Idaho Elk — Unit 31

Idaho Unit 31 covers 382,777 acres and lies 17 miles north of Weiser and 29 miles north of Payette. 49% of it is public land, mostly BLM (23%) and national forest (19%). In 2025, 1,199 people hunted elk here and took 228 — 19% of them killed something. The 2026 draw put up 150 tags here for 15 first-choice applicants.

Tags (2026):650 Nonresident share:capped at 10% Applicants:417 Hunter success (2025):19% Public land:49% Size:382,777 acres

Your chance of drawing here

Every elk license type on offer in Unit 31, with the prior-draw chance for a first-choice nonresident applicant. Type your points in to see your own number.

Chances are from the 2026 draw (the most recent) for a first-choice nonresident. "Points needed" = the cut in the last draw.

Simple view Odds at every point level

2008 Antlered elk, any weapon, Hunt Area 31 75 tags · 111 applicants

6% Long shot 0% as 2nd choice
2009 Antlered elk, any weapon, Hunt Area 31 75 tags · 75 applicants

9% Long shot 0% as 2nd choice
2073 Antlerless elk, any weapon, Hunt Area 31 150 tags · 15 applicants

73% Real chance 0% as 2nd choice
2074 Antlerless elk, any weapon, Hunt Area 31 150 tags · 13 applicants

100% Undersubscribed 0% as 2nd choice
2112 Antlerless or Antlered elk, any weapon, Hunt Area 31 50 tags · 85 applicants

1% Long shot 0% as 2nd choice
2156 Antlerless elk, any weapon, Hunt Area 31 (youth only) 100 tags · 5 applicants

100% Undersubscribed 43% as 2nd choice
2163 Antlerless or Antlered elk, any weapon, Hunt Area 31 (youth only) 50 tags · 113 applicants

4% Long shot 0% as 2nd choice

Hunt	Your odds	As 2nd choice	Points needed	Tags / applicants	Season
2008 ↗ Antlered elk, any weapon, Hunt Area 31	6% Long shot	0%	—	75 / 111	Oct 15–31, 2026
2009 ↗ Antlered elk, any weapon, Hunt Area 31	9% Long shot	0%	—	75 / 75	Nov 1–14, 2026
2073 ↗ Antlerless elk, any weapon, Hunt Area 31	73% Real chance	0%	—	150 / 15	Oct 15–31, 2026
2074 ↗ Antlerless elk, any weapon, Hunt Area 31	100% Undersubscribed	0%	—	150 / 13 undersubscribed	Nov 1–14, 2026
2112 ↗ Antlerless or Antlered elk, any weapon, Hunt Area 31	1% Long shot	0%	—	50 / 85	Oct 1–14, 2026
2156 ↗ Antlerless elk, any weapon, Hunt Area 31 (youth only)	100% Undersubscribed	43%	—	100 / 5 undersubscribed	Oct 15 – Nov 14, 2026
2163 ↗ Antlerless or Antlered elk, any weapon, Hunt Area 31 (youth only)	4% Long shot	0%	—	50 / 113	Oct 1–14, 2026

What these columns mean

Your odds: the share of applicants at your point level who drew this tag in the 2026 draw. Not a forecast: quotas and demand move every year.
The badge: plain language for that number. Likely draw 75% or better · Real chance 40%+ · Long shot 15%+ · Point builder below that, so you are applying mainly to bank a point · Undersubscribed means fewer first-choice applicants than tags, so everyone who applied drew.
As 2nd choice: Idaho lets you name more than one hunt on the application. Miss on your first choice and you go into the pot for whatever tags are left, alongside everyone else's second choices. Points never help a lower choice, so this number is the same whatever you have banked — it is usually worth naming a hunt that goes undersubscribed.
Points needed: the lowest point total that still got a tag in the 2026 draw, and how that cut has moved since the earliest draw we hold.
Tags / applicants: tags on offer and first-choice applicants for them, as the agency published them. Under five tags we print counts instead of a percentage, because one applicant either way swings it.

What it costs to apply (2026 nonresident fees)

License	Up front	Gone if you miss	If you draw
Per application	$203	$203	$854.75

Application window: opens May 1, closes Jun 5, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.

The country

Unit 31 within Idaho

Unit 31 and its neighbours

Zoomable USGS topo, aerial imagery and shaded relief, with the neighboring areas drawn on.

Boundaries are drawn for orientation only — the written boundary description in the regulations governs.

Who owns the ground

Private 189,757 ac · 50%
BLM 88,554 ac · 23%
National Forest 71,678 ac · 19%
State land 28,803 ac · 8%
Bureau of Reclamation 80 ac · 0%
National Wildlife Refuge 71 ac · 0%
Other public 61 ac · 0%

Source: BLM Idaho Surface Management Agency (land ownership / SMA)

Nearby areas

How the hunting has gone

What Idaho Department of Fish and Game publishes for this area after each season — harvest statistics for everyone who hunted it, not draw odds and not a forecast. Idaho's figures are counts from mandatory hunter reports and check stations rather than survey estimates, so they behave differently from the survey states.