Washington Deer · GMU 653 White River

Washington GMU 653 covers 247,992 acres and lies 22 miles east of Bonney Lake. 54% of it is public land, mostly national forest (52%) and other public land (1%). In 2025, hunters took 112 deer here; hunter counts not published. Its most applied-for hunt, 1069, put up 10 nonresident tags in the 2025 draw for 141 first-choice applicants.

No more draws here. The last one was 2025.

Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife held its 2026 deer draw without GMU 653. No current hunt code lists this unit; the Washington deer hunts on offer are drawn elsewhere. The odds, costs and harvest below are that history, kept for the record.

NR Tags, 2025
10

1 license

Applicants
141

first choice, NR

Hunter Success
28%

2025, firearm hunter

Public Land
54%

53% Forest Service

Size
387 mi²

247,992 acres

Bonney Lake Auburn 653
28%hunter success 2025

Boundaries are drawn for orientation only. The written boundary description in the regulations governs.

Best Bets at 0 Points

Ranked by your odds times how often that license type's hunters filled their tag in 2025. Nonresident, first choice, 2025 draw; licenses with at least 10 tags that anyone can buy.

Every License in GMU 653

90–100% 50–89% 10–49% 1–9% under 1% fewer than 5 tags: one applicant swings it

The last draw held in GMU 653 was 2025. These are that draw's chances for a first-choice nonresident applicant, kept for the record.

1069 7% —

First-choice nonresident odds at your points, 2025 draw. Cut = points the last tag went at; ▲ = points added since the earliest draw on file.

Draw results: WDFW 2025 Deer individual hunts, retrieved Aug 31, 2026.

If you draw (2025 nonresident fees): $751.37 ($751.37 to apply). Open Apr 20 – May 27, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.

Harvest

Year Deer
2025 112
2024 78
2023 62
2022 61
2021 92
2025 by LicenseHuntersDeerSuccess
General season — 111 —
General season · archery 19 0 0%
General season · firearm 394 109 28%
Special permit — 1 —

2025 split: archery 0 (0%) from 19 hunters, 0%, firearm 109 (100%) from 394 hunters, 28%

What Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife publishes after each season, for everyone who hunted the area: harvest statistics, not draw odds. Hunter counts not published for 2025. Washington's figures come from mandatory hunter reports. WDFW credits a multi-GMU special-permit hunt's harvest to every GMU it spans rather than splitting it, so unit totals add up to more than the statewide total. Source: WDFW 2025 Hunt Planner 'BigGame' harvest table.

The Ground

National Forest 130,191 ac 52%
Private 113,403 ac 46%
Other public 3,052 ac 1%
State land 574 ac <1%
State trust land 482 ac <1%
County or city land 287 ac <1%

Source: WDFW 2026 WA DNR 'Non-DNR Major Public Lands'….

▸ Sources 5
  1. WDFW 2025 Deer individual hunts draw results, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  2. WDFW 2025 Big Game Hunting Seasons and Rules fees, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  3. WDFW 2025 Hunt Planner 'BigGame' harvest table harvest, area description, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  4. WDFW 2026 Hunt Planner 'UnitSpatial' polygon… boundary, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  5. WDFW 2026 WA DNR 'Non-DNR Major Public Lands'… land ownership, retrieved Aug 31, 2026

About These Numbers

Odds are from the 2025 draw, the latest on file, computed from Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife's published results. They are what happened in that draw, not a forecast. Under five tags a percentage carries a *, because one applicant either way swings it. A dash means the agency did not publish the number, and a date marked expected is last cycle's schedule rolled forward. How we compute these.

Report an error on this page

Every report is checked against the agency source before we change anything.

We don't take applications: check Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife's site and apply there.

Prior-draw odds from Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife's results, not a forecast · Methodology · All Washington deer hunts