Oregon Elk — Unit 53
Catherine Creek
Oregon Unit 53 covers 426,274 acres and lies 15 miles east of La Grande and 33 miles north of Baker City. 24% of it is public land, mostly national forest (22%) and BLM (1%). In 2025, 1,171 people hunted elk here and took 303 — 26% of them killed something. The 2026 draw put up 2,831 tags here for 193 first-choice applicants, and the last tag went to someone with 2 points.
Your chance of drawing here
Every elk license type on offer in Unit 53, 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-
40% Real chance
-
100% Likely draw
-
100% Undersubscribed
-
100% Likely draw
-
100% Likely draw
-
68% Real chance
-
18% Long shot
| Hunt | Your odds (0 pts) | Points needed | Tags / applicants | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 253A ↗ Catherine Cr Unit Rifle | 40% Real chance | 1 −2 since 2022 | 110 / 2 | Nov 21–29, 2026 |
| 253B ↗ Mt Harris Rifle | 100% Likely draw | 1 steady since 2022 | 174 / 1 | Dec 12–31, 2026 |
| 253M ↗ Catherine Creek Unit Muzzleloader Muzzleloader | 100% Undersubscribed | 15 +14 since 2023 | 473 / 1 undersubscribed | Nov 1 – Dec 31, 2026 |
| 253R1 ↗ Eagle Cap Zone Archery | 100% Likely draw | 2 +1 since 2022 | 2,831 / 193 | Aug 29 – Sep 27, 2026 |
| 253R2 ↗ Eagle Cap Traditional Bow Archery | 100% Likely draw | 1 steady since 2022 | 330 / 18 | Aug 29 – Sep 27, 2026 |
| 253T ↗ Catherine Cr Unit Youth Rifle | 68% Real chance | 1 steady since 2022 | 38 / 2 | Aug 15 – Dec 31, 2026 |
| 253X ↗ Catherine Cr Unit Rifle | 18% Long shot | 4 +1 since 2022 | 303 / 53 | Oct 28 – Nov 1, 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 323,270 ac · 76%
- National Forest 93,778 ac · 22%
- BLM 5,679 ac · 1%
- State land 1,184 ac · 0%
- Bureau of Reclamation 733 ac · 0%
- County or city land 136 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 | 1,171 | 303 | 26% |
| 2024 | 1,227 | 321 | 26% |
| 2023 | 2,745 | 525 | 19% |
| 2022 | 3,463 | 700 | 20% |
| 2021 | 3,092 | 596 | 19% |
What people carried (2025 harvest)
- Rifle 211 · 70% · 670 hunters, 31% success
- Archery 76 · 25% · 398 hunters, 19% success
- Muzzleloader 16 · 5% · 103 hunters, 16% success
Boundary: ODFW Wildlife Management Unit boundaries (Compass ArcGIS service)
Harvest: ODFW 2025 Estimated Muzzleloader 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 2025 Estimated Any Legal Weapon Elk Harvest by Zone, Wildlife Management Unit and Hunt