GMU 371 - Alkali, Washington
Unit info
- Game species
- Mule Deer, Rocky Mountain Elk, Pronghorn Antelope, Chukar Partridge, Hungarian Partridge
- Group
- Region 3
- Area
- N/A
- Public land
- 95%
Elk — season & harvest
- Reported harvest
- 37
Draw odds for Elkaren't on file for this unit yet. Check your state wildlife agency website for current draw statistics.
Mule Deer — season & harvest
- Tag type
- Special permit (draw required); buck tags only in recent seasons; 12 buck permits historically offered
- Reported harvest
- Limited public data; 12 buck permits offered historically; scouting is essentially prohibited prior to season due to YTC access restrictions
- Archery season
- Archery permit window typically December (e.g., Dec 16–29 in historical seasons)
- General season
- Modern firearm permit window typically late November (e.g., Nov 28–Dec 7 in historical seasons)
- Muzzleloader season
- Muzzleloader permit window typically December (e.g., Dec 8–15 in historical seasons)
All hunting is special-permit-only. Bucks concentrate in small draws, coulee bottoms, and the heads of shallow ravines during the late-season permit windows. Primary tactic: systematic glassing from elevated terrain along ridge edges, then dropping into draws to push suspected holding cover. Wind is constant and often severe on open ridges — approach draws from above and downwind. Rut activity October–December can move bucks briefly into open flats.
Draw odds for Mule Deeraren't on file for this unit yet. Check your state wildlife agency website for current draw statistics.
Chukar Partridge — season & harvest
- Tag type
- General license (no special permit); access still requires YTC Recreation Access Card
- General season
- Early October through January (standard Washington upland season)
Rocky canyon rims and basalt talus slopes along the anticline ridges hold resident chukar. Hunt steep south-facing slopes with sparse grass and rock outcrops. Dogs are a major advantage. Walk ridgelines and let birds flush downhill.
Draw odds for Chukar Partridgearen't on file for this unit yet. Check your state wildlife agency website for current draw statistics.
Pronghorn Antelope — season & harvest
- Tag type
- No established WDFW special permit as of research date; monitor for future reintroduction-associated permit opportunities
Open shrub-steppe is ideal pronghorn habitat; reintroduction efforts have been pursued. Spot-and-stalk across open flats; pronghorn rely on eyesight over long distances so long-range glassing and careful approach are essential.
Draw odds for Pronghorn Antelopearen't on file for this unit yet. Check your state wildlife agency website for current draw statistics.
Rocky Mountain Elk — season & harvest58% success
- Tag type
- Special permit (draw required); all bull hunts are Quality or Special permit category; antlerless hunts offered as Alkali A, B, C
- Archery season
- Archery general antlerless season offered in some years (early September); archery bull permits available via draw
- General season
- Modern firearm special permits (late October–November typical window); exact dates set annually by WDFW season-setting process
- Muzzleloader season
- Muzzleloader permits (Alkali B category) offered; typically December window
Glass open flats from ridge spines at first and last light; elk seek draws, coulee bottoms, and the narrow band of riparian brush along intermittent drainages for midday security. During archery rut (early September), bugling draws bulls out of cover. Modern firearm hunters glass-and-stalk across rolling terrain; success depends on glassing large areas from elevated points along the anticline ridges. Elk numbers are above management objective — herds are present but pressure from 300 annual range fires pushes animals toward unit edges near private ground.
Draw odds for Rocky Mountain Elkaren't on file for this unit yet. Check your state wildlife agency website for current draw statistics.
Season & harvest data is published for Elk, Mule Deer, Chukar Partridge, Pronghorn Antelope, Rocky Mountain Elk so far. Hungarian Partridge also occur here — that data can be added as the community contributes.
About this unit
AI-compiled · sourcedGMU 371 (Alkali) is a special-permit-only Columbia Basin shrub-steppe unit spanning the bulk of the U.S. Army's Yakima Training Center in Kittitas and Yakima counties — 327,000 acres of sagebrush, bitterbrush, and bunch-grass grassland bisected by three east-west anticline ridges. Elk populations run above WDFW management objective and hunter success on bull permits has historically exceeded 50%; all hunting requires a drawn WDFW special permit plus a YTC Recreation Access Card, and access is subject to military training schedules that can cancel entire seasons with little notice.
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ACCESS WARNING (2025): YTC suspended all recreational hunting access effective June 1, 2025 through December 2025 due to a military staffing and security officer shortage. WDFW cancelled all 377 special permits for GMU 371 for the 2025 season (365 elk tags across all categories plus 12 buck deer tags). No timeline for reinstatement has been announced. Hunters should verify YTC recreational access status before applying for any GMU 371 permits. Contact YTC MWR: 509-577-3208 or 509-577-3209.
- WDFW News Release — Alkali Deer Permit Season, YTC Access
- NW Sportsman — 377 YTC Permits Scrubbed, 2025 Season Cancelled
- WDFW 2024 Elk Individual Hunt Harvest Report — GMU 371 Alkali
- Yakima Training Center — Wikipedia (terrain, size, habitat)
- Conservation Northwest — Soldiers and Sagebrush (YTC habitat)
- WDFW 2024 District 8 Hunting Prospects (Yakima/Kittitas Counties)
- WDFW 2025 District 8 Hunting Prospects (Yakima/Kittitas Counties)
Questions, tips & discussion
Ask anything about GMU 371 - Alkali— or drop a tip or trick: access points, where game holds, glassing spots, conditions, crowding, gear that worked. This is where the unit's species-specific intel gets built, hunter by hunter.
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Boundaries: WDFW official Game Management Units. Community info last updated 24d ago.