Washington Elk — GMU 157
Mill Creek Watershed
Washington GMU 157 covers 14,013 acres and lies 18 miles east of Walla Walla and 58 miles east of Pasco. 99% of it is public land, mostly national forest (92%) and county or city land (6%). In 2025, hunters took 2 elk here. The 2026 draw put up 15 nonresident tags here.
Your chance of drawing here
Every elk license type on offer in GMU 157, 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-
— Cut level
| Hunt | Your odds (0 pts) | Points needed | Tags / applicants | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 ↗ Watershed — Quality Elk Hunt, 3 pt. min. (Eastern Archery, Firearm, or Muzzleloader) | — Cut level | — | 15 / — | Oct 26 – Nov 8, 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 | $837.90 | $837.90 | $837.90 |
Application window: opens Apr 20, closes May 27, 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
- National Forest 12,863 ac · 92%
- County or city land 878 ac · 6%
- Private 177 ac · 1%
- BLM 93 ac · 1%
Source: WA DNR 'Non-DNR Major Public Lands' (NDMPL) layer, federal/state/county/city ownership parcels
How the hunting has gone
What Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife publishes for this area after each season — harvest statistics for everyone who hunted it, not draw odds and not a forecast. 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.
| Season | Harvest |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 2 |
| 2024 | 3 |
| 2023 | 5 |
| 2022 | 3 |
| 2021 | 5 |
Boundary: WDFW Hunt Planner 'UnitSpatial' polygon layer (WP_HuntPlanner/Regulation/MapServer/0)
Harvest: WDFW Hunt Planner 'BigGame' harvest table (WP_HuntPlanner/Harvest/MapServer/1)