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Door County, Wisconsin
Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area: the hunter's file
Deer unit Door, bear and turkey zones, closures, licenses and the nearest towns and services.
Photo: Aaron Volkening (CC BY 2.0)
Getting to Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area
Parking, trailheads and gates near Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area
- Parking areaParking ยท 0.6 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking ยท 1.4 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking ยท 1.6 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking ยท 1.7 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking ยท 1.7 mi from the centreDirections
- Mink River Estuary eastParking ยท 2.2 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking ยท 2.3 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking ยท 2.3 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking ยท 2.3 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking ยท 2.3 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking ยท 2.8 mi from the centreDirections
- Parking areaParking ยท 2.9 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.
Key facts for Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area
Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area is a DNR-owned State Natural Area in Door County. The DNR files it under its Northeast Region (northeast Wisconsin). Management sits with the Wisconsin DNR. Acreage: 439, which places it 136th of 449 state natural areas. Listed as SNA 379; survey location T32N-R29E, Sections 8, 9, 16, 17. The closest covered town is Sister Bay, around 8 miles off as the crow flies. It belongs to Newport State Park.
From the source page (WI DNR SNA parcel ownership GIS OWNER_ACRE_AMT, WDNR-owned parcels); region from the DNR county layer. Checked October 19, 2026.
Nearby
Places to hunt and shoot around Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area
Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area by zone and unit
Deer: Central Farmland zone, Door. 4,000 antlerless deer: the 2026 quota for the unit. Bear hunters here apply for Zone F: 764 applied for 2026 and 764 permits went out. In Zone 2 turkey hunters held 51,056 spring tags in 2025 (spring 2027 levels are not out yet). Door County still allows deer baiting, up to 2 gallons per 40 acres with placement rules.
DMU figures for Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area
| Unit | Deer zone | Quota | Public-access bonus | Private bonus | Farmland per license |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Door | Central Farmland | 4,000 | 246 | 746 | 5 |
Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area zone table
| Zone | Setting | Data | Also | Last season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bear zone F | No dogs | 50 target, 764 permits | 1 point | 27 bears in 2025 |
| Turkey 2 | 51,056 spring tags (2025) | 22% success | 11,024 gobblers | 2,500 fall bonus |
| Ruffed grouse A | Sep 12–Jan 3 | 5 a day | ||
| Duck | Southern | Oct 3–Oct 11 Oct 17–Dec 6 | ||
| Goose | Southern | Sep 16–Oct 11 Oct 17–Dec 6 Dec 19–Jan 2 | ||
| Wolf 6 | No hunt | Endangered status |
Zones from the DNR zone layers as recorded in lands.json; quotas and bonus tags from the 2026 antlerless quota table; bear figures from the 2026 bear drawing summary and 2025 bear harvest; turkey from the 2025 spring turkey report; CWD and baiting lists from the DNR. Checked October 19, 2026.
Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area: the property description
Copied from the official listing.
Europe Bay Woods is located on an undeveloped isthmus between Lake Michigan and Europe Lake featuring over one mile of the Great Lakes dune and beach communities, red pine groves, boreal forest, and northern dry-mesic and mesic forest. The isthmus, once the ancient shoreline of Lake Michigan, was created through wave action resulting in sand and gravel deposition and today contains a northern dry-mesic forest dominated by red pine and red oak with scattered hemlock, beech, and red maple.
Common understory plants include beaked hazelnut, wild sarsaparilla, wintergreen, Canada mayflower, and rough-leaved rice grass. Also present is a mature mesic forest consisting of beech, sugar maple, red oak, and yellow birch on undulating topography. Along Lake Michigan, there is an undeveloped sand beach and low dunes grading to cobblestone beach and finally dolomite bedrock. The dunes contain extensive mats of bearberry and creeping juniper intermingled with rabbit-berry, and sand cherry. The area harbors numerous rare plants and animals.
Quoted from the property page, retrieved 2026-10-19; checked October 19, 2026.
Access, closures and licenses for Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area
Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area: open to whom, and how
Expect open hunting and trapping on the DNR-owned parcels, with no camping, motor vehicles, drones or plant collecting allowed.
Orange, stands and GameReg at Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area
Bowhunters too: when a gun deer season is on, 50% of the coat and hat must be orange or pink, unless you are hunting waterfowl. A ground blind on DNR property needs 144 sq in of orange or pink during gun deer seasons. South of Hwy. 64 every stand and blind leaves with you; north of it, two portable stands per county may stay out Sept. 1-Jan. 31. Use GameReg (online or 844-426-3734) before 5 p.m. the day after the harvest.
