New Or Noteworthy For This Year

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Oregon's Elk Breakdown

Oregon's Antelope Breakdown

OREGON'S 2024 ELK AND ANTELOPE APPLICATION STRATEGY

Note: The application deadline in Oregon for all species is May 15 at 11:59 p.m. PT and all applications must be submitted online or at a licensed sales agent.

As far as elk and antelope are concerned, there are no changes for the 2024 season. Controlled hunts and pricing are the same as they were last year, so good luck to all in the upcoming draw.  

ANTLERLESS DRAW ODDS

Remember that GOHUNT has Draw Odds for all female species.

State information

To view more important information, including a state overview of Oregon’s rules/regulations, the draw system, draw odds and license fees, go to the Oregon State Profile. It also includes an interactive map where you can research unit boundaries and data on a unit by unit basis.

Note: Like other preference point states, there is point creep in the more popular units of the state. What this means is if you see a unit that was drawn last year at four points, it's possible that it may require five points this year due to the fact that there are more applicants than permits available. It helps to review the detailed draw odds pages where you can see five years worth of draw data to help evaluate the likelihood of point creep.

IMPORTANT DATES AND INFORMATION

* Tag fees only required if you are successful in the draw. You have the option to purchase the tag if successful in the draw.

Snowpack in Oregon

2024

For 2024, Oregon has seen another great year of snow and moisture. This makes two years in a row where every portion of the state is 90% or better and most of the state is greater than 130%. One year of this kind of moisture is great, but two years in a row will be extremely beneficial to the elk and antelope herds. If this moisture pattern continues, there should be plenty of sustainable feed and water throughout the summer and fall months.

2023

Drought status

2024

The drought outlook has shown even more improvement from 2023. I would expect this to get better at least for the next month or so with the expected runoff. The very central part of the state is still in the most need of water, but way better than last year. The last two years in a row of great moisture is working wonders for this state. Going into the 2024 hunting seasons, I would expect to see a big improvement on antler growth and overall herd health. 

2023

The Oregon draw system

UNDERSTANDING THE DRAW

Oregon’s draw for elk and antelope is a preference point hybrid system. There is both a preference point and a random draw portion. Out of the total tags, 75% are allocated to the highest point holders who apply for any given hunt and the other 25% are randomly allocated regardless of points. On the random side of that draw, every applicant is on a level playing field for those tags.

Note: if there are only three or less for any particular hunt, those will be given to the highest point applicants with no random tag available. 

As nonresidents, is Oregon a good state to apply for?  What are the tag splits?  This is where Oregon gets tricky as nonresidents are only allocated a maximum of 3% of the antelope tags and a maximum of 5% of the elk tags. It gets even worse: out of those tag percentages, 2.5% of these are allocated prior to the main draw in the guides and outfitters program. At best, there are only 2% of the elk tags and .5% of the antelope tags that can be allocated to nonresidents in the main draw and, for the good hunts, there are so few tags that there are no  tags randomly allocated. If you are not a high point holder, the good tags in Oregon are essentially off limits for nonresidents. 

Oregon is also relatively expensive for a nonresident adult to apply in. As previously stated, you have to buy the $172 hunting license and then pay the $8 application fee per species. In our opinion, the juice may not be worth the squeeze unless you live in an adjacent state and are willing to research the odds and hunts available and know what you are getting into before starting down the road of the Oregon application process.

PREFERENCE POINT ONLY

If applicants wish to build points only, then they can apply with the point only code as their first choice. In this scenario, applicants will use the point saver code 299 for elk and 499 for antelope as their first choice. Applicants can also apply for points only in the summer months from July 1 to Nov. 30.

CHOICES

Oregon will allow applicants to enter five hunt choices. Every applicant's first choice is considered before moving to an applicant's second choice, so on and so forth. Preference points are only purged if an applicant draws their first choice. There is no waiting period to reapply for elk or antelope if you drew a tag the previous year. Be sure to take a look at second choice draw odds to see what tags might be available after all first choices have been awarded. 

GROUP APPLICATIONS

Oregon will allow group applications for elk and antelope of any size. A group application will have their points averaged and will round up to the next whole number if the average is .51 or above, and down to the whole number if the average is .50 or below. A group application is treated as a single application where, if selected, all applicants will receive a tag, provided there are enough tags to satisfy the size of the group. If there are not enough tags, no one on that application will receive a tag. 

PURCHASING TAGS AND TAG RETURN

If you are successful in drawing a tag, you have up until the day before the earliest hunt starts to purchase the tag. Once you have purchased the tag, you cannot return the tag for refund. If you draw your first choice, your preference points will be purged, so make sure you actually want the permit you apply for.

OREGON'S PREMIUM HUNTS 

In addition to the regular controlled hunt drawing, Oregon offers a separate draw for hunts that they call premium hunts. This is a completely separate hunt drawing that allows tag holders to hunt extended season dates with any weapon. These hunts are 100% randomly drawn each year and there are no preference or bonus points attached to the application. There are no party applications and no resident or nonresident quotas. The season dates for the lucky tag holders are Aug. 1 to Nov. 30 each year. Standard application fees exist and the applicant can apply for five different choices on their application. They are only allowed to apply once per species (hunt code).

