Washington Elk — GMU 524
Margaret
Washington GMU 524 covers 59,573 acres and lies 34 miles north-east of Longview and 51 miles north of Vancouver. 25% of it is public land, mostly national forest (23%) and state land (2%). In 2025, hunters took 41 elk here. The 2026 draw put up 15 nonresident tags here.
Your chance of drawing here
Every elk license type on offer in GMU 524, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2710 ↗ Region 5 Northwest–Hoof Disease — Master Hunter Elk Hunt, Antlerless (All Methods) | — Cut level | — | 15 / — | Dec 1 – Feb 28, 2027 |
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.
Other licenses valid in GMU 524
Not in the table above because they had no result in the 2026 draw.
The country
Boundaries are drawn for orientation only — the written boundary description in the regulations governs.
Who owns the ground
- Private 44,647 ac · 75%
- National Forest 13,619 ac · 23%
- State land 1,284 ac · 2%
- State trust land 21 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 | 47 |
| 2023 | 41 |
| 2022 | 51 |
| 2021 | 53 |
What people carried (2025 harvest)
- Archery 6 · 17% · 98 hunters, 6% success
- Firearm 12 · 33% · 269 hunters, 4% success
- Muzzleloader 18 · 50% · 122 hunters, 15% 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)