Wyoming Elk 53-6
Cow or calf valid in the North Fork Shoshone River Drainage in Hunt Area 53 — Trout Peak, any legal weapon, Oct 15 – Dec 21, 2023. Type 6.
No points in this draw. Every applicant has the same chance each year.
No longer drawn. The last draw was 2023.
Wyoming Game and Fish Department held its 2026 elk draw without 53-6. The odds, costs and history below are that record, not an offer.
Your odds · 2023 draw
9 first-choice applicants for 16 tags
9 first-choice applicants for 16 tags in 2023, so every first-choice applicant drew and 7 tags went to the leftover draw. The 100% reflects low demand that year, and a code like this can flip the year demand catches up.
Points: none, same chance every year
- NR Tags
- 16
- Applicants
- 9
- Success
- 43%
First-choice nonresidents. Success: Type Reduced 6 hunters, 2023.
Odds by Year, 2021–2023
Odds (tags ÷ applicants) ran from 57% to 100% across 2021–2023. Applicants per tag: 0.6:1 in 2021, 0.6:1 in 2023.
What It Costs · 2026 NR Fees
The $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 $288 nonresident cow/calf elk license (reduced price) is refunded if you miss.
▸ 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 cow/calf elk license (reduced price) · paid at application, refundable $288 WGFD 2026 License Fee List
Wyoming Game and Fish Department publishes no mapped boundary for Hunt Area 53.
Hunt Area 53 in full →Details
Odds in This Draw · 2023 Draw
| Who | Chance | Applied | Drew |
|---|---|---|---|
| Everyone | 100% | — | — |
Fewer applicants than tags. A dash means Wyoming Game and Fish Department did not publish a count for that level.
Draw results: WGFD 2023 Demand Report, p. 1, retrieved Aug 31, 2026.
As a Lower Choice
Tags left after higher choices ÷ applicants at this choice: 7 tags left after higher choices.
How It Hunted, 2023
| Who | Hunters | Harvest | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type Reduced 6 | 83 | 36 | 43% |
| All of Hunt Area 53 | 125 | 60 | 48% |
Across every license type in Hunt Area 53, Wyoming Game and Fish Department counted 125 hunters and 60 elk taken in 2023, and 48% 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 2023 Elk Harvest Report; WGFD 2022 Elk Harvest Report.
▸ Year-by-Year Numbers 3 draws
The reduced price draw for nonresidents, one row per year.
| Year | Tags | Applicants | Per Tag | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 16 | 9 | 0.6 | WGFD 2023 Demand Report, p. 1 |
| 2022 | 12 | 21 | 1.8 | WGFD 2022 Demand Report, p. 1 |
| 2021 | 11 | 7 | 0.6 | WGFD 2021 Demand Report, p. 1 |
Other Licenses Valid in Hunt Area 53
- 53-1 Any elk Oct 1–31 · Regular · 1 tag · 17 applied 0% (small sample)
- 53-2 Any elk Nov 1–30 · Regular · 2 tags · 7 applied 0% (small sample)
- 53-4 Antlerless elk Oct 1 – Dec 15 · Regular · 4 tags · no first-choice applicants 100% (small sample)
- 53-7 Cow or calf valid on private landPrivate land only — you need landowner access Sep 1 – Dec 21 · 4 tags · no first-choice applicants 100% (small sample)
- 53-9 Any elk, archery only Sep 1–30 · Regular · 1 tag · 14 applied 0% (small sample)
Odds for a first-choice nonresident. * 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 9
- WGFD 2023 Demand Report, p. 1 · draw results, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- WGFD 2022 Demand Report, p. 1 · earlier draws, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- WGFD 2021 Demand Report, p. 1 · earlier draws, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- WGFD 2026 Game and Fish Commission Chapter 44 draw rules, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- WGFD 2026 License Fee List fees, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- Wyoming Game and Fish Commission 2023 Chapter 7, p. 9 · seasons, 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
About These Numbers
Odds are from the 2023 draw, the latest on file, computed from Wyoming Game and Fish Department's published results (fewer applicants than tags). 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.
Report an error on this page
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 · All Wyoming elk hunts