Oregon offers hunting opportunities for both Roosevelt and Rocky Mountain elk. Roosevelt units are situated along the Coastal and Cascade ranges in the western part of the state while Rocky Mountain elk units are found in the central and eastern regions. When exploring elk hunts in Oregon through your Insider account, make sure to select "Roosevelt Elk" from the species list to view Roosevelt elk hunts. Choosing "Elk" will display only Rocky Mountain elk hunts located in the central and eastern portions of the state. According to the 2023 survey data, the overall elk population is very healthy and total numbers have pretty much stayed the same.    

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) has managed this state more for opportunity rather than for quality.  For nonresidents, if your goal is to hunt a trophy caliber bull, Oregon is probably not the state to pursue. The units that can produce that caliber of bull are few and the odds of drawing one of those are slim to none due to the extremely low number of tags allocated to nonresidents. I definitely wouldn’t consider Oregon a “must apply” state. 

However, there are over-the-counter (OTC) hunts available throughout the state for both species and fairly easy to draw controlled hunts. The controlled Oregon youth bow hunt is valid statewide except in Units 54 to 58.

Hit list units for Rocky Mountain elk in Oregon

For nonresident applicants new to the point system for Rocky Mountain elk in Oregon, opportunities are limited. The best hunts in the state offer very few tags and the point creep is so significant that you may never catch up. Be aware of that as you review the hit list and associated odds. 

Nevertheless, Oregon still provides excellent OTC hunting opportunities for both elk species and we will cover the better opportunities for those hunts below. Also, with the recently added archery controlled hunts, there are plenty of good archery opportunities that are attainable with little to no points.

Managing points and expectations

I HAVE 0 ELK PREFERENCE POINTS. WHAT CAN I EXPECT?

Residents

Rocky Mountain elk

Residents with no points could have drawn 52 different hunts. Out of those, 20 were archery (three traditional archery only), two muzzleloader hunts and the rest were rifle hunts. Out of the 20 archery hunts, three were valid for spike bull only. There were a total of 11 rifle spike bull hunts, so pay attention as you apply. 

A quick search on Insider shows that rifle hunters have nine units that have harvest success of 20% or greater that also have 100% odds with zero points

Applicants interested in hunting Roosevelt bulls had seven total hunts to choose from and at least one for each weapon type.  Units 10 and 26 had the best harvest percentages, ranging from 15% to 20%.  The biggest thing about the Roosevelt elk units, in my opinion, are going to be the amount of public land and hunting access. Make sure to research that as well ahead of the draw.   

Nonresidents

There are some options if you just want to give Oregon elk hunting a try. Applicants looking at Rocky Mountain elk hunting opportunities with zero points might research Units 46, 49, 50, 51 and 65. All of these options had 20% or better draw odds with zero points. Units 54, 55 and 56 archery spike hunts could all be drawn at zero points as well. 

Unit 60 for muzzleloader could be one worth researching. A lot of public land and the harvest success is a little low, but it can be drawn with zero points. 

Unit 54 and 55 rifle spike hunts both had at least 20% harvest success. Units 60, 65, 75 and 76 rifle bull hunts would be worth looking at if you don't plan to build points in this state. Those all can still be drawn with zero points. 

Nonresidents who are interested in hunting Roosevelt bulls might consider Unit 24 for archery and muzzleloader. Rifle hunters should consider Unit 10 and 24. Harvest success is good for those and the public land percentages are 27% and 35%

WHAT CAN I EXPECT WITH 5 TO 6 ELK PREFERENCE POINTS?

Residents

Residents with five to six points pretty much have the pick of the litter when it comes to drawing a tag.  All but 13 hunts are available to you. For archery controlled hunts, Units 48 and 57 all have great harvest success with 25% or better.  Unit 35 for muzzleloader can likely be drawn and it had a harvest success of 33%.  

There are 71 units that had 100% odds at five points. Within those, the best options are rifle hunts in Units 49, 48, 52, 57, 38, 65, 61, 58 and 46. 

There are 18 total Roosevelt hunt options with five to six points, with the best being Unit 26 for archery, Units 14 and 24 for muzzleloader and the rifle hunts in Units 26 and 15/18.

Nonresidents

Nonresident bowhunters have many options, but will be giving up several points to draw them. The best options are likely Units 52, 48, 49 and 58, which required four to six points last year. 

The best muzzleloader hunts for this point range are 34/38/39/77, 35/77, 66/67/68 and 60. 

Those hunts were all drawn with fewer points last year. Rifle hunters should consider Units 36, 38, 46, 48, 49, 52, 58, 61 and 65.