Tags and licenses for Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area
Licenses sell on Go Wild. On public land, antlerless deer need a public-access authorization for the unit.
Access from the source page; closures from the DNR closed and restricted areas layer; stocking and dove fields from the DNR upland bird layers; rules from the Fall 2026-Spring 2027 regulations; prices from Go Wild. Checked October 19, 2026.
Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area: parent and sister units
Newport State Park is the parent; 2 more units share it.
More of Newport State Park
| Name | Kind | Counties | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newport Conifer-Hardwoods | State natural area | Door | 539 |
| Mink River Estuary | State natural area | Door | 332 |
Which animals Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area lists
The agency names no particular game for Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area: all open seasons apply, within the property rules.
The Door County dates (42 rows) follow.
Species from the property record (No species list published for this property; open seasons follow statewide/zone regulations where hunting is allowed.); bag limits from the DNR regulations. Checked October 19, 2026.
Which seasons are open in Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area
Deer dates are statewide in Wisconsin; bear, turkey, grouse, cottontail and waterfowl dates follow zone lines, so only the rows for Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area are listed.
| Species | Season | Where it applies | Opens | Closes | Today |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White-tailed deer | Archery and crossbow | Statewide | Sep 12, 2026 | Jan 3, 2027 | |
| White-tailed deer | Youth/disabled gun hunt | Statewide | Oct 10, 2026 | Oct 11, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | Gun deer (9-day) | Statewide | Nov 21, 2026 | Nov 29, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | Muzzleloader | Statewide | Nov 30, 2026 | Dec 9, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | December antlerless hunt | Statewide | Dec 10, 2026 | Dec 13, 2026 | |
| White-tailed deer | Antlerless-only Holiday Hunt | Holiday Hunt: Door | Dec 24, 2026 | Jan 1, 2027 | |
| White-tailed deer | Extended archery and crossbow | Extended archery | Jan 4, 2027 | Jan 31, 2027 | |
| Black bear | Bear, Class A draw | Bear Zone F | Sep 9, 2026 | Oct 13, 2026 | |
| Wild turkey | Fall turkey | Turkey Zone 2 | Sep 12, 2026 | Jan 3, 2027 | |
| Wild turkey | Spring youth turkey hunt | Turkey Zone 2 | Apr 17, 2027 | Apr 18, 2027 | |
| Wild turkey | Spring turkey Period A | Turkey Zone 2 | Apr 21, 2027 | Apr 27, 2027 | |
| Wild turkey | Spring turkey Period B | Turkey Zone 2 | Apr 28, 2027 | May 4, 2027 | |
| Wild turkey | Spring turkey Period C | Turkey Zone 2 | May 5, 2027 | May 11, 2027 | |
| Wild turkey | Spring turkey Period D | Turkey Zone 2 | May 12, 2027 | May 18, 2027 | |
| Wild turkey | Spring turkey Period E | Turkey Zone 2 | May 19, 2027 | May 25, 2027 | |
| Wild turkey | Spring turkey Period F | Turkey Zone 2 | May 26, 2027 | Jun 1, 2027 | |
| Ruffed Grouse | Ruffed grouse | Grouse Zone A | Sep 12, 2026 | Jan 3, 2027 | |
| Pheasant | Pheasant | Statewide | Oct 17, 2026 | Jan 3, 2027 | |
| Bobwhite Quail | Bobwhite quail | Statewide | Oct 17, 2026 | Dec 9, 2026 | |
| Hungarian partridge | Hungarian partridge | Statewide | Oct 17, 2026 | Jan 3, 2027 | |
| Squirrel | Squirrel | Statewide | Sep 12, 2026 | Feb 28, 2027 | |
| Cottontail | Cottontail rabbit | Northern cottontail zone | Sep 12, 2026 | Feb 28, 2027 | |
| Snowshoe Hare | Snowshoe hare | Statewide | Year-round | Year-round | Year-round |
| American Crow | Crow | Statewide | Nov 21, 2026 | Mar 24, 2027 | |
| Ducks | Youth waterfowl hunt | Statewide | Sep 19, 2026 | Sep 20, 2026 | |
| Ducks | Regular duck (split 1) | Southern Duck Zone | Oct 3, 2026 | Oct 11, 2026 | |
