South Dakota Elk BHE-H2A-21 — Unit BHE-H2A, Type 21

Black Hills Elk: H2A21 - ONE ANY ELK · LAWRENCE, PENNINGTON and CUSTER counties

BHE-H2A within South Dakota

What you may take: Black Hills Elk: H2A21 - ONE ANY ELK
Weapon: Rifle
Where: BHE-H2A — LAWRENCE, PENNINGTON and CUSTER counties; 88% public of 563,720 acres
Season (2026): Oct 1–31, 2026
Resident tags (2026): 369; for 10,429 first-choice applicants

Showing resident results (Standard class). Switch to nonresident · Standard Landowner

Odds by point level — 2026 draw

Prior-draw probability for a first-choice resident applicant. 369 tags, 10,429 first-choice applicants. Source: GoOutdoors South Dakota Draw... · EventID=234751.

Points	Your chance	Applicants	Drawn
0	0%	928	0
1	0%	867	0
2	<1%	727	1
3	<1%	680	3
4	<1%	709	2
5	<1%	619	3
6	<1%	604	3
7	<1%	566	5
8	1%	532	6
9	2%	502	10
10	3%	409	13
11	3%	447	13
12	4%	376	15
13	5%	336	18
14	8%	317	24
15	9%	328	29
16	10%	268	28
17	12%	281	34
18	12%	189	20
19	14%	184	25
20	18%	174	32
21	23%	120	28
22	23%	99	22
23	23%	59	6
24	30%	40	12
25	30%	30	4
26	50%	10	5
27	50%	21	8
28	50%	4	0
29	50%	3	0

Preference points, computed from published point-level pools. A dash means South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks did not publish a count for that level. How we compute these.

What it costs (2026 resident fees)

Cash to apply

$20

Out of pocket if unsuccessful

$20

Total if drawn

$215

Refunded if unsuccessful

At the 2026 odds, expected cost per hunt-year ranges from $235 (enough points to draw) to $14,729.88 (lowest published odds).

Elk application fee, nonrefundable, per season · paid at application $10 source

Habitat Stamp (18+, once per license year, required to apply) · paid at application $10 source

Preference point (optional) · only for a point bought without applying — an unsuccessful applicant gets the point free $5 source

Resident Any Elk license · paid if drawn $195 source

Not applying this year? A point-only purchase costs $5 and adds a point for next year's draw.

Next application window: opens Apr 15, closes May 19, 2027 (expected) · results ~May 27. Last cycle's schedule rolled forward — confirm when the agency publishes.

Point creep & years to draw

Insufficient history (0 of 3 draws) — a creep trend needs at least three draw years with a published drew-out level.

Seasons (2026)

Split 1: Oct 1–31, 2026 source

How this tag has hunted

Across every license type in BHE-H2A, South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks counted 292 elk taken in 2025. Full BHE-H2A profile: maps, public land, five years of harvest →

South Dakota's figures are Game, Fish and Parks post-season survey estimates, expanded from mandatory hunter reporting by the response rate — not a count of animals checked in. Source: Elk Harvest (Hunting/Harvest_Maps MapServer, layer 3) — per-unit post-season harvest, 2018 & 2023-2025

Year by year

The standard draw for residents, one row per year. South Dakota runs a second, random pass after the points pass; it is shown beside the year it belongs to.

Year	Tags	Applicants	Applicants per tag	Points needed	Random pass	Source
2026	369	10,429	28.3	—	—	GoOutdoors South Dakota Draw... · EventID=234751
2025	318	9,050	28.5	—	—	GoOutdoors South Dakota Draw... · EventID=230304
2024	269	9,181	34.1	—	—	GoOutdoors South Dakota Draw... · EventID=229227
2023	258	8,618	33.4	—	—	GoOutdoors South Dakota Draw... · EventID=227551
2022	—	—	—	—	0 tagsfrom 0 applications	GoOutdoors South Dakota Draw... · EventID=226792

Legal cartridges for elk in South Dakota

From the South Dakota hunting laws rules on file for a rifle. "Depends" means the rule turns on your specific load — check the state page.

.243 Winchester from $1.11/rd

.25-06 Remington

6.5 Creedmoor

6.5 Grendel depends

.270 Winchester from $0.16/rd

7mm-08 Remington

7mm Remington Magnum

.30-06 Springfield

.300 Winchester Magnum from $1.25/rd

.30-30 Winchester

.308 Winchester

.338 Winchester Magnum

.350 Legend depends from $1.07/rd

.35 Whelen

.360 Buckhammer depends

.400 Legend

.444 Marlin

.450 Bushmaster from $2.00/rd

.45-70 Government from $1.97/rd

.50 Beowulf

Spot a data error on this page? Tell us.

How to read these numbers

Every percentage on this page is a prior-draw probability: the chance an applicant with that many points would have drawn in the draw year shown, computed from the agency's published results. It is not a forecast — quotas, applicant numbers, and point creep change every year. Every figure links to the agency document it came from. Where a state does not publish a number, we show a dash, never a zero. Hunts with fewer than five tags show counts instead of percentages. Fees show the fee year used. Read the methodology for the engine details.

Not an application service

This page is informational only. Draw rules, quotas, fees, and deadlines are set by the state agency and change by commission action — confirm everything on the agency's own site before you apply, and apply through the agency, not here. We disclaim all liability for reliance on this page.

Points	Your chance	Applicants	Drawn
0	0%	928	0
1	0%	867	0
2	<1%	727	1
3	<1%	680	3
4	<1%	709	2
5	<1%	619	3
6	<1%	604	3
7	<1%	566	5
8	1%	532	6
9	2%	502	10
10	3%	409	13
11	3%	447	13
12	4%	376	15
13	5%	336	18
14	8%	317	24
15	9%	328	29
16	10%	268	28
17	12%	281	34
18	12%	189	20
19	14%	184	25
20	18%	174	32
21	23%	120	28
22	23%	99	22
23	23%	59	6
24	30%	40	12
25	30%	30	4
26	50%	10	5
27	50%	21	8
28	50%	4	0
29	50%	3	0

Points	Your chance	Applicants	Drawn
0	0%	928	0
1	0%	867	0
2	<1%	727	1
3	<1%	680	3
4	<1%	709	2
5	<1%	619	3
6	<1%	604	3
7	<1%	566	5
8	1%	532	6
9	2%	502	10
10	3%	409	13
11	3%	447	13
12	4%	376	15
13	5%	336	18
14	8%	317	24
15	9%	328	29
16	10%	268	28
17	12%	281	34
18	12%	189	20
19	14%	184	25
20	18%	174	32
21	23%	120	28
22	23%	99	22
23	23%	59	6
24	30%	40	12
25	30%	30	4
26	50%	10	5
27	50%	21	8
28	50%	4	0
29	50%	3	0