Wyoming Elk 16-4
Antlerless elk valid on private land in Hunt Area 16 — Shirley Mountain, any legal weapon, Aug 15 – Sep 30, 2026, Oct 1 – Jan 31, 2027. 55% public land, mostly BLM. Type 4.
Your odds at 0 points · 2026 draw
14 of 40 applicants at 0 points drew
You sit on the 2026 cut of 0, which is back at 0 points, where it was in 2021.
Years to draw on points: 2 yrs (1–2)
- NR Tags
- 40
- Applicants
- 56
- Success
- 53%
First-choice nonresidents, regular draw. Success: Type 4 hunters, 2025.
Points Needed to Draw, 2021–2026
The cut is back at 0 points, where it was in 2021. Applicants per tag: 0.6:1 in 2021, 1.4:1 in 2026.
Point creep: drew out at 0 → 0 → 0 → 1 → 0 points (2022–2026), +0.2 points/yr (range +0.0 to +0.5). Years to draw project that pace (the median of the last five draws, capped at 2 points/yr); the agency sets quotas and demand sets the cut.
What It Costs · 2026 NR Fees
Closes Feb 1 · 106 daysThe $15 nonresident big game application fee (per species applied for) is not refunded. Drawing adds the $21.50 conservation stamp (annual; required with any hunting license). The $692 nonresident elk license (regular), includes fishing privileges is refunded if you miss. A nonresident elk preference point is $52, bought separately. Wyoming prices a license by its type number, not by the animal it takes: Type 4 is a full-price license, while the reduced-price licenses (Types 6, 7 and 8) take the same antlerless animal for $288, in a drawing of their own.
- Opens
- Jan 2, 2027
- Closes
- Feb 1, 2027
- Results
- about May 20
Next application window: Open Jan 2 – Feb 1, 2027 (expected). Dates are last cycle's, rolled forward until Wyoming Game and Fish Department publishes 2027.
▸ Every Fee, With Sources
- Nonresident big game application fee (per species applied for) · paid at application $15 WGFD 2026 License Fee List
- Conservation stamp (annual; required with any hunting license) · paid if drawn $21.50 WGFD 2026 License Fee List
- Nonresident elk license (regular), includes fishing privileges · paid at application, refundable $692 WGFD 2026 License Fee List
- Nonresident elk preference point · bought separately, not counted above — an unsuccessful applicant gets no point without it $52 WGFD 2026 Game and Fish Commission Chapter 44
Details
Odds by Point Level · 2026 Draw
| Points | Chance | Applied | Drew |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 ← you | 60% the cut plus 4 party applications averaging under 1 point | 40 | 14 |
| 1 | 100% | 5 | 5 |
| 2 | 100% | 3 | 3 |
| 3 | 100% | 1 | 1 |
| 4 | 100% | 1 | 1 |
| 5 | 100% | 0 | 0 |
| 6–10 | 100% same at every level | — | — |
Points pass + random pass, from published pools. A dash means Wyoming Game and Fish Department did not publish a count for that level: it prints exact counts around the cut and folds the rest into a band. Wyoming runs a second, random pass after the points pass. As a lower choice, 16-4 drew no one in 2026, so lower-choice odds are left out.
Draw results: WGFD 2026 Demand Report, p. 3, retrieved Aug 31, 2026.
