Oregon › Hunting seasons › Units › Desolation Unit
Grant district · WMU 50
What you can hunt in the Desolation Unit (50)
ODFW draws the Desolation Unit at 429,617 acres in Grant County; 19 hunt numbers from the 2026 booklets reach inside its lines.
Photo: Bureau of Land Management Oregon and Washington (CC BY 2.0)
Desolation Unit size and offices
Grant County carries 663 of the 670 square miles inside WMU 50, which ODFW files with Eastern Oregon for deer and elk seasons. Pieces of Grant County, Umatilla County, Union County and Baker County make up the Desolation Unit. Less than 2% of the unit is mapped in Umatilla, Union and Baker.
| County | Overlap sq mi | Part of unit | Part of county |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grant County | 663.3 | 99% | 15% |
| Umatilla County | 5.8 | 0.9% | 0.2% |
| Union County | 0.8 | 0.1% | — |
| Baker County | 0.2 | under 0.1% | — |
Questions about access, closures or animal numbers in the Desolation Unit go to the Grant district office in John Day (541-575-1167), which manages 100% of the unit.
| Wildlife district | Town | Call | Of unit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grant | John Day | 541-575-1167 | 100% |
Area, side, county overlap and districts from the ODFW Wildlife Management Units layer and the ODFW wildlife district layer (overlay with Census county lines; GIS measures); closed places from the big game regulations and land manager sources; checked November 8, 2026.
Desolation Unit cougar zone, rifle limits and roads
- Cougar: the Desolation Unit belongs to Zone E (Blue Mountains), whose 2026 mortality quota is 270 cats across 20 units; the zone shuts when the quota is met. In 2025 the hunts in this unit reported 3 cougars from 336 hunters.
- The 2026 deer reorganisation puts the Desolation Unit inside Elkhorn (EH: EH01, EH02) and Fox (FX: FX01, FX02, FX03); buck tags name the hunt area, not the unit.
- ODFW lists the Desolation Unit under the centerfire rifle restriction for Eastern Buck Deer, Rocky Mtn Bull Elk 1st Season and Rocky Mtn Bull Elk 2nd Season; coyote and other hunters need a valid big game tag to use one then.
- Expect gated or posted roads. ODFW lists 1 travel management area in WMU 50: 48A Umatilla NF.
- None of the counties in the Desolation Unit is in a goose zone defined by county; ODFW maps the rest, and duck Zones 1 and 2, only on its map.
- ODFW's game bird hours zone: Zone D (Grant, Umatilla, Union, Baker).
- ODFW tests deer and elk for CWD and has not found it in Oregon.
| Centerfire rifle limit |
|---|
Eastern Buck Deer (Oct. 3 – Oct. 14) |
Rocky Mtn Bull Elk (controlled) 1st Season (Oct. 28 – Nov. 1) |
Rocky Mtn Bull Elk 2nd Season (Nov. 7 – Nov. 15) |
| Area | Name | When |
|---|---|---|
| 48A | Umatilla NF | Permanent Closure |
| Herd range | Code | 2026 hunt areas |
|---|---|---|
| Elkhorn | EH | EH01, EH02 |
| Fox | FX | FX01, FX02, FX03 |
Cougar zones, Eastern Oregon Deer Hunt Areas, centerfire rifle restrictions, travel management areas, antlerless elk damage areas, goose zones, game bird hours and CWD testing from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife; checked November 8, 2026.
Desolation Unit draw list
19 hunt numbers from the 2026 booklets reach into the Desolation Unit, carrying 6,559 big game tags between them; buck deer has the most (6). Busiest application in the unit: 950A1, 3,014 first choices for 3 tags. 7 of the hunts here are new this year. An asterisk marks 7 hunts open in only part of their area; read the hunt description first.
Party applications draw together or not at all, with preference points averaged. Dates are the 2026 hunts, since ODFW has not published 2027 big game rules.
