Before You Leave Washington’s 100-Series GMUs: 2026 CWD Testing and Elk Meat Transport Rules

Quick answer: For Washington's 2026 season, a hunter who harvests a deer, elk or moose in a 100-series GMU must present WDFW either the whole head with at least three inches of neck attached or the extracted lymph nodes in the Eastern Region within five days. If the hunter will leave Region 1 sooner, WDFW's current rule and live hunter guidance say the sample must be submitted before leaving. A whole carcass may move between 100-series GMUs, but it cannot leave them. Meat leaving the region must be deboned, and trophy parts must meet WDFW's current transport restrictions.

This is a step that needs to be built into the packout before the first load moves.

On September 8, 2026, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife issued a fresh in-season reminder for hunters in the 100-series units. The testing and transport program began in 2025, and WDFW clarified when and where a CWD sample must be submitted in a rule that took effect March 28, 2026. The September notice confirms that the requirements and the 2026 sample-site plan are active right now.

What WDFW Confirmed for the 2026 Season

WDFW's September 8, 2026 hunter notice says the rules apply across the Eastern Region's 100-series GMUs. The requirement is not limited to a county, a single unit or a species already known to be positive.

As of that notice, WDFW had confirmed CWD in eight deer from Spokane and Pend Oreille counties since 2024. That does not mean the agency has confirmed it in elk, moose or every 100-series unit. It does explain why the testing and transport controls cover the full region.

For an animal harvested in a 100-series GMU, the working deadline is:

• Within five days of harvest: provide the whole head with at least three inches of neck attached or extracted lymph nodes to WDFW.
• Before leaving Region 1: submit the head or extracted lymph nodes to WDFW in the Eastern Region if the animal or meat will be transported out sooner than five days.
• Before crossing out of the 100-series GMUs: make sure every part in the vehicle is on WDFW's allowed transport list.

Five days is the outside deadline. It is not permission to carry an unprocessed carcass or an unsubmitted sample out of the region first.

Build the Testing Plan Before You Hunt

The easiest time to solve this is at home, not beside a full cooler after dark.

Before leaving for a 100-series GMU:

1. Confirm the hunt is inside WDFW's Eastern Region and review the current unit boundary.
2. Open WDFW's live 2026 CWD testing page and identify more than one workable sample location.
3. Decide whether the crew will present the whole head or remove and submit the lymph nodes while still in the Eastern Region.
4. Know how antlers, cape and evidence of sex will be handled before the head is separated.
5. Record the WILD ID, harvest location and other sample information where the crew can reach it.
6. Build enough time into the exit route for office hours, a check station, a self-service site or proper mail-in preparation.

WDFW lists staff-assisted offices, check stations, self-service locations, appointments and a mail-in option. Locations and hours can change through the season. Save the live agency page, but check it again before the hunt and again before starting the drive home.

If nobody in the crew can confidently identify and remove the correct lymph nodes, use a staff-assisted option. A badly collected or packaged sample may not be testable.

Choose a Whole-Head Drop or a Lymph-Node Sample

Both routes can satisfy the sample requirement, but they create different field and trophy-care decisions.

A staffed WDFW office or check station may be able to return a head and antlers when the head is not frozen and the needed tissue can be collected. Do not assume that applies to an unattended drop box.

For mail-in samples, the current WDFW instructions call for frozen samples, complete identifying information and leak-proof cold packaging. Use the agency's current instructions instead of an old screenshot or a note saved from last season.

What Can Leave Washington's 100-Series GMUs

A whole deer, elk or moose carcass may be moved from one 100-series GMU to another for processing. It may not be taken outside the 100-series GMUs as a whole carcass.

WDFW's current transport guidance for hunters allows the following parts to leave:

• edible meat that has been deboned within Region 1
• skulls, skull plates, antlers or teeth with all soft tissue removed
• hides or capes without the head attached
• preapproved tissue moving for diagnostic or research purposes
• finished taxidermy mounts

Antler velvet counts as soft tissue. It must be removed before the antlers leave the 100-series GMUs unless it is part of a finished taxidermy mount.

Solve Evidence of Sex Before Separating the Head

Deboning for transport does not erase Washington's evidence-of-sex requirement.

WDFW's current guidance says that when boned-out meat is transported without the head, the required evidence must remain naturally attached to a quarter or the largest portion of meat. For a male, that means the penis or testes. For a female, it means the udder.

