Unit 221 Elk Hunting, Nevada
Nevada hunt unit · 766 sq mi
Draw hunts — squared bonus points
Every hunt here is a draw hunt, named by its weapon, what may be taken and its dates. In Nevada's draw an application is given one random number plus extra random numbers equal to its bonus points squared, and tags go to the lowest numbers first, so more bonus points always improve a hunter's chance but never guarantee a tag. Residents and nonresidents have separate quotas. 2 hunts here have no nonresident tags; a nonresident cannot draw them.
What hunting Unit 221 is like
Unit 221 covers 766 square miles of rolling country with some steeper breaks, running from low ground near 5,300 feet up to high points near 10,900 feet. Most of the unit sits in gentle to moderate terrain, so a hunter can cover ground on foot without constant steep climbing, though pockets of steep and rugged terrain show up at the higher elevations. Lower elevations are dominated by shrub and brush with some grass and meadow, mid elevations mix conifer and pinyon-juniper with shrub and brush in roughly equal measure, and the higher country is mostly conifer and pinyon-juniper. This is foot-hunting country overall, with cover and elevation shaping where elk sit through the year.
Public land makes up essentially all of Unit 221, managed by the BLM and National Forest, but public ownership does not mean easy access — some of that ground is reachable only by crossing private land, so a hunter should plan routes carefully rather than assume a straightforward walk-in. The Ward fire burned about 8,700 acres inside the unit, roughly 2% of it, and the Brown fire burned about 7,200 acres, roughly 1% of it; the Brown fire is now five to eight years past the burn and has grown back thick with brush, saplings and built-up deadfall that can hide animals and slow foot travel.
Every elk hunt in Unit 221 is awarded through Nevada's draw, and the hunts are for antlerless and spike elk; there is no over-the-counter option, so a hunter applies and waits on results rather than buying a tag outright. Antlered, antlerless, and spike elk are separate bonus-point categories, and drawing one elk tag voids any other elk application a hunter has in for that year.
Elk hunts in Unit 221 (2026-27)
Each row is a hunt, told apart by its weapon, what may be taken and its dates. Draw difficulty is in words from the 2025 draw results: good, fair, long or very long odds, read for a hunter with no bonus points and for one holding 5 bonus points, in each pool. A hunt that covers only part of a unit says so under its name.
| Hunt | Dates | Legal elk | Resident | Nonresident | Rut phase |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Any legal weapon | September 27 – October 4 | Antlerless elk (cows and calves) | No points: Very long odds 5 points: Long odds | No points: Very long odds 5 points: Long odds | Primary Rut, Late Rut / Early Post-Rut |
| Any legal weapon | September 27 – October 4 | Spike elk | No points: Very long odds 5 points: Long odds | No nonresident tags | Primary Rut, Late Rut / Early Post-Rut |
| Any legal weapon | December 5, 2026 – January 1, 2027 | Antlerless elk (cows and calves) | No points: Very long odds 5 points: Fair odds | No points: Very long odds 5 points: Very long odds | — |
| Any legal weapon | December 5, 2026 – January 1, 2027 | Spike elk | No points: Very long odds 5 points: Fair odds | No nonresident tags | — |
"No nonresident tags" means a nonresident cannot draw that hunt. "No draw odds shown" means that pool has tags for the hunt but too little draw history to put its odds in words. Odds are per application, never a promise, and a hunter with no bonus points can draw. A hunter needs no particular number of points for any hunt.
Some hunts take in this unit together with other units, so they have their own guides. Check them too:
Any legal weapon · Antlerless elk (cows and calves) · September 27 – October 4
This hunt falls across the Primary Rut and into the Late Rut / Early Post-Rut phase, and cow and calf groups may be grouped up or starting to break apart as the rut winds down, so a hunter looking for antlerless elk should expect to cover ground to find concentrations rather than count on one spot. Draw standing sits at Very long odds at zero bonus points and Long odds with 5 bonus points for both resident and nonresident pools.
Any legal weapon · Spike elk · September 27 – October 4
Running the same dates as the antlerless hunt, this spike elk season spans the Primary Rut and Late Rut / Early Post-Rut phases, when animals are active and moving, giving a hunter a chance to catch a spike elk on the move between feeding and cover. This is a resident-only hunt, with Very long odds at zero bonus points and Long odds with 5 bonus points for residents; nonresidents cannot draw this hunt.
Any legal weapon · Antlerless elk (cows and calves) · December 5, 2026 – January 1, 2027
By December the rut is well behind and the land itself — cold, snow underfoot, and elk settled into winter patterns — drives this antlerless hunt more than the rut does. December and January bring meaningful snowfall with lows near 15 to 16°F, and if enough snow has piled up, cow and calf groups may move toward lower ground with better feed and water, which can concentrate animals for a hunter willing to work through the cold. Draw standing for residents runs Very long odds at zero bonus points and Fair odds with 5 bonus points, while nonresidents face Very long odds at zero bonus points and Very long odds with 5 bonus points.