Seasons, 2026
- Sep 1–30, 2026 Archery only. Needs a $72 archery license on top. Special archery season (archery license required): Antlerless elk valid in the entire area Wyoming Game and Fish Commission 2026 Chapter 7, p. 3
- Aug 15 – Sep 30, 2026 Antlerless elk valid on private land; also valid on or within one-half (1/2) mile of irrigated land Wyoming Game and Fish Commission 2026 Chapter 7, p. 3
- Oct 1 – Jan 31, 2027 Antlerless elk valid in the entire area Wyoming Game and Fish Commission 2026 Chapter 7, p. 3
How It Hunted, 2025
| Who | Hunters | Harvest | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type 4 | 277 | 148 | 53% |
| All of Hunt Area 16 | 990 | 562 | 57% |
Across every license type in Hunt Area 16, Wyoming Game and Fish Department counted 990 hunters and 562 elk taken in 2025, and 57% of them took an elk. The first rows are hunters holding this license type; the rest of the area's hunters held something else. Wyoming's figures are estimates from a voluntary post-season survey of license holders, extrapolated to every license issued — not a count of animals checked in. Source: WGFD 2025 Elk Harvest Report; WGFD 2024 Elk Harvest Report.
▸ Year-by-Year Numbers 6 draws
The regular draw for nonresidents, one row per year. Wyoming runs a second, random pass after the points pass; it is shown beside the year it belongs to.
| Year | Tags | Applicants | Per Tag | Points Needed | Random Pass | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 40 | 56 | 1.4 | 0 | 10 tags of 49 | WGFD 2026 Demand Report, p. 3 |
| 2025 | 39 | 61 | 1.6 | 1 | 9 tags of 59 | WGFD 2025 Demand Report, p. 3 |
| 2024 | 40 | 63 | 1.6 | 0 | 10 tags of 70 | WGFD 2024 Demand Report, p. 3 |
| 2023 | 43 | 50 | 1.2 | 0 | 10 tags of 51 | WGFD 2023 Demand Report, p. 3 |
| 2022 | 43 | 42 | 1 | 0 | 10 tags of 51 | WGFD 2022 Demand Report, p. 3 |
| 2021 | 47 | 29 | 0.6 | 0 | 11 tags of 65 | WGFD 2021 Demand Report, p. 3 |
Other Licenses Valid in Hunt Area 16
- 16-1 Any elk Oct 1–31 · 14 tags · cut 18 <1%
- 16-2 Any elk Nov 1–30 · 12 tags · cut 18 <1%
- 16-6 Cow or calf valid on private landPrivate land only — you need landowner access Aug 15 – Sep 30 · Reduced price · 48 tags · 212 applied 23%
- 16-7 Cow or calf Dec 1 – Jan 31 · Reduced price · 32 tags · 70 applied 46%
Odds at your points, nonresident, regular class where offered. * fewer than 5 tags.
▸ Legal Cartridges 21 on file for Wyoming elk
21 cartridges on file are legal for elk with a rifle in Wyoming (this license takes any legal weapon). Rules and sources: Wyoming hunting laws.
▸ Sources 16
- WGFD 2026 Demand Report, p. 3 · draw results, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- WGFD 2025 Demand Report, p. 3 · earlier draws, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- WGFD 2024 Demand Report, p. 3 · earlier draws, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- WGFD 2023 Demand Report, p. 3 · earlier draws, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- WGFD 2022 Demand Report, p. 3 · earlier draws, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- WGFD 2021 Demand Report, p. 3 · earlier draws, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- WGFD 2026 Game and Fish Commission Chapter 44 draw rules, fees, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- WGFD 2026 License Fee List fees, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- Wyoming Game and Fish Commission 2026 Chapter 7, p. 3 · seasons, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- WGFD 2025 Elk Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- WGFD 2024 Elk Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- WGFD 2023 Elk Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- WGFD 2022 Elk Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- WGFD 2021 Elk Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- WGFD 2026 Elk Hunt Areas boundary, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Wyoming State Office 2026 BLM WY Surface Management Agency land ownership, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- wy_blm_sma_2026 map shading
About These Numbers
Odds are from the 2026 draw, the latest on file, computed from Wyoming Game and Fish Department's published results (points pass + random pass, from published pools). 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.
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We don't take applications: check Wyoming Game and Fish Department's site and apply there.
Prior-draw odds from Wyoming Game and Fish Department's results, not a forecast · Methodology · All Wyoming elk hunts