Unit 85 either-sex elk, Ranching for Wildlife, season 1
How many preference points it took to draw this hunt in 2026, and your estimated chance at every point level.
51 adult residents put this hunt first; 1 drew (2.0%). Drawn out at 29 preference points: 1 of 1 applicants with 29 drew.
Drawn out at 29 points
No adult nonresidents put this hunt as their first choice.
Compare every Colorado elk hunt at your point level →
Odds by preference points
Residents
| Preference points | Applicants | Drew | Actual odds | Estimated chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 | 1 | 1 | 1 in 1.0 | |
| 28 | 1 | 0 | — | |
| 26 | 1 | 0 | — | |
| 25 | 2 | 0 | — | |
| 24 | 2 | 0 | — | |
| 23 | 2 | 0 | — | |
| 22 | 1 | 0 | — | |
| 21 | 1 | 0 | — | |
| 20 | 1 | 0 | — | |
| 19 | 2 | 0 | — | |
| 18 | 2 | 0 | — | |
| 17 | 2 | 0 | — | |
| 16 | 2 | 0 | — | |
| 15 | 1 | 0 | — | |
| 14 | 2 | 0 | — | |
| 11 | 2 | 0 | — | |
| 10 | 1 | 0 | — | |
| 9 | 1 | 0 | — | |
| 8 | 1 | 0 | — | |
| 7 | 1 | 0 | — | |
| 6 | 2 | 0 | — | |
| 5 | 2 | 0 | — | |
| 4 | 3 | 0 | — | |
| 3 | 5 | 0 | — | |
| 2 | 5 | 0 | — | |
| 1 | 2 | 0 | — | |
| 0 | 3 | 0 | — | |
| All | 51 | 1 | 1 in 51.0 |
Nonresidents
No applicants in this group.
Trends, 2024–2026
"Cutoff" is the preference point level where licenses ran out that year (CPW's "drawn out at" level).
| Year | Applicants | Drew | Odds | Cutoff |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 74 | 1 | 1 in 74.0 | 26 |
| 2025 | 46 | 1 | 1 in 46.0 | 28 |
| 2026 | 51 | 1 | 1 in 51.0 | 29 |
Drawn out at: 26 in 2024, 28 in 2025, 29 in 2026. The bar is rising at least one point a year, as fast as applicants earn points. Applicants fell 31% since 2024.
How this draw works
Colorado draws limited licenses by preference points, and only your first choice uses them. Licenses go to the applicants with the most points first; at the level where they run out (the "drawn out at" level) applicants are drawn at random. If you don't draw your first choice, you gain a point. This hunt also has a hybrid draw: up to 20% of licenses go at random to applicants with 5 or more points who fall below the cutoff. CPW big game hunting.
About the numbers. These are adult first-choice applicants, straight from CPW's 2026 draw recap. Youth and landowner licenses are drawn separately. The estimated chance is the share who actually drew at each point level, filled in from the cutoff where nobody held that many points. Applicant pools change every year. How we check and estimate.
Other hunts in Unit 85
- Cow elk, late season, rifle EF085L1R · 44 applicants
- Cow elk, muzzleloader season EF085O1M · 21 applicants
- Cow elk, 2nd rifle season EF085O2R · 73 applicants
- Cow elk, 3rd rifle season EF085O3R · 35 applicants
- Cow elk, 4th rifle season EF085O4R · 5 applicants
- Cow elk, private land only, season 5, rifle EF085P5R · 205 applicants
- Cow elk, private land only, season 6, rifle EF085P6R · 175 applicants
- Cow elk, Ranching for Wildlife, season 1, rifle EF085W1R · 10 applicants
- Either-sex elk, muzzleloader season EE085O1M · 103 applicants
- Either-sex elk, 1st rifle season EE085O1R · 176 applicants
- Either-sex elk, 4th rifle season EE085O4R · 64 applicants
- Either-sex elk, private land only, season 1, rifle EE085P1R · 90 applicants