Oregon Elk — Unit 37
Ochoco
Oregon Unit 37 covers 1,028,985 acres and lies 38 miles east of Prineville and 54 miles east of Redmond. 54% of it is public land, mostly national forest (42%) and BLM (11%). In 2025, 1,038 people hunted elk here and took 253 — 24% of them killed something. The 2026 draw put up 527 tags here for 15 first-choice applicants, and the last tag went to someone with 1 points.
Your chance of drawing here
Every elk license type on offer in Unit 37, 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-
100% Likely draw
-
18% Long shot
-
2% Point builder
-
100% No first-choice applicants
-
2% Point builder
-
3% Point builder
| Hunt | Your odds (0 pts) | Points needed | Tags / applicants | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 237A ↗ Ochoco Private Rifle | 100% Likely draw | 1 steady since 2022 | 527 / 15 | Aug 13 – Dec 29, 2026 |
| 237R ↗ Ochoco Unit Bow Archery | 18% Long shot | 3 +2 since 2022 | 501 / 81 | Aug 29 – Sep 27, 2026 |
| 237T1 ↗ Ochoco Unit No. 1 Youth Rifle | 2% Point builder | 5 steady since 2022 | 10 / 4 | Aug 15 – Dec 31, 2026 |
| 237T2 ↗ Ochoco Unit No. 2 Youth Rifle | 100% No first-choice applicants | 1 steady since 2022 | 155 / 0 | Oct 17–25, 2026 |
| 237X ↗ Ochoco Unit No. 1 Rifle | 2% Point builder | 11 +4 since 2022 | 140 / 73 | Oct 28 – Nov 1, 2026 |
| 237Y ↗ Ochoco Unit No. 2 Rifle | 3% Point builder | 11 +4 since 2022 | 140 / 74 | Nov 7–15, 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.
- 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 | $863 |
Application window: opens Dec 1, closes May 15, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.
The country
Boundaries are drawn for orientation only — the written boundary description in the regulations governs.
Who owns the ground
- Private 471,351 ac · 46%
- National Forest 431,160 ac · 42%
- BLM 117,360 ac · 11%
- State land 5,133 ac · 0%
- Bureau of Reclamation 3,938 ac · 0%
- National Park Service 527 ac · 0%
Source: BLM Oregon/Washington Land Status Ownership (BLM_OR_Ownership MapServer)
How the hunting has gone
What Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife publishes for this area after each season — harvest statistics for everyone who hunted it, not draw odds and not a forecast. Oregon Department of Fish and 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. Oregon requires every tag holder to report, but the numbers ODFW publishes are survey estimates expanded from the reporting rate — the agency's own tables are titled "Estimated harvest... based on Mandatory Harvest Survey Reports" — not a count of animals checked in.
| Season | Hunters | Harvest | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,038 | 253 | 24% |
| 2024 | 871 | 227 | 26% |
| 2023 | 1,258 | 246 | 20% |
| 2022 | 1,287 | 283 | 22% |
| 2021 | 1,281 | 286 | 22% |
What people carried (2025 harvest)
- Rifle 187 · 74% · 617 hunters, 30% success
- Archery 66 · 26% · 421 hunters, 16% success
Boundary: ODFW Wildlife Management Unit boundaries (Compass ArcGIS service)
Harvest: ODFW 2025 Estimated Archery Elk Harvest by Zone, Wildlife Management Unit and Hunt
Harvest: ODFW 2025 Estimated Any Legal Weapon Elk Harvest by Zone, Wildlife Management Unit and Hunt
Harvest: ODFW 2024 Estimated Any Legal Weapon Elk Harvest by Zone, Wildlife Management Unit and Hunt