Oregon Elk — Unit 45
Fossil
Oregon Unit 45 covers 902,240 acres and lies 59 miles north-east of Prineville and 73 miles north-east of Redmond. 15% of it is public land, mostly BLM (12%) and national forest (3%). In 2025, 1,227 people hunted elk here and took 351 — 29% of them killed something. The 2026 draw put up 1,086 tags here for 25 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 45, 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
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100% Likely draw
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100% Likely draw
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100% Likely draw
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100% No first-choice applicants
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100% Likely draw
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100% Likely draw
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100% Likely draw
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100% Likely draw
| Hunt | Your odds (0 pts) | Points needed | Tags / applicants | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 245A1 ↗ N Fossil Private No. 1 | 100% Likely draw | 1 steady since 2022 | 252 / 15 | Oct 28 – Nov 1, 2026 |
| 245A2 ↗ N Fossil Private No. 2 | 100% Likely draw | 1 steady since 2022 | 334 / 13 | Nov 7–15, 2026 |
| 245B1 ↗ S Fossil Private No. 1 | 100% Likely draw | 1 steady since 2022 | 207 / 9 | Oct 28 – Nov 1, 2026 |
| 245B2 ↗ S Fossil Private No. 2 | 100% Likely draw | 1 steady since 2022 | 420 / 23 | Nov 7–15, 2026 |
| 245C ↗ Fossil Unit | 100% No first-choice applicants | 1 steady since 2022 | 73 / 0 | Nov 21–29, 2026 |
| 245D ↗ Fossil Private | 100% Likely draw | 1 −1 since 2022 | 1,086 / 25 | Aug 1 – Mar 31, 2027 |
| 245T ↗ Fossil Unit Youth | 100% Likely draw | 1 −2 since 2022 | 82 / 1 | Aug 15 – Dec 31, 2026 |
| 245X ↗ Fossil Unit No. 1 | 100% Likely draw | 1 steady since 2022 | 439 / 16 | Oct 28 – Nov 1, 2026 |
| 245Y ↗ Fossil Unit No. 2 | 100% Likely draw | 1 steady since 2022 | 447 / 14 | 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 759,173 ac · 84%
- BLM 104,633 ac · 12%
- National Forest 30,291 ac · 3%
- Tribal 3,835 ac · 0%
- State land 3,169 ac · 0%
- National Park Service 1,445 ac · 0%
- Other public 3 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 | 1,227 | 351 | 29% |
| 2024 | 1,223 | 390 | 32% |
| 2023 | 1,478 | 389 | 26% |
| 2022 | 1,554 | 510 | 33% |
| 2021 | 1,485 | 431 | 29% |
What people carried (2025 harvest)
- Rifle 270 · 77% · 967 hunters, 28% success
- Archery 81 · 23% · 260 hunters, 31% success
Boundary: ODFW Wildlife Management Unit boundaries (Compass ArcGIS service)
Harvest: ODFW 2025 Estimated Any Legal Weapon Elk Harvest by Zone, Wildlife Management Unit and Hunt
Harvest: ODFW 2025 Estimated Archery 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