Any legal weapon · Spike elk · December 5, 2026 – January 1, 2027
Like its antlerless counterpart, this late spike elk season plays out in winter conditions well after the rut, with December and January bringing real snowfall and lows near 15 to 16°F. If substantial snow has accumulated, a spike elk may move toward lower ground holding better feed and water, giving a patient hunter a narrower area to focus on. This is a resident-only hunt, running Very long odds at zero bonus points and Fair odds with 5 bonus points; nonresidents cannot draw this hunt.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 5,300–10,900 ft, typically around 6,900 ft
- Slope breakdown
- 54% gentle · 30% moderate · 15% steep · 1% rugged
- Public land by ownership
- ~764 sq mi
Habitat & cover
What grows here, by elevation. Each band adds to 100% on its own — these are shares of that band, not of the region.
Lower elevations
- Shrub and brush89%
- Grass and meadow6%
- Conifer and pinyon-juniper3%
- Other cover2%
Mid elevations
- Conifer and pinyon-juniper56%
- Shrub and brush42%
- Grass and meadow1%
Higher elevations
- Conifer and pinyon-juniper79%
- Shrub and brush19%
- Grass and meadow2%
Cover classes from the USGS National Land Cover Database. “Other cover” is the remainder — bare ground, water, agriculture and developed land.
Recent fires
Wildfires in the last several seasons that burned a meaningful share of Unit 221. Fire perimeters show how much of the region burned, not how hot — and closures change through the year, so check current fire closures and restrictions before you go.
- Ward fire, 2026 — about 8,700 acres in the region (2%).
- Brown fire, 2020 — about 7,200 acres in the region (1%).
Fire perimeters from the National Interagency Fire Center.
Land & access
About 100% of Unit 221 is public land by ownership — BLM and National Forest. Ownership is not the same as legal access: public land can be reachable only across private ground, and some parcels are closed or restricted.
- BLM92%
- National Forest8%
- Private<1%
Private land: permission is the hunter's to get.
Fall weather
- August — highs around 84°F, lows around 50°F
- September — highs around 75°F, lows around 41°F
- October — highs around 62°F, lows around 31°F, about 0.3 in of snowfall
- November — highs around 49°F, lows around 22°F, about 3.1 in of snowfall
- December — highs around 39°F, lows around 15°F, about 5.1 in of snowfall
Unit 221 elk hunting FAQ
How does a hunter get an elk tag in Unit 221?
A hunter applies through Nevada's draw for a specific weapon, legal animal and date range, since every elk hunt in Unit 221 is a draw hunt with no over-the-counter option. Antlered, antlerless and spike elk are tracked as separate bonus-point categories, and drawing one elk tag voids any other elk application a hunter holds for that year.
How hard are the hunts to draw, and does it differ for residents and nonresidents?
Draw standing is read in words, not numbers, and is shown separately for each pool at zero bonus points and with 5 bonus points. In Unit 221 odds range from Very long to Fair depending on the hunt, season and pool, and residents and nonresidents are drawn from separate quotas so one pool's standing says nothing about the other's.
Can a nonresident hunt every hunt here?
No. Nonresidents may apply for the antlerless elk hunts in Unit 221, both the September 27–October 4 and December 5–January 1 seasons, but the spike elk hunts in both date ranges carry no nonresident tags at all, so a nonresident cannot draw either one.
Does Nevada have bonus points and how do they work?
Nevada uses bonus points rather than preference points, earned by applying unsuccessfully or by purchase in place of applying, with antlered, antlerless and spike elk tracked as separate categories. In Nevada's draw an application is given one random number plus extra random numbers equal to its bonus points squared, and tags go to the lowest numbers first, so more bonus points always improve a hunter's chance but never guarantee a tag. A bonus point only accrues if the hunter holds an active hunting or combination license at the time of the draw, and points are lost if a hunter misses two years in a row of applying for that category.
Which seasons in Unit 221 fall in the rut, and how much of the region is public land?
The September 27–October 4 antlerless and spike elk seasons fall within the Primary Rut and Late Rut / Early Post-Rut phases, while the December 5–January 1 seasons come well after the rut, in winter conditions. Public land managed by the BLM and National Forest makes up essentially all of Unit 221, though reaching some of that public ground can require crossing private land, so access is not automatically straightforward.
Data sources & methodology
- Nevada Department of Wildlife — 2026 Big Game Application FAQ — how the draw works, how bonus points are earned, squared and lost, and how many hunt choices an application takes
- Nevada Department of Wildlife — 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 big game hunting seasons (Commission Regulation 25-07) — season dates, weapons and legal animals for each group of units
- Nevada Department of Wildlife — Bonus point and application choice trends — the draw results behind the draw-difficulty words
- USGS / MRLC — National Land Cover Database — habitat and cover classes by elevation band
- USGS PAD-US — Protected Areas Database of the United States — land ownership and access
- PRISM Climate Group — 1991–2020 normals — fall weather
- National Interagency Fire Center — wildfire perimeters — recent fires, their size and where they burned
Draw difficulty is a qualitative reading of the modelled chance from the 2025 draw results for each pool, not published odds. Rut phases are borrowed regional timing, not Nevada-specific dates. Land shares are separate, non-overlapping categories. Confirm every rule with the Nevada Department of Wildlife before you apply.