Washington Elk — GMU 342

Umtanum

Washington GMU 342 covers 186,767 acres and lies 15 miles south-west of Ellensburg and 47 miles south of Wenatchee. 68% of it is public land, mostly state land (39%) and state trust land (22%). In 2025, hunters took 131 elk here. The 2026 draw put up 230 nonresident tags here.

Nonresident tags (2026):796 Firearm hunter success (2025):5% Public land:68% Size:186,767 acres

Your chance of drawing here

Every elk license type on offer in GMU 342, with the prior-draw chance for a first-choice nonresident applicant. Type your points in to see your own number.

15 licenses on offer · 796 tags in the 2026 draw

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
  • 2020 Observatory — Quality Elk Hunt, Any bull (Eastern Firearm) 4 tags
    Cut level
  • 2059 Observatory — Quality Elk Hunt, Any bull (Eastern Archery) 28 tags
    Cut level
  • 2083 Observatory — Quality Elk Hunt, Any bull (Eastern Muzzleloader) 27 tags
    Cut level
  • 2223 Umtanum — Antlerless Elk Hunt, Antlerless (Eastern Firearm) 160 tags
    Cut level
  • 2253 Umtanum — Antlerless Elk Hunt, Antlerless (Eastern Archery) 230 tags
    Cut level
  • 2282 Umtanum — Antlerless Elk Hunt, Antlerless (Eastern Muzzleloader) 110 tags
    Cut level
  • 2410 Yakima North — Youth Elk Hunt, Antlerless (Eastern Firearm) 40 tags
    Cut level
  • 2414 Yakima Late — Youth Elk Hunt, Antlerless (Eastern Archery) 50 tags
    Cut level
  • 2415 Yakima North — Youth Elk Hunt, Antlerless (Eastern Muzzleloader) 30 tags
    Cut level
  • 2507 Yakima North — Elk Hunters 65 Years And Older, Antlerless (Eastern Firearm) 15 tags
    Cut level
  • 2511 Yakima Late — Elk Hunters 65 Years And Older, Antlerless (Eastern Archery) 15 tags
    Cut level
  • 2512 Yakima North — Elk Hunters 65 Years And Older, Antlerless (Eastern Muzzleloader) 10 tags
    Cut level
  • 2608 Observatory — Elk Hunters with Disabilities, Any bull (Eastern Archery, Firearm, or Muzzleloader) 2 tags
    Cut level
  • 2611 Yakima North — Elk Hunters with Disabilities, Antlerless (Eastern Archery, Firearm, or Muzzleloader) 20 tags
    Cut level
  • 2807 Observatory — Bull Elk Hunt, Any bull (Eastern Firearm) 55 tags
    Cut level
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

Ellensburg Yakima Wenatchee Maple Valley Richland
GMU 342 within Washington
329 334 340 346 352 356 360 364 368 371 Ellensburg Yakima
GMU 342 and its neighbours
Zoomable USGS topo, aerial imagery and shaded relief, with the neighboring areas drawn on.

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

Who owns the ground

  • State land 73,174 ac · 39%
  • Private 59,610 ac · 32%
  • State trust land 41,699 ac · 22%
  • National Forest 9,423 ac · 5%
  • BLM 2,439 ac · 1%
  • Bureau of Reclamation 412 ac · 0%
  • County or city land 7 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 131
2024 128
2023 127
2022 84
2021 65

What people carried (2025 harvest)

  • Archery 3 · 4% · 211 hunters, 1% success
  • Firearm 37 · 53% · 787 hunters, 5% success
  • Muzzleloader 30 · 43% · 255 hunters, 12% 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)

How we compute draw odds · All Washington elk hunts