Overview
Known For
Washington is known for having three species of deer to hunt: mule deer, blacktail deer, and whitetail deer. Hunters can also hunt Rocky Mountain and Roosevelt elk, moose, mountain goats, Bighorn sheep, waterfowl, upland birds, and many other species.
Terrain
Washington’s terrain is about one-third rainy and lush in the west and much drier in the eastern two-thirds of the state, as the latter lies in the rain shadow of the Cascade Range. In the western part of the state, there are forested hills, rainforests, and coastal beaches. The semi-arid basin in the east is filled with intensive agriculture.
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Washington Hunting Seasons
Areas 1, 2, 3
Every day Oct. 14 – 29
Saturdays, Sundays, & Wednesdays only Nov. 1 – Dec. 3, Dec. 20 – Jan. 21, and Feb. 10-21.
All areas except Ridgefield National Wildlife
Every day Oct. 14-29
Saturdays, Sundays, & Wednesdays only: Nov. 22 – Jan. 14 and Feb. 10 – Mar. 6
Guidelines vary in units. Dates may change during season depending on guidelines and quotas. A valid 2024-2025 cougar license/tag is required to hunt cougar in April 2023.
Research. Draw. Hunt.
Hunt Research Tools is designed to help hunters research, plan, and apply for hunts and tags every year.
- Build a successful strategy with easy-to-understand, accurate data
- Covers all 12 Western states and all major big game species
- Simple and powerful filtering sorts answers quickly
- Compare across states, species, weapons, dates, and hunt types
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Washington Licenses, Permits, and Regulations
Washington hunting licenses, permits, and regulations for resident and non-resident hunters can be purchased on the official website of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Click below to view the website.
Hunting GPS Maps
Every Washington hunter should have hunting GPS maps on hand. Washington hunting maps are available from onX Hunt. With a paid membership you can access Satellite, Topo, or Hybrid Basemaps, over which you can view maps of hunt units, along with State, Forest Service, and other public and private property boundaries. You can view trails and roads, and even download maps to the Hunt App for use offline. Click below to get onX Hunt for Washington.
Hunt Units
There are six different GMU Regions in Washington state, and each region is comprised of up to several dozen individual hunt units. Each big game species also has its own subset of hunt units in which the boundaries may overlap with more than one standard GMU hunt unit. Understanding the boundaries of each hunt unit is important for safe and legal hunting in Washington. Click below to view Washington’s hunt units in more detail through an interactive map.
Hunting Layers
WA Private Lands
Over 2,500,000 parcels mapped by the onX team, this layer helps you know who the property owners are in Washington. Tap any parcel to learn more info about the owner and acreage.
WA Gov Lands
onX has the most accurate maps of Gov Lands, covering over 21,000,000 acres in Washington. Not all Gov Lands offer access opportunities, check regulations before recreating.
WA Hunt Units
Washington Bighorn Sheep, Deer, Elk, Moose and Mountain Goat Hunt Areas; Game Management Units. Please hunt responsibly, obey all signage and have a safe legal hunt.
Includes 8 Sublayers
- Bighorn Sheep Hunt Units
- Deer Hunt Units
- Elk Hunt Units
- Game Mgmt Units
- Moose Hunt Units
- Mtn. Goat Hunt Units
- Goose Management Areas
- Eastern and Western Hunt Regions
WA Possible Access
onX has mapped 4,000,000 acres of possible access lands in Washington including timber and land conservation groups. Research rules on these private lands before recreating.
WA Private Lands Hunting Opportunities
The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Private Lands Hunting Opportunities. Please hunt responsibly, obey all signage and have a safe legal hunt.
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