Walla Walla, Oregon

Elevation ranges from approximately 800 feet in the Walla Walla River Valley floor near Milton-Freewater to roughly 5,700 feet on the Blue Mountain ridgelines. The eastern portion (Umatilla National Forest land) sits mostly between 2,500 and 5,500 feet, featuring steep timbered canyons, forested north- and east-facing slopes, and open grassy ridgelines. The western two-thirds consists of foothills, steep canyons, and flat-to-rolling agricultural land transitioning from about 900 to 2,000 feet elevation.

Public land totals 33% of the unit (approximately 31% USFS, 1% BLM). The unit boundary is defined by: Weston north on State Hwy 11 to the Oregon-Washington state line; east on the state line to FR 64; southwest on FR 64 (Kendall Skyline Road) to Tollgate; northwest on State Hwy 204 back to Weston. Primary paved access routes are Hwy 204 (Weston-Tollgate corridor) and Hwy 11. The Umatilla National Forest's Walla Walla Ranger District manages the Forest Service lands in the unit. FR 64 (Kendall Skyline Road) is the main forest access spine along the eastern boundary. Campgrounds within or near the unit include Target Meadows (open through November 30) and Woodward (closes September 30). The Mill Creek Watershed — a municipal water supply for Walla Walla, WA — is open only to hunters holding specific Mill Creek controlled-hunt tags (hunt 255A). The western two-thirds of the unit is almost entirely private land. Effective June 1, 2026, Manulife Investment Management ended their Access and Habitat Program agreement with ODFW, transitioning approximately 270,000 acres across eight northeast Oregon units (including Walla Walla) to a fee-based permit program. Hunters accessing Manulife lands in the unit now require a paid permit. Contact: ODFW Pendleton office (541) 276-2344.

Forested sectors are primarily mixed conifer — spruces, true firs, western larch, and pines — concentrated on north- and east-facing slopes and bordering open grassy ridges and clearings. Logged areas support a mix of forbs and shrubs. Riparian corridors along the Walla Walla River drainage and its tributaries contain willows and alders. At lower elevations, bunchgrass and sagebrush-steppe grades into agricultural grassland and dryland wheat. The North Fork Umatilla Wilderness (20,299 acres, adjacent to the east in neighboring units) represents the most rugged unroaded forest habitat in the immediate region.

Rocky Mountain elk are the signature species, with the Walla Walla unit recognized as one of Oregon's top three elk units alongside Wenaha (56) and Mt. Emily (54). Elk use the forested Blue Mountain uplands in summer and fall, with migration to lower-elevation canyons and foothills driven by weather and snow. Both mule deer and white-tailed deer occur in the unit; whitetail are present in riparian corridors and agricultural edges in the valley, while mule deer occupy the forested uplands and intermediate canyon country. Black bears are present throughout the forested zone. Cougars are distributed across forested portions of the unit. Pronghorn, bighorn sheep, and Rocky Mountain goat are listed in ODFW hunt series for the unit (400-, 500-, and 900-series respectively), though specific herd data for this unit were not independently verified. Forest grouse (ruffed and blue grouse) inhabit the timbered uplands.