Hunt 961 (Imnaha Unit (Cusick Mountain))

The whole Imnaha Unit, with Cusick Mountain in the name

ODFW names this hunt for Cusick Mountain, but its 2026 table marks the hunt area as the entire Imnaha Unit. So the tag isn't tied to one peak. You've got the whole unit to work with, and the job is finding which of its rock faces hold goats. Still, read the current regulations before you scout and carry a copy with you. Don't assume a line you remember from another year still stands. ODFW publishes no polygon for its goat hunts, so the regulations are the final word here.

The Wallowa summits

The named high points in this country run up past nine thousand feet. Aneroid Mountain tops out at 9691 ft, Petes Point at 9654 ft, Cusick Mountain at 9487 ft, Sentinel Peak at 9379 ft and East Peak at 9357 ft. The named ground in the area drops as low as 2101 ft, so the relief is enormous. Goats live on the steep rock, not in the canyon bottoms. Expect to spend your effort looking up at cliffs and ledges from basins and benches below them. Wallowa County holds the whole hunt. Aneroid Mountain and Petes Point are the highest named ground, so expect snow earlier than you think. Check the written boundary against a map before you commit to a drainage.

The ground ODFW draws for this hunt

ODFW publishes no boundary polygon for its goat hunts, so the map shows the whole of Unit 61, about 424 square miles. Named features inside the line fall in Wallowa County. The highest named points are Aneroid Mountain (9,691 ft), Petes Point (9,654 ft) and Cusick Mountain (9,487 ft). 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.

ODFW's 2026 regulations: All of the Imnaha Unit: no asterisk in ODFW's table, which means the entire WMU.

Slow glassing on big rock

A goat hunt is mostly optics. White animals on pale rock disappear at a distance, so use a spotting scope and give every cliff band, ledge and talus apron a long, patient look. Start before first light and again in the evening, then sit still. Don't move toward an animal until you've worked out how you'll get close and how you'll leave. Most of the work happens before the shot.

One tag, so plan the downhill

With a single resident tag and a draw this rare, the stalk can't be rushed. Check the wind, watch for animals above you and look for a route that keeps you out of rockfall. Wallowa terrain this steep makes the pack-out the hardest part. Bring a pack that handles a full load, lighter boots you trust on slick rock and a partner who knows the plan. Skinning the cape and boning the meat on site saves weight and your knees. Weather turns fast on peaks this tall, so pack for snow and wind even in a warm month. Water is scarce on rock, so carry what you need and know where you'll camp. Tell someone your route and your return time. Hunters who succeed are usually the ones who were fit when the tag came.

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.

• 961A Cusick Mtn: Sep. 1 - Oct. 31, 1 resident tag; in 2025, 1 taken on 1 tag.