Buck deer, 100 series (6)
| Hunt | Name | Type | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | 1st choice 2025 | Units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EH101 new | Elkhorn 01 Mule Deer | Any legal weapon | Oct 3–14 | One mule deer buck with visible antler | 825 | — | 50, 51 |
| EH101-1 new | Elkhorn 01 Whitetail | Any legal weapon | Oct 3–14 | One white-tailed deer buck with visible antler | 33 | — | 50, 51 |
| EH101M new | Elkhorn 01 Muzzleloader | Muzzleloader | Nov 16–30 | One white-tailed deer | 28 | — | 50, 51 |
| EH101R new | Elkhorn 01 Bow | Archery | Aug 29–Sep 27 | One mule deer buck with visible antler | 512 | — | 50, 51 |
| FX101 new | Fox 01 | Any legal weapon | Oct 3–14 | One buck with visible antler | 880 | — | 48, 49, 50, 51 |
| FX101R new | Fox 01 Bow | Archery | Aug 29–Sep 27 | One buck with visible antler | 715 | — | 48, 49, 50, 51 |
Antlerless deer, 600 series (1)
| Hunt | Name | Type | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | 1st choice 2025 | Units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FX601 new * | Fox 01 | Any legal weapon | Oct 17–25 | One antlerless white-tailed deer | 28 | — | 47, 50 |
Premium deer, L hunts (2)
| Hunt | Name | Type | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | 1st choice 2025 | Units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LEH01 | Elkhorn 01 | Premium (any legal weapon) | Aug 1–Nov 30 | One animal (either sex); premium deer tags are good for any species of deer hunted in that unit | 1 | — | 51, 50 |
| LFX01 | Fox 01 | Premium (any legal weapon) | Aug 1–Nov 30 | One animal (either sex); premium deer tags are good for any species of deer hunted in that unit | 1 | — | 50, 49, 48, 51 |
Elk, 200 series (5)
| Hunt | Name | Type | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | 1st choice 2025 | Units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 200R * | Oregon Youth Bow | Youth only | Aug 29–Sep 27 | One elk | 330 | 124 | 62 units |
| 250R1 | Desolation Unit Bow | Archery | Aug 29–Sep 27 | One bull elk | 1,085 | 598 | This unit only |
| 250R2 * | N Fork Traditional Bow (Traditional Bow Only) | Archery | Aug 29–Oct 2 | One elk | 110 | 33 | 49, 50, 51 |
| 250T | Desolation Unit Youth | Youth only | Aug 15–Dec 31 | One antlerless elk | 21 | 55 | This unit only |
| 250X | Desolation Unit | Any legal weapon | Oct 28–Nov 1 | One bull elk | 1,100 | 1,782 | This unit only |
Premium elk, M hunts (1)
| Hunt | Name | Type | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | 1st choice 2025 | Units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M50 | Desolation | Premium (any legal weapon) | Aug 1–Nov 30 | One animal (either sex); premium deer tags are good for any species of deer hunted in that unit | 1 | — | This unit only |
Mountain goat, 900 series (3)
| Hunt | Name | Type | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | 1st choice 2025 | Units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 950A1 * | Elkhorn No. 1 | Any legal weapon | Aug 1–31 | — | 3 | 3,014 | 50, 51 |
| 950A2 * | Elkhorn No. 2 | Any legal weapon | Sep 1–30 | — | 3 | 1,452 | 50, 51 |
| 950A3 * | Elkhorn No. 3 | Any legal weapon | Oct 1–31 | — | 3 | 1,651 | 50, 51 |
Spring bear, 2026 hunts (1)
| Hunt | Name | Type | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | 1st choice 2025 | Units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 746A * | S Blue Mtns | Any legal weapon | Apr 1–May 31 | — | 880 | 1,288 | 11 units |
Hunt numbers, dates, bags, 2026 tags and 2025 first-choice applicants from the 2026 Oregon Big Game Hunting Regulations and the 2026-27 game bird regulations (sage-grouse); hunt areas from ODFW’s 2026 hunt boundary layers; draw rules from the controlled hunt pages; checked November 8, 2026.
Desolation Unit hunt calendar
Eastern Oregon buck deer is controlled only, so the general rows for the Desolation Unit (3) cover elk, black bear and cougar. General elk in WMU 50 means Eastern Oregon Rocky Mountain elk – 2nd season.
General seasons (3)
| Species | Season | Tag | Area | Dates | Bag | Now |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk | General Eastern Oregon Rocky Mountain elk – 2nd season | General tag | Units 49, 50, 52, 53, 61, 62, 63; Unit 48 north and west of the N Fork John Day River; Unit 51 north of Hwy 245 and Burnt River Canyon Rd between Unity and Durkee | Nov 7–15 | One spike elk | |
| Black bear | General fall black bear (statewide) | General tag | Statewide | Aug 1–Dec 31 | One bear per tag; unlawful to take cubs less than one year old or sows with cubs less than one year old | |
| Cougar | General cougar (statewide, zone quotas) | General tag | Statewide | Jan 1–Dec 31 | One cougar per tag; unlawful to take spotted kittens or females with spotted kittens |
Game birds, furbearers and small game add 20 more rows; most need a hunting license plus a validation or a furtaker's license. 13 falconry and pursuit rows are not shown.
