Hunt 250X Desolation Unit: Oregon elk tags, draw and harvest
Oregon controlled hunt 250X, Desolation Unit, is one bull elk, Oct. 28 to Nov. 1, with 1,100 tags for 2026 (ODFW regulations, page 53). In ODFW's June 2026 draw, 1,045 of 1,650 residents who put it first drew a tag. ODFW estimates 767 hunters took 127 elk on this hunt in 2025, 17 for every 100 hunters.
Data updated October 2026. Tags and dates: ODFW's 2026 regulations. Draw: ODFW's 2026 Preference Point Draw Report. Harvest: ODFW, 2021 to 2025.
National forestBLMUnit 50Lake, reservoir or riverHighway
The hunt's own boundary is ODFW's written description, regulations pages 94 to 101.| Bag limit | One bull elk |
|---|---|
| 2026 season | Oct. 28 - Nov. 1 |
| Weapon | Any legal weapon |
| 2026 tags | 1,100 |
| First-choice applicants, 2026 draw | 1,650 residents, 116 nonresidents |
| Drawn, 2026 | 1,095 (50 nonresidents) |
| Harvested, 2025 | 127 by 767 hunters |
| Units | 50 Desolation |
How hard is it to draw hunt 250X?
ODFW's 2026 report shows 1,650 residents and 116 nonresidents putting hunt 250X first for 1,100 tags; 1,045 residents drew, and 50 of 116 nonresidents. In the preference phase, which fills 75% of the tags, the residents who drew had 1 point or more. In 2025: 1,692 resident first-choice applicants, 1,045 drew, for 1,100 tags.
| Points | First-choice applicants | Drew in the preference phase |
|---|---|---|
| 19 | 1 | 1 |
| 17 | 1 | 1 |
| 13 | 1 | 1 |
| 12 | 1 | 1 |
| 7 | 2 | 2 |
| 6 | 3 | 3 |
| 5 | 8 | 8 |
| 4 | 25 | 25 |
| 3 | 83 | 83 |
| 2 | 365 | 365 |
| 1 | 634 | 281 |
| 0 | 526 | 0 |
| Points | First-choice applicants | Drew in the preference phase |
|---|---|---|
| 9 | 1 | 1 |
| 4 | 3 | 3 |
| 3 | 4 | 4 |
| 2 | 34 | 34 |
| 1 | 33 | 8 |
| 0 | 41 | 0 |
Source: ODFW 2026 Elk Preference Point Draw Report; ODFW 2025 Elk Preference Point Draw Report. The table is ODFW's preference point phase only; tags drawn at random (25%) are not printed by point level.
How many elk are taken on hunt 250X?
ODFW's estimates for hunt 250X, year by year: 127 from 767 hunters in 2025, 143 from 842 hunters in 2024, 127 from 874 hunters in 2023 and 129 from 882 hunters in 2022.
| Year | Hunters | Days hunted | Elk harvested | Bulls | Antlerless | Per 100 hunters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 767 | 3,173 | 127 | 126 | 1 | 17 |
| 2024 | 842 | 3,335 | 143 | 143 | 1 | 17 |
| 2023 | 874 | 3,613 | 127 | 124 | 3 | 15 |
| 2022 | 882 | 3,736 | 129 | 128 | 1 | 15 |
| 2021 | 888 | 3,735 | 103 | 101 | 2 | 12 |
Source: ODFW harvest statistics (2021 to 2025). Where a hunt covers several units ODFW prints a row for each; these are added up.
Which units does hunt 250X cover?
ODFW's 2025 rows put hunt 250X hunters in 1 unit:
| Unit | Hunters, 2025 | Elk harvested, 2025 | Public land in the unit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unit 50 Desolation | 767 | 127 | 86.4% |
Public land measured by FilledTag from USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land by manager, 2025) for the whole unit, not the hunt's own boundary.
Questions hunters ask
How many tags does hunt 250X have?
ODFW lists 1,100 tags for hunt 250X (Desolation Unit) in 2026, one bull elk, Oct. 28 - Nov. 1 (regulations page 53). ODFW's 2025 draw report lists 1,100 tags for 2025.
How many points do you need to draw hunt 250X?
In ODFW's 2026 draw, the fewest points a resident drew hunt 250X with in the preference phase was 1 (281 of 634 at that level drew). The other 25% of tags are drawn at random among all first-choice applicants, whatever their points.
What is the success rate on hunt 250X?
ODFW estimates 127 elk from 767 hunters on hunt 250X in 2025, 17 for every 100 hunters. In 2024: 143 from 842.
Get an Oregon hunt plan when they open
Hunt plans for Oregon are coming. Join the list and you'll hear first. The first 50 hunters in each new state get their plan free.
Until then, the free FilledTag app for iPhone has a map that works in every state, Oregon included.
Where these numbers come from
- Tags, season and bag limit: ODFW 2026 Oregon Big Game Hunting Regulations, page 53.
- Draw: ODFW 2026 and 2025 Preference Point Draw Reports.
- Harvest: ODFW harvest statistics (2020 to 2025).
- Public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land by manager, 2025).
FilledTag is not part of Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Every figure is ODFW's or measured from public maps.