Hunt 559A2 (South Snake River)

The legal line in words

This hunt covers the part of Unit 59 south of a line that begins at Imnaha. From there it runs southeast and then northeast on Road 4240 to Warnock Corral, then northeast on trail 1778 to the Snake River. Everything south of that line is in the hunt.

Rim and river

Nearly all of the ground is public. It runs from the Snake River, at a little over eighteen hundred feet, up to Hat Point at nearly seven thousand. Bear Mountain, Black Mountain, Lookout Mountain and Granny View Point are the other named high spots.

That gives you a lot of vertical relief between river and rim. Sheep can be anywhere in that range, and the terrain is deep and steep.

ODFW's forecast has nothing specific for this herd, so don't trust anything from a neighboring unit. What the hunt description gives you is the boundary, the Snake River edge and the road and trail that start at Imnaha. Use those as your starting points, and talk to the local ODFW office before you plan routes. Trail 1778 is the only trail named in the line.

The ground ODFW draws for this hunt

ODFW's boundary for this hunt covers about 170 square miles, 97% of it public land by ODFW's count. Named features inside the line fall in Wallowa County. Elevation runs from about 1,803 to 6,978 feet. The highest named points are Hat Point (6,978 ft), Bear Mountain (6,877 ft) and Black Mountain (6,847 ft). ODFW's description reads: "97% public lands. That part of Unit 59 south of the following line: Beginning at Imnaha; southeast then northeast on Rd number 4240 to Warnock Corral and trail 1778; northeast on trail 1778 to the Snake River." ODFW's line is the legal one, so check it against a current land-ownership map, and get permission before you cross private ground or a locked gate inside it.

Plan by relief, not distance

A mile on the map here can mean thousands of feet of climbing. Before you go, look at topographic maps and pick routes that give you good glassing and a reasonable way out. Hat Point and Lookout Mountain are obvious landmarks for orienting yourself.

Hunt early and late in the day and glass the benches and rock bands. Sheep often feed on open slopes and lie up in broken rock.

Pack-out is the main event

If you take a ram, the carry is the hard part. Bone out the meat, protect the cape and horns and plan for at least two trips unless you have a partner or a pack animal. Water is scarce on dry slopes, so carry what you need.

One tag is issued for this hunt, so there's no second chance. That's a reason to scout it before the season, even if the trip is long. Move slowly, watch the wind and don't take a shot you aren't sure of.

Check road conditions into Imnaha and any closures before you go. Tell someone your route and your return time. Cell coverage is poor in the canyon, so a satellite messenger earns its weight here. Pack warm layers too, because a river canyon in autumn can swing from hot afternoons to a hard frost by dawn.

The 2026 tags and the 2025 result

From ODFW's 2026 regulations and its 2025 reported harvest. ODFW's nonresident tags are shared across a line of hunts, so check the regulations for those.

• 559A2 S Snake Rvr: Aug. 15 - Oct. 31, 1 resident tag; in 2025, 1 taken on 1 tag.

Roads in and the nearest towns

The longest named roads through this ground are NF 4240, Upper Imnaha Road, NF 3965 and NF 3962. The nearest towns are Joseph (25 mi), Enterprise (27 mi) and New Meadows (34 mi), measured from the centre of the unit.