If you are interested in burning your points on a Roosevelt elk hunt, there are only a few hunts you cannot draw. Those that can’t be drawn are the archery hunt in Unit 26 and the rifle hunts in Unit 23, 25 and 26. Some of the better options for your points are rifle hunts in 15/18 and 27.

WHAT CAN I EXPECT WITH 10 PLUS ELK PREFERENCE POINTS?

Residents

Every archery hunt could be drawn except for the big three: 54, 55 and 56. Those required between 19 and 22 points to draw in 2023. If you have 10 points and decide you do not want to continue to play the point game, Unit 57 was drawn with eight points with decent harvest success. 

All muzzleloader hunts were available with 10 points last year. Rifle hunters might consider Units 46, 48 and 35.  There are good elk populations in those units and decent harvest success.

Rifle hunts 54, 55 and 56 all still take 19 to 21 points; however, the Snake River Unit (59) can be drawn with 10. 

Nonresidents

Archery elk hunters considering Unit 54 and 56 should know that those took 25 and 27 points, respectively. 

Rifle hunters should consider Unit 37, which was drawn with eight points.  Rifle hunts in 54 and 56 had hunts that took 27 and 26 points. One of the better options is Unit 59, which requires 10 points.

Oregon has done a great job of managing their antelope herds. The overall state population has been maintaining pretty well since the last conducted survey in 2021 and there are still a handful of tags available for the 2024 season. Trophy potential is generally really good in most units with a few standing out almost every year. The most highly sought after units are the Whitehorse, Beatys Butte, Steens Mt, Juniper, Wagontire and Warner. All of those units produce 80”+ bucks most years; however, nearly every unit in the state can produce a trophy caliber buck when there’s decent moisture.  This is the second year in a row where the moisture and snowpack in Oregon has been phenomenal and should produce healthy horn growth for the 2024 season (refer to the drought data above).

For nonresidents, you only have a chance at 3% of the tags available and good tags will take 15 to 25 years to draw. However, if you are already buying the nonrefundable hunting license, you might as well apply for antelope or purchase a point during the point buying period.

Hit list units for antelope in Oregon

Managing points and expectations

I HAVE 0 ANTELOPE PREFERENCE POINTS. WHAT CAN I EXPECT?

RESIDENTS

Units 77 and 75 are the only archery antelope hunts that had 100% odds with zero points. There were three other units that had double digit odds, including Units 64, 66 and 67. Unit 75 does, however, include a lot of private land. Applicants can consider applying for the top trophy units and hope to get lucky in the random draw or explore the hunts listed above.  

Muzzleloader and rifle hunters have no guarantee to draw and it will all come down to the random allocated tags. Your best random odds for a muzzleloader tag was 7.5% and your best odds for a random rifle tag were 2.9%.

NONRESIDENTS

Unit 77 archery had 100% odds with no points, but the harvest success for the last three years has been 0%, so I would take caution. There were a total of six hunts last year with random odds at zero points in Units 32, 35, 36, 64, 73 and 75.  Unit 64 had a 10% chance at zero points. 

Unit 35 was the only hunt that offered a random chance to nonresident muzzleloader hunters and only four of the rifle hunts had random odds. The Unit 45 rifle hunt had the best random odds at .89%

WHAT CAN I EXPECT WITH 5 TO 6 ANTELOPE PREFERENCE POINTS?

RESIDENTS

Archery hunts in Units 35, 36, 66 and 67 are all good options in the five to six point range. Muzzleloader hunters have two good options to choose from between Units 32/33/75 and 76/77. Rifle hunters are still at a random level with five to six points and the best odds being Unit 45 with 2.9%.

NONRESIDENTS

Six archery antelope hunts could be drawn, including Units 36 and 66, which are the best options for bowhunters in that range.

Rifle hunters can consider applying for one of the four units that had a random tag available to nonresidents. Those are Units 36, 45, 51 and 65.

WHAT CAN I EXPECT WITH 10 PLUS ANTELOPE PREFERENCE POINTS?

RESIDENTS

The best options for residents who have waited a decade to possibly draw are the archery hunts in Units 70 (BB), 73 and, possibly, Unit 74, although it’s likely to take 11 or 12 points this year. There are also some good muzzleloader hunts to choose from, including Units 35, 69 and, possibly, 73. Rifle hunters — even at 10 points — might need another year or two.  At 11 to 15 points, applicants can consider Units 36, 37, 40/43/44, 46, 47/48, 51, 66, 72, 75 and 76/77. Applicants hanging around the 20-point range have all, but two hunts to choose from, so good luck to you all. 

NONRESIDENTS

For 2023, there were all, but two archery hunts that were attainable with 10 points.  Unit 70 (HM) and Unit 74 still take about 20 points to draw.  

Muzzleloader hunters might consider Unit 35 and 76, which were available at 10 points. The other muzzleloader hunts were drawn at the 11- to 16-point levels. Rifle hunters are still lagging behind the curve at 10 points. Most of your rifle options don't start to open up until you reach the 15-point level. The best units in the state still require over 25 points to draw.