| Ducks | Regular duck | Open Water Zone | Oct 17, 2026 | Dec 15, 2026 | |
| Ducks | Regular duck (split 2) | Southern Duck Zone | Oct 17, 2026 | Dec 6, 2026 | |
| Teal | Early teal | Statewide | Sep 1, 2026 | Sep 9, 2026 | |
| Geese | Regular goose (split 1) | Southern Goose Zone | Sep 16, 2026 | Oct 11, 2026 | |
| Geese | Regular goose (split 2) | Southern Goose Zone | Oct 17, 2026 | Dec 6, 2026 | |
| Geese | Regular goose (holiday split) | Southern Goose Zone | Dec 19, 2026 | Jan 2, 2027 | |
| Canada goose | Early Canada goose | Statewide | Sep 1, 2026 | Sep 15, 2026 | |
| Raccoon | Raccoon (resident) | Statewide | Oct 17, 2026 | Feb 15, 2027 | |
| Raccoon | Raccoon (nonresident) | Statewide | Oct 31, 2026 | Feb 15, 2027 | |
| Red and gray fox | Fox (red and gray) | Statewide | Oct 17, 2026 | Feb 15, 2027 | |
| Coyote | Coyote (hunting) | Statewide | Year-round | Year-round | Year-round |
| Bobcat | Bobcat, Period 1 | North of Hwy. 64 | Oct 17, 2026 | Dec 25, 2026 | |
| Bobcat | Bobcat, Period 1 | South of Hwy. 64 | Oct 17, 2026 | Dec 25, 2026 | |
| Bobcat | Bobcat, Period 2 | North of Hwy. 64 | Dec 26, 2026 | Jan 31, 2027 | |
| Bobcat | Bobcat, Period 2 | South of Hwy. 64 | Dec 26, 2026 | Jan 31, 2027 | |
| Unprotected species | Unprotected species | Statewide | Year-round | Year-round | Year-round |
From the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Fall 2026-Spring 2027 hunting regulations and season dates, checked October 19, 2026.
Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area: county harvest and CWD tests
Hunters registered 4,302 deer in the Door County unit in 2025: 1,979 bucks and 2,323 antlerless. High year on the chart: 2017 at 5,264; low year: 2023 at 3,793. Preliminary 2026 count to Oct. 19: 408 in Door. Door County CWD testing (2025): 0 positives out of 32 samples. Cumulative total 0 positives in 1,120 tests. Harvest and CWD figures cover Door County as a whole.
Door County deer by year
| Year | Buck | Antlerless | Deer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,979 | 2,323 | 4,302 |
| 2024 | 1,957 | 2,268 | 4,225 |
| 2023 | 1,727 | 2,066 | 3,793 |
| 2022 | 1,736 | 2,110 | 3,846 |
| 2021 | 1,766 | 2,174 | 3,940 |
| 2020 | 1,704 | 2,462 | 4,166 |
Testing for CWD, Door County
| Year | Deer tested | CWD positive |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (partial) | 4 | 0 |
| 2025 | 32 | 0 |
| 2024 | 36 | 0 |
| 2023 | 48 | 0 |
| 2022 | 40 | 0 |
| 2021 | 45 | 0 |
Deer from DNR Deer Metrics harvest history and the 2026 harvest to date; CWD from the DNR CWD summary; bears from the DNR bear harvest reports. Checked October 19, 2026.
Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area pinned among its neighbours
Map of Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area and the 10 nearest public places. That is 6,486 acres of public ground.
| Area | Category | Acreage | Distance | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Green Bay National Wildlife Refuge Detroit Island Unit | Refuge unit | 148 | 5.4 mi | northeast |
| Grand Traverse Island | State park | 26 | 5.9 mi | northeast |
| Sister Islands Habitat Presv | Wildlife area | 6 | 8.1 mi | west |
| North Bay | State natural area | 4 | 9.1 mi | southwest |
| Big and Little Marsh | State natural area | 324 | 10 mi | northeast |
| Coffey Swamp | State natural area | 189 | 11 mi | northeast |
| Baileys Harbor Boreal Forest & Wetlands Jonathan Ela Unit | DNR property | 210 | 11 mi | south |
| Baileys Harbor Boreal Forest and Wetlands | State natural area | 828 | 11 mi | south |
| Mud Lake | State natural area | 2,317 | 11 mi | southwest |
| Mud Lake (Door County) | Wildlife area | 2,434 | 11 mi | southwest |
Points from the DNR managed lands, SNA, county forest, FWS realty, USFS, NPS and DoD layers (WI DNR State Natural Areas parcel ownership GIS (centroid of WDNR-owned parcels) (polygon centroid)). Straight-line distances. Statewide public land map.
