Top Ten Reasons Hunters Head For Mercer Wisconsin
If you’re a ruffed grouse hunter, you’ve most likely heard of Mercer, the sleepy little town in northern Wisconsin and their fabulous hunting opportunities. But, did you know why it was so popular? Here are the top ten reasons:
Mercer is in the middle of 377,000 acres of publicly-owned forested land. Over 70-percent of Iron County is open to public access hunting. Between, county, state, and federally owned land, there are countless places to flush a grouse without worrying about asking for permission to hunt.
Mercer is ground zero for over 250 miles of ATV trails. That means you can park the truck and use your ATV to hunt for the entire trip. What few hunters realize is that many hunting hotspots are only accessible via the ATV trails. No cars or trucks can reach them and few hunters attempt to hike to them. Talk about low hunting pressure.
The fishing is fantastic. Suppose you limit out early or want to take a break from beating
This musky lake gets little pressure and is just minutes from Mercer.
the underbrush? There are 214 lakes within 30 miles of Mercer filled with every species of game fish northern Wisconsin has to offer, from crappie to musky.
There are many ruffed grouse management areas around Mercer. These areas are specifically managed by the state and the Ruffed Grouse Society to keep the ruffed grouse populations strong and healthy. They do so by actively maintaining ideal ruffed grouse habitat.
The area is mostly undeveloped and pristine. Timber wolves, black bear, white-tailed deer, moose, and wild turkey call Iron County home. While many places around the Midwest seem sterilized and tame, the boreal forests around Mercer are thrillingly raw and wild. Mercer Township has an amazingly low population density of 1.8 people per square mile.
The paper pulp/timber industry is alive and well in Iron County. Vast areas of the county are in the early successional state of regeneration, which is perfect ruffed grouse and white-tailed deer habitat. It also means countless miles of logging trails that dive right into the heart of these areas.
Iron County has hundreds of square miles of public deer, turkey, and grouse hunting.
There are many miles of maintained walking trails through the forests that allow hunters of all shapes, sizes, and fitness levels access to great hunting.
The turkey population is growing in Iron County, so while you’re out grouse hunting, you can also be scouting for great turkey spot for the next spring.
Mercer has a public archery, shotgun, rifle, and pistol shooting range that is free to use from sunrise to sunset.
Mercer is populated with hunters and anglers that love to share their playground. They welcome their kindred spirits with open arms. The local sporting goods stores, the Chamber of Commerce, and the local office of the Wisconsin DNR are willing and able to help anyone fulfill their vacation dreams. If you need shotgun shells, lures, bait, maps, ice, or just advice, it’s all readily available.
Great fishing lakes are right in Mercer.
Lisa Heberling of the Mercer Chamber of Commerce says it best. “You can be in the middle of nowhere, just five minutes from town.” It doesn’t matter what you love to do, at Mercer, you’re never done playing outside.
Still planning a fall fishing trip? Check out our earlier story: Fishing the North Woods: Mercer, Wisconsin.