GMU 284 - Ritzville, Washington

Flat to gently rolling Columbia Basin shrub-steppe at 1,300–1,818 ft elevation. Western edge transitions into center-pivot irrigated cropland (Warden area); central and eastern portions are dryland wheat, barley, and Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) land on Channeled Scablands geology. Ice Age flood-carved coulees and pothole depressions dot the landscape, especially in the eastern plains. The unit is bisected by I-90 through its northern third. US-395 (SR-395) runs north-south through the unit. SR-170 and SR-26 provide east-west access.

94% private land; 6% public (approx. 1% BLM, 5% state DNR). BLM maintains one large contiguous block on the eastern boundary — primary public hunting ground but receives heavy pressure. Scattered DNR state sections throughout (total <640 acres per WDFW). No WDFW-managed Columbia Basin Wildlife Area units fall within GMU 284 itself (those units are concentrated in adjacent GMU 272 and 278 to the west and north). WDFW Access Program (Feel Free to Hunt and Hunt by Written Permission) enrolls private agricultural land — check privatelands.wdfw.wa.gov for current parcels in Adams and Lincoln counties. Deer Area 2011 (Benge) within GMU 284 offers permit-only antlerless harvest near crop-damage concentration zones.

Dominated by big sagebrush, bitterbrush, rabbitbrush, bluebunch wheatgrass, Sandberg's bluegrass, great basin wildrye, needle-and-thread, and Indian ricegrass. Cheatgrass is the most common non-native species. Dryland wheat and barley fields provide abundant grain food sources for deer. CRP grass fields offer thermal and escape cover. Scattered coulees and rock outcrops provide bedding areas. No significant riparian corridors within GMU 284 (in contrast to GMU 272/278 to the west).

Mule deer are the dominant resident species; buck:doe ratios surveyed at approximately 22.4 bucks per 100 does in GMU 284 post-hunt 2024 (slightly above management goal of 20:100), with 54.1 fawns per 100 does indicating a stable, productive population. The Hangman Creek sub-herd of the Selkirk Rocky Mountain elk herd (300-500 animals) is centered ~16 miles northeast at Turnbull NWR (GMU 130); animals routinely enter GMU 284 from the east and northeast. Elk movement into the unit is unpredictable and concentrated on private land in the eastern portions. Black bear and cougar are present at very low densities with no consistent population. No white-tailed deer documented in this unit — it is a mule deer-only zone in the Columbia Basin shrub-steppe.

GMU 284 is the top mule deer producing unit in District 5, tied with GMU 272 (Beezley) for highest total harvest. General tags available over-the-counter — no draw required for deer or elk. Deer Area 2011 (Benge) within the unit offers special permit antlerless opportunities near crop-damage concentration areas. Note that during archery general seasons in adjacent GMUs 272 and 278, antlerless opportunities were restructured to permit-only as of 2024 — confirm current GMU 284 archery antlerless rules in the current regulation pamphlet. No bighorn sheep, moose, or mountain goat in this unit. No tribal ceded territory overlay (Colville Reservation is well to the north). Washington uses a pure random draw with no preference point system for limited-entry species; mule deer and elk in GMU 284 are general-tag only.