Birds, small game, furbearers (20)
| Species | Season | Tag | Area | Dates | Bag | Now |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wild Turkey | Fall wild turkey | General tag | WMUs 37 | Sep 1–Nov 30 Dec 1–Jan 31 2027 | One wild turkey of either sex | |
| Wild Turkey | Beardless wild turkey permit season | Permit | Private lands in WMUs 37 | Oct 1–Feb 28 2027 | 3 hen turkeys and/or turkeys without a visible beard per day; season limit 9 (3 permits) | |
| Wild Turkey | Spring 2027: youth spring wild turkey hunt | General tag | Statewide | Apr 10–11 Apr 15–May 31 | One male or bearded turkey per day | |
| Wild Turkey | Spring 2027: spring wild turkey | General tag | Statewide | Apr 15–May 31 | One male wild turkey or a wild turkey with a visible beard per day; season limit 3 | |
| Western Gray Squirrel | Western gray squirrel – remainder of state | License | Statewide | Sep 1–Nov 15 | 5 daily, 15 in possession | |
| Ruffed Grouse | Ruffed grouse | Validation | Statewide | Sep 1–Jan 31 2027 | 3 daily, 9 in possession | |
| Blue Grouse | Blue grouse (dusky and sooty) | Validation | Statewide | Sep 1–Jan 31 2027 | 3 daily, 9 in possession | |
| Chukar | Partridge (chukar and Hungarian combined) | Validation | Statewide | Oct 10–Jan 31 2027 | 8 daily, 24 in possession (combined) | |
| Hungarian Partridge | Partridge (chukar and Hungarian combined) | Validation | Statewide | Oct 10–Jan 31 2027 | 8 daily, 24 in possession (combined) | |
| Pheasant | Rooster pheasant | Validation | Statewide | Oct 10–Dec 31 | 2 daily, 8 in possession | |
| Ducks | Youth waterfowl hunt (ducks, mergansers, coots, geese) | Validation | Statewide | Sep 26–27 | Regular bag limits | |
| Ducks | Veterans and active military personnel waterfowl hunt | Validation | Statewide | Feb 6 | Regular bag limits | |
| Band-tailed Pigeon | Band-tailed pigeon | Permit | Statewide | Sep 15–23 | 2 daily, 6 in possession | |
| Crow | Crow | Validation | Statewide | Oct 1–Jan 31 2027 | No limit | |
| Brant | Brant | Permit | Statewide | Nov 28–Dec 13 | 2 daily, 6 in possession | |
| Gray Fox | Gray fox | Furtaker | Statewide | Oct 15–Feb 28 2027 | — | |
| Muskrat | Muskrat and mink | Furtaker | Statewide | Nov 15–Mar 31 2027 | — | |
| Mink | Muskrat and mink | Furtaker | Statewide | Nov 15–Mar 31 2027 | — | |
| Raccoon | Raccoon | Furtaker | Statewide | Nov 15–Mar 15 2027 | — | |
| River Otter | River otter | Furtaker | Statewide | Nov 15–Mar 15 2027 | — |
Season rows from the 2026 Oregon Big Game Hunting Regulations, the 2026-27 Oregon Game Bird Hunting Regulations and the furbearer regulations; general tag deadlines from the general season page; duck and dove zones on the ODFW waterfowl map; checked November 8, 2026.
Desolation Unit success rates, 2025
Buck deer, any weapon led the 2025 results in the Desolation Unit with 199 animals and 525 hunters afield.
For buck deer, any weapon the unit total is 199 of 525 hunters (38%). For elk, any weapon the unit total is 167 of 1,265 hunters (13%).
Success is the share of hunters who took an animal, as printed by ODFW.
| Report | Hunt | Hunters | Taken | Success |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buck deer, any weapon | 150 Desolation Unit | 525 | 199 | 38% |
| Deer, archery | 150R Desolation Unit Bow | 309 | 45 | 14% |
| Antlerless deer | 647B Middle Fork John Day | 7 | 5 | 67% |
| Elk, any weapon | 250T Desolation Unit Youth | 16 | 8 | 50% |
| Elk, any weapon | 250X Desolation Unit | 767 | 127 | 17% |
| Elk, any weapon | Rocky Mtn 2nd season | 482 | 32 | 7% |
| Elk, archery | 200R Oregon Youth Bow | 18 | 4 | 20% |
| Elk, archery | 250R1 Desolation Unit Bow | 805 | 108 | 13% |
| Elk, archery | 250R2 N Fork Traditional Bow | 40 | 4 | 9% |
| Black bear | 746A S Blue Mtns | 54 | 1 | 3% |
| Black bear | Additional Fall Bear | 11 | 0 | 0% |
| Black bear | Fall Bear | 425 | 24 | 5.6% |
| Cougar | Additional Cougar | 3 | 0 | 0% |
| Cougar | Cougar | 333 | 3 | 0.9% |
| Mountain goat | 950A1 Elkhorn No. 1 | 3 tags | 3 | 100% |
| Mountain goat | 950A2 Elkhorn No. 2 | 3 tags | 3 | 100% |
| Mountain goat | 950A3 Elkhorn No. 3 | 3 tags | 2 | 67% |
ODFW 2025 harvest estimates: Buck deer, any weapon, Deer, archery, Antlerless deer, Elk, any weapon, Elk, archery, Black bear, Cougar, Mountain goat; checked November 8, 2026.
