Hunt 569A (Steens Mountain)
Oregon Hunting Guide — Bighorn Sheep
This bighorn hunt covers only the northern part of the Steens Mountain pronghorn unit, north of a line from Highway 205 at the South Steens Loop Road. It's a once-in-a-lifetime style draw with two ram hunts and a handful of tags.
Build your own PDF hunt guide for Unit 569A
Answer a few questions about your tag, your season and your rig, and the Field Intelligence Report builds a print-ready Oregon Unit 569A guide around your hunt: three ranked spots with morning, afternoon and evening plays, a day-by-day plan, topo maps with every pin numbered, a camp and access plan, the legal and retrieval rules for this unit, shot discipline, a meat-care and pack-out plan, and a pre-trip checklist. Every coordinate sits on land recorded as public.
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Bighorn Sheep Hunting in Unit 569A
This bighorn hunt covers only the northern part of the Steens Mountain pronghorn unit, north of a line from Highway 205 at the South Steens Loop Road. It's a once-in-a-lifetime style draw with two ram hunts and a handful of tags.
Where to Find Bighorn Sheep in the Steens Mountain Hunt: north of the South Steens Loop Road line
The legal line, in words
The hunt covers the part of Unit 69 north of a line that begins on Highway 205 at the South Steens Loop Road and runs east to Blitzen Crossing. From there the line follows the Blitzen River, Ankle Creek and South Ankle Creek. Stay inside the north side of that line, and confirm the exact boundary in the current regulations before you scout. Public land covers most of the hunt area.
Named summits and drops
Devine Rock reaches 7746 feet and Steens Mountain 7705. Moon Hill, Bald Mountain and Big Hill sit between roughly 5800 and 6400. The lowest ground sits around 4096 feet. That's a long, steep rise between the desert floor and the summit ridge. Sheep use ledges, rimrock and talus on faces like those, so those are the faces to study on a map. The hunt runs as two ram hunts, one right after the other. Read that line carefully before you set out each day. Don't guess at the boundary from a road map.
The ground ODFW draws for this hunt
ODFW's boundary for this hunt covers about 1,594 square miles, 75% of it public land by ODFW's count. Named features inside the line fall in Harney County. Elevation runs from about 4,096 to 7,964 feet. The highest named points are Devine Rock (7,746 ft), Steens Mountain (7,705 ft) and Moon Hill (6,347 ft). ODFW's description reads: "75% public lands. That part of Unit 69 north of the following line: Beginning on State Hwy 205 at South Steens Lp Rd; east on South Steens Lp Rd to Blitzen Crossing; south and east following Blitzen Rvr, Ankle Cr and South Ankle Cr to northwest corner of" 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.
Unit 569A terrain and land status
Measured from the unit boundary, not from the agency write-up
The lay of it
- 4,104–7,964 ft on a terrain sample , averaging 5,015 ft ; peaks can run higher.
- 1,594.3 sq mi inside the boundary. Big enough that picking one drainage beats driving three.
Who owns the ground
- BLM — 15%
- State Trust — 8%
- Private / Other — 77%
Roughly 23% is public. Carry a land-status layer anyway — these are area percentages, not a map of where the boundaries fall.
Water on the ground
- 52 tanks
- 66 springs
- 309 stream segments
- 19 lakes
Counts from mapping data, so this is how many exist, not how many hold water in a dry year. Sitting water only pays where you find fresh tracks.
Named features inside the unit
Glass from: Devine Rock (7,746 ft), Steens Mountain (7,705 ft), McCoy Ridge (7,243 ft), Riddle Mountain (6,330 ft)
Holding ground: Jackman Park (7,641 ft), Paddle Meadows (6,708 ft), Wildhorse Canyon (6,669 ft)
Every one of these was tested against the unit polygon before it went on the map. They are starting points, not agency recommendations.
How to Hunt Bighorn Sheep in the Steens Mountain Hunt: big-glass patience and a plan for the pack
Bighorn Sheep Success Rates
569A1 Steens Mtn No. 1: 3 taken on 3 tags. Figures are ODFW's own 2025 harvest statistics.
Bighorn Sheep Draw Odds
| Season | Tags | Applicants | Draw % | Pts Req |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Archery — Controlled ram only (resident) | 1 | 2,802 | 0.0% | — |
| Archery — Controlled ram only (resident) | 1 | 754 | 0.1% | — |
| Rifle — Controlled ram only (resident) | 1 | 485 | 0.2% | — |
Data from 2025 draw results. Each row is one residency pool — read the label before the number.
Open in Draw Odds EngineFrom ODFW's 2026 regulations, residents and nonresidents together: 2026 tags against 2025 first-choice applicants.
- 569A1 Steens Mtn No. 1: 3 tags for 2026; 485 first-choice applicants in 2025.
- 569A2 Steens Mtn No. 2: 2 tags for 2026; 2,802 first-choice applicants in 2025.
ODFW sets a point cut-off per hunt each year; its point summary reports carry it.
Unit Logistics & Expectations
Frequently Asked Questions
What ground does this Oregon bighorn sheep page cover?
When is the 2026 bighorn sheep season here?
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Upgrade to Pro — $49/yrSources & Verification
Every fact on this page is tied to a primary source below. Last fact-checked 2026-10-30.
- 2026 Oregon Big Game Hunting Regulations — Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife · supports: Hunt areas and boundary descriptions, Seasons, bag limits and 2026 tags · accessed 2026-10-30
- Big game hunting harvest statistics, 2025 — Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife · supports: Hunters, harvest and success · accessed 2026-10-30
- Wildlife Management Units (ArcGIS) — Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife · supports: 1,594 square miles · accessed 2026-10-30
- Geographic Names Information System — named features inside the boundary — U.S. Geological Survey · supports: Devine Rock 7,746 ft, Steens Mountain 7,705 ft · accessed 2026-10-30