Nevada Elk — Unit 172
Bennett
Nevada Unit 172 covers 382,781 acres and lies 74 miles south-east of Fallon and 86 miles east of Yerington. 97% of it is public land, mostly national forest (51%) and BLM (46%). In 2025, 78 people hunted elk here and took 36 — 46% of them killed something. The 2025 draw put up 4 nonresident tags here for 92 first-choice applicants.
Your chance of drawing here
Every elk license type on offer in Unit 172, with the prior-draw chance for a first-choice nonresident applicant. Type your points in to see your own number.
Chances are from the 2025 draw (the most recent) for a first-choice nonresident. "Points needed" = the cut in the last draw.
Simple view Odds at every point level-
4251-161.162.163.164.171.172.173-1106 Elk antlered | NR | Any Legal Weapon | 161 - 164, 171 - 173 Early 3 tags · 190 applicants<1% Point builder <1% as 2nd choice
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4251-161.162.163.164.171.172.173-1121 Elk antlered | NR | Any Legal Weapon | 161 - 164, 171 - 173 Late 4 tags · 92 applicants<1% Point builder <1% as 2nd choice
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4256-161.162.163.164.171.172.173-0917 Elk antlered | NR | Muzzleloader | 161 - 164, 171 - 173 1 tags · 276 applicants<1% Point builder 0% as 2nd choice
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4261-161.162.163.164.171.172.173-0825 Elk antlered | NR | Archery | 161 - 164, 171 - 173 1 tags · 127 applicants<1% Point builder 0% as 2nd choice
| Hunt | Your odds (0 pts) | As 2nd choice | Points needed | Tags / applicants | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4251-161.162.163.164.171.172.173-1106 ↗ Elk antlered | NR | Any Legal Weapon | 161 - 164, 171 - 173 Early Rifle | <1% Point builder | <1% | — | 3 / 190 | Nov 6–20, 2026 |
| 4251-161.162.163.164.171.172.173-1121 ↗ Elk antlered | NR | Any Legal Weapon | 161 - 164, 171 - 173 Late Rifle | <1% Point builder | <1% | — | 4 / 92 | Nov 21 – Dec 4, 2026 |
| 4256-161.162.163.164.171.172.173-0917 ↗ Elk antlered | NR | Muzzleloader | 161 - 164, 171 - 173 Muzzleloader | <1% Point builder | 0% | — | 1 / 276 | Sep 17–30, 2026 |
| 4261-161.162.163.164.171.172.173-0825 ↗ Elk antlered | NR | Archery | 161 - 164, 171 - 173 Archery | <1% Point builder | 0% | — | 1 / 127 | Aug 25 – Sep 16, 2026 |
What these columns mean
- Your odds —
- the share of applicants at your point level who drew this tag in the 2025 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 —
- Nevada 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 2025 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 | $173 | $173 | $673 |
Application window: opens Mar 23, closes May 13, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.
Other licenses valid in Unit 172
Not in the table above because they had no result in the 2025 draw.
The country
Boundaries are drawn for orientation only — the written boundary description in the regulations governs.
Who owns the ground
- National Forest 195,005 ac · 51%
- BLM 174,449 ac · 46%
- Private 13,107 ac · 3%
- Tribal 219 ac · 0%
How the hunting has gone
What Nevada Department of Wildlife publishes for this area after each season — harvest statistics for everyone who hunted it, not draw odds and not a forecast. Nevada Department of Wildlife publishes these per hunt rather than per unit; the rows below add its own figures together, since a hunter holds one tag for the species in a season. Nevada Department of Wildlife reports this unit inside the group 161-164, 171-173, so the figures below cover the whole group, not Unit 172 alone.
| Season | Hunters | Harvest | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 78 | 36 | 46% |
| 2024 | 83 | 34 | 41% |
| 2023 | 78 | 31 | 40% |
| 2022 | 96 | 36 | 38% |
| 2021 | 107 | 57 | 53% |
Boundary: NDOW Game Management Units
Harvest: 2025 Elk Harvest by Unit Group
Harvest: 2024 Elk Harvest by Unit Group
Harvest: 2023 Elk Harvest by Unit Group