stamp.
Is it legal to bait deer on Portland State Game Area?
The baiting ban applies. The CWD county list includes Ionia and Clinton counties.
Do turkey hunters wear orange at Portland State Game Area?
A hunter orange cap, hat, vest, jacket or rain gear, visible from all sides, from Aug. 15 to April 30.
Do I register a bear from Portland State Game Area?
Bears go to a DNR registration station within 72 hours for sealing.
When can stands go up at Portland State Game Area?
No: nothing may penetrate the bark on public land.
What does a license for Portland State Game Area cost?
Base license, then deer ($20 single, $40 combo) or other species licenses.
Where do I go when Portland State Game Area has too many trucks?
Tamarack Lake State Game Area (9 miles), Grand River State Game Area (12 miles) and Ionia Recreation Area (14 miles) all have pages on this site.
Is Portland State Game Area state or federal ground?
A DNR state game area; the manager is the DNR Wildlife Division.
Portland State Game Area: what to confirm
Gates, refuges and open zones at Portland State Game Area are the manager's call; confirm them before opening day.
Sources for this page: Michigan DNR: state wildlife game areas list · DNR GIS; regulations from the 2026 Michigan hunting regulation summaries. Checked October 22, 2026.
Other photos on this page: ShenandoahNPS (Public domain); Dave Williss (CC BY 2.0).