Public land across the Desolation Unit
The Desolation Unit overlaps 9 mapped lands, from wildlife areas (1) to forest units (6) and BLM ground (2). Bureau of Land Management Oregon public lands ground lies in the Desolation Unit too.
Whitman Ranger District (Wallowa-Whitman National Forest)
North Fork John Day Ranger District (Umatilla National Forest)
Bridge Creek Wildlife Area
Wallowa-Whitman National Forest
Malheur National Forest
BLM Prineville District
Umatilla National Forest
BLM Central Oregon Field Office
Blue Mountain Ranger District (Malheur National Forest)
Land records and unit overlaps from ODFW, USFS, BLM, USFWS and ODF layers (see each land page); A&H and Open Fields access rules on the ODFW access program pages; checked November 8, 2026.
Sun and shooting hours for the Desolation Unit
ODFW lets game mammals be taken from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset; around the Desolation Unit that window is worked out here with the NOAA solar formula for this spot.
| Day | Note | Sunup | Sundown | Big game | Game birds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 29, 2026 | Archery opener | 6:14 a.m. | 7:41 p.m. | 5:44 a.m. to 8:11 p.m. | Not in table |
| Oct 3, 2026 | Eastern buck rifle | 6:55 a.m. | 6:35 p.m. | 6:25 a.m. to 7:05 p.m. | 6:27 a.m. to 6:24 p.m. |
| Oct 10, 2026 | Duck opener and upland opener | 7:03 a.m. | 6:23 p.m. | 6:33 a.m. to 6:53 p.m. | 6:35 a.m. to 6:12 p.m. |
| Dec 21, 2026 | Shortest day | 7:29 a.m. | 4:19 p.m. | 6:59 a.m. to 4:49 p.m. | 6:55 a.m. to 4:18 p.m. |
| Apr 15, 2027 | Spring turkey | 6:14 a.m. | 7:39 p.m. | 5:44 a.m. to 8:09 p.m. | Not in table |
Hours rules from the ODFW general hunting regulations; game bird times from the 2026-27 game bird shooting hours table; mammal sunrise and sunset worked out for this location with the NOAA solar formula (Pacific Time); checked November 8, 2026. Legal hours for every county.
Desolation Unit neighbours and towns
0 towns on our list sit inside the Desolation Unit, and 1 more lie within 10 miles.
- UkiahUmatilla County
If tags in the Desolation Unit run short, these units share its counties:
| Nearby unit | Shared counties | Sq mi | Hunts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northside Unit | Grant | 1,114 | 20 |
| Murderers Creek Unit | Grant | 1,148 | 20 |
| Heppner Unit | Grant, Umatilla | 1,438 | 39 |
| Fossil Unit | Grant | 1,407 | 34 |
| Ochoco Unit | Grant | 1,605 | 22 |
| Sumpter Unit | Baker, Grant, Union | 1,523 | 29 |
| Ukiah Unit | Grant, Umatilla, Union | 874 | 20 |
| Keating Unit | Baker, Union | 607 | 19 |
Towns and their units from Census places and the ODFW unit layer; checked November 8, 2026.
Desolation Unit FAQ
Can I hunt the Desolation Unit without drawing a tag?
Yes, for elk, black bear and cougar on general tags.
Do I need preference points to hunt the Desolation Unit?
For deer, elk, pronghorn and spring bear, points decide 75% of first-choice tags; general tags here need none.
How many road closure areas are in the Desolation Unit?
1.
Can I use dogs for cougar in the Desolation Unit?
No. Dogs are not allowed; Zone E is a general tag hunt.
Where can I get fuel and food near the Desolation Unit?
Ukiah.
Is any land in the Desolation Unit closed to hunting?
No closed place is listed inside it; private land still needs permission.
Which ODFW office covers the Desolation Unit?
John Day, for 100% of the unit.
How many animals came out of WMU 50 in 2025?
199 buck deer, any weapon from 525 hunters.
Is the Desolation Unit in Western or Eastern Oregon?
Eastern Oregon; unit 50 is filed with the ODFW East Region.
Which herd range is the Desolation Unit in?
Elkhorn and Fox.
Answers drawn from the ODFW sources cited on this page; checked November 8, 2026.
Other photos on this page: YellowstoneNPS (Public domain).