Towns, processors and DNR desks near Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area
Start with a town, then line up a cooler, a butcher and a mount.
| Town | County | Miles off | People | Public acres (10 mi) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sister Bay | Door | 8.4 mi | 1,170 | 11,898 |
| Baileys Harbor | Door | 15 mi | — | 8,791 |
| Marinette | Marinette | 33 mi | 11,139 | 9,005 |
| Sturgeon Bay | Door | 35 mi | 9,940 | 1,932 |
For the wider county picture: Door County.
Venison, mounts and ammo near Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area
Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area: agency contacts
County service center: DNR Green Bay Service Center (920-662-5100).
Towns and populations from the 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 19, 2026. Call ahead.
Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area: nearest ranges
Door County Rod & Gun Club in Door County is the nearest DNR-map range, 34 miles out. Two nearby club ranges follow.
rifle, handgun, archery, trap, sporting clays on file
trap, skeet, rifle, handgun, smallbore rimfire on file
From the DNR public range map and its map layer, checked October 19, 2026.
First and last legal minute at Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area
Deer, bear, elk, small game and fall turkey: 30 minutes before sunrise until 20 minutes after sunset. Ducks, geese, doves and spring turkey: same start, done at sunset.
| Date | Season moment | Northern Area | Southern Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 12, 2026 | Bow, turkey, grouse opener | 5:55 a.m. to 7:27 p.m. | 5:57 a.m. to 7:26 p.m. |
| Oct 17, 2026 | Pheasant and duck dates | 6:39 a.m. to 6:21 p.m. | 6:38 a.m. to 6:24 p.m. |
| Nov 1, 2026 | Early November | 6:00 a.m. to 4:57 p.m. | 5:57 a.m. to 5:01 p.m. |
| Nov 21, 2026 | Gun deer opener | 6:28 a.m. to 4:34 p.m. | 6:23 a.m. to 4:40 p.m. |
| Dec 1, 2026 | Muzzleloader week | 6:40 a.m. to 4:28 p.m. | 6:35 a.m. to 4:35 p.m. |
| Dec 24, 2026 | Holiday Hunt opener | 6:59 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. | 6:53 a.m. to 4:38 p.m. |
| Jan 3, 2027 | Archery close (most units) | 7:01 a.m. to 4:39 p.m. | 6:55 a.m. to 4:46 p.m. |
Deer, bear, elk, small game and fall turkey table times from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources shooting hours tables, plus the Zone A offset of 0 minutes for longitude 86.99 W, checked October 19, 2026. Shooting hours for every county.
Questions hunters raise about Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area
Is there other public ground around Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area?
By straight-line distance: Green Bay National Wildlife Refuge – Detroit Island Unit (5 miles), Grand Traverse Island State Park (6 miles) and Sister Islands Habitat Presv (8 miles).
What is the parent of Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area?
Newport State Park holds it.
What type of property is Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area on the record?
It is a DNR-owned State Natural Area, managed by the Wisconsin DNR.
What size is Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area on the record?
About 439 acres.
What is the nearest town to Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area?
Base in Sister Bay, 8 miles away; the ground is in Door County.
Which species are allowed at Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area?
There is no species list. Any season open in the county works here within the rules.
What is the antlerless quota at Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area?
Door, part of the Central Farmland zone. Antlerless goal for 2026: 4,000.
Which bear permit zone holds Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area?
F. You need a Class A license from the drawing.
How many turkey permits go to the Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area zone?
Turkey Zone 2. 51,056 spring tags were issued there in 2025.
What waterfowl dates apply at Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area?
Duck zone: Southern; goose zone: Southern. Southern Zone ducks open Oct 3, 2026-27.
Can I put out corn for deer at Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area?
Yes, within the state limits on amount and placement. No positive wild deer recorded here.
How much orange do I wear at Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area?
During any firearm deer season: 50% of your outer clothing above the waist and 50% of any cap, blaze orange or pink. Waterfowl hunters are exempt.
When must I register a turkey from Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area?
Deer: online, phone or station by 5 p.m. next day. Turkeys: online or phone only.
Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area: one more look before the drive
Signs on the ground beat any web page. Read the posted boundaries at Europe Bay Woods State Natural Area when you arrive.
Sources for this page: DNR: EuropeBayWoods · DNR GIS · DNR: StateNaturalAreas; regulations from the Fall 2026-Spring 2027 Wisconsin hunting regulations. Checked October 19, 2026.
Other photos on this page: tuchodi (CC BY 2.0); bgautrea (CC BY-SA 2.0).