Washington Elk — GMU 172
Mountain View
Washington GMU 172 covers 69,305 acres and lies 47 miles south of Pullman and 86 miles east of Pasco. 55% of it is public land, mostly national forest (33%) and state land (16%). In 2025, hunters took 41 elk here. The 2026 draw put up 5 nonresident tags here.
Your chance of drawing here
Every elk license type on offer in GMU 172, 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
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— Cut level
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— Cut level
| Hunt | Your odds (0 pts) | Points needed | Tags / applicants | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 ↗ Mountain View — Quality Elk Hunt, Any bull (Eastern Firearm) Rifle | — Cut level | — | 5 / — | Oct 26 – Nov 8, 2026 |
| 2052 ↗ Mountain View — Quality Elk Hunt, Any bull (Eastern Archery) Archery | — Cut level | — | 3 / — | Sep 7–24, 2026 |
| 2075 ↗ Mountain View — Quality Elk Hunt, Any bull (Eastern Muzzleloader) Muzzleloader | — Cut level | — | 2 / — | Sep 28 – Oct 9, 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
- Private 31,517 ac · 45%
- National Forest 22,979 ac · 33%
- State land 11,288 ac · 16%
- BLM 2,744 ac · 4%
- State trust land 769 ac · 1%
- National Wildlife Refuge 6 ac · 0%
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 | 41 |
| 2024 | 40 |
| 2023 | 36 |
| 2022 | 36 |
| 2021 | 67 |
What people carried (2025 harvest)
- Archery 2 · 7% · 22 hunters, 9% success
- Firearm 21 · 70% · 200 hunters, 11% success
- Muzzleloader 7 · 23% · 49 hunters, 14% success
Boundary: WDFW Hunt Planner 'UnitSpatial' polygon layer (WP_HuntPlanner/Regulation/MapServer/0)
Harvest: WDFW Hunt Planner 'BigGame' harvest table (WP_HuntPlanner/Harvest/MapServer/1)