GMU 130 - Cheney, Washington

GMU 130 lies within the Channeled Scablands of eastern Washington, a landscape scoured by catastrophic glacial outburst floods roughly 15,000 years ago. The terrain is predominantly flat to gently rolling basalt plateau at elevations of 2,100–2,500 ft, punctuated by buttes, coulees, dry flood channels, and more than 130 shallow pothole ponds and wetlands. Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge (23,000 acres) anchors the center of the unit. Uplands grade from steppe grassland and sagebrush to mixed ponderosa pine and aspen woodlands on rocky outcrops and north-facing slopes. The Palouse transition zone on the south and east margins features rolling loess hills under dryland wheat and barley farming. There are no major river systems within the unit; the nearest significant water is Hangman Creek (Latah Creek) on the eastern edge near Spokane.

GMU 130 is heavily dominated by private agricultural land — wheat farms, hayland, and range. Huntable public land consists primarily of scattered Washington DNR state trust parcels (typically 40–640 acres each, marked on topo maps) and the two Turnbull NWR elk hunt units (Southwest and full-refuge), which require a separate state special permit lottery. The Columbia Plateau Wildlife Management Association (CPWMA, cpwma.org, 509-263-4616) manages approximately 6,550+ acres of enrolled private land near Turnbull, offering free controlled access to lottery-selected hunters for deer and elk during archery, muzzleloader, and modern firearm seasons, plus late-season depredation raffle permits (13 antlerless + 2 bull elk, $10–$25/entry). WDFW warns hunters to confirm private land permission before applying for any special permits in this unit. No significant BLM or National Forest acreage exists within GMU 130.

Mixed ponderosa pine and aspen forest on rocky ridges and north-facing slopes; scabland steppe with bunchgrass and sage on flat basalt plateaus; extensive pothole marshes and wet meadows within and surrounding Turnbull NWR; dryland wheat, barley, and canola fields on Palouse-edge loess soils; shrubby draws and shelterbelts providing deer cover between farm fields. The wetland-upland mosaic makes GMU 130 exceptional waterfowl habitat (223+ bird species at Turnbull) and supports dense white-tailed deer populations adapted to agricultural edge environments.

Elk move seasonally on and off Turnbull NWR — moving onto surrounding private farmland in fall and winter to feed on crops, haystacks, and irrigated pastures, creating depredation pressure that generates the CPWMA raffle permits. White-tailed deer are resident year-round in the ponderosa pine and wetland edges around potholes and in shelterbelts along farm fields. Mule deer are less common and tend to occupy the more open basalt buttes and scabland breaks on the western margins. The pothole wetlands concentrate deer movement, especially during the rut (late October through December for whitetails). CWD has been detected in adjacent eastern WA units and mandatory testing is required for all harvested deer, elk, and moose in GMU 130.

CWD MANDATORY TESTING: Effective September 1, 2024, all hunters harvesting deer, elk, or moose in GMU 130 must submit the whole head (plus 3 inches of neck) or extracted lymph nodes to WDFW within 3 days of harvest. Bait and ungulate-derived scent lures are banned. Whole carcasses cannot be transported outside the 100-series GMU block. Violations are a misdemeanor. // GMU 130 generates the majority of WDFW District 2's total elk harvest (estimated 25–50% of district total). // Turnbull NWR is CLOSED to deer hunting. // CPWMA lottery for general season access opens in June each year. // The unit borders GMU 127 (Mica Peak) to the north, which has more forested terrain.