For deer and elk, there is a specific testing-card procedure that can apply after a head is surrendered to WDFW, but it carries its own conditions, including direct travel. Read the evidence-of-sex section in the 2026 Washington Big Game Hunting Seasons and Regulations before making the first cut.

Keep the transport tag, evidence of sex, sample information and edible meat plan as four separate checks. Completing one does not automatically complete the others.

Debone and Organize the Meat for the Boundary Crossing

Once the legal sequence is clear, the meat still needs disciplined field handling.

1. Protect the clean work area before opening the carcass.
2. Preserve the sample tissue and required evidence of sex before those areas are disturbed.
3. Separate edible meat from bone and restricted carcass material inside Region 1.
4. Divide major muscle groups into manageable Caribou Gear game-bag loads instead of building one dense sack.
5. Identify each load so the crew can keep hunter, contents and destination straight.
6. Keep the bags separated and exposed to moving air whenever they are not being compressed for transport.

The Caribou Gear Carnivore Boned-Out Game Bags for Elk fit this specific job: five 16-by-30-inch meat bags and one storage bag in a lightweight, breathable synthetic system built for boned-out elk. The multiple-bag layout helps a crew keep edible loads manageable after the animal has been legally deboned.

For the field-loading sequence, read how to divide boned-out elk meat between game bags.

Caribou Gear game bags and Game Bag ID Tags support clean, organized meat handling. They do not replace a transport tag, evidence of sex, WDFW sample labeling, mandatory CWD testing or harvest reporting.

Plan Carcass Disposal Before the Truck Is Loaded

Transport restrictions are designed to keep high-risk carcass material from being moved into areas where CWD has not been detected.

WDFW's preferred field option is to debone the animal where it was harvested and leave inedible parts at that site. When that is not practical, use a disposal location identified by the agency. WDFW also says carcass waste should not enter an organic-waste or compost stream.

This is another reason to plan the exit before the hunt. A processor outside Region 1 cannot solve an illegal load that already crossed the boundary.

Keep restricted carcass parts physically separate from edible meat while working. Change disposable gloves, then clean tools and the work surface before shifting from sample or carcass handling back to meat care.

CWD Sampling Does Not Replace Harvest Reporting

A WDFW testing record is not a harvest report.

After the sample is submitted, complete the required harvest report through the WILD system. Keep the WILD ID and any collection receipt or testing card with the harvest record.

WDFW's current result pages indicate that results can take several weeks. Do not build the meat-care plan around an immediate answer. Label the packages, keep the animal's meat together and check results using the hunter's WILD ID.

WDFW and the Washington Department of Health advise hunters not to eat an animal that tests positive for CWD or appears sick. If the meat is being held while results are pending, keep each animal's packaged meat separately identified.

For the broader planning layer that applies before a state-specific rule is added, review how CWD testing changes an elk packout plan.

2026 Washington 100-Series Exit Checklist

This checklist reflects WDFW information reviewed on September 11, 2026. Agency locations, hours and instructions can change during the season. The live WDFW rule and testing pages control.

Washington CWD Testing and Transport FAQ

Is CWD testing mandatory for every deer, elk and moose taken in Washington's 100-series GMUs in 2026?

Yes. WDFW requires testing for deer, elk and moose harvested anywhere in its Eastern Region, which is made up of 100-series GMUs. The rule applies across the region, not only in units with a confirmed positive animal.

How long does a hunter have to submit the CWD sample?

The sample must be provided to WDFW within five days of harvest. If the hunter will leave Region 1 sooner, WDFW's current rule and live hunter page say the head or extracted lymph nodes must be submitted in the region before leaving.

Can a whole elk carcass move to another 100-series GMU?

Yes. WDFW says a whole deer, elk or moose carcass may move between 100-series GMUs for processing. It cannot leave the 100-series GMUs as a whole carcass.

What elk parts may leave Washington's 100-series GMUs?

Current WDFW guidance allows deboned edible meat; skulls, skull plates, antlers or teeth with all soft tissue removed; hides or capes without heads; preapproved diagnostic or research tissue; and finished taxidermy mounts. Antler velvet must be removed unless it is part of a finished taxidermy mount.

Does a CWD sample count as Washington harvest reporting?

No. CWD sample submission and harvest reporting are separate requirements. The hunter must still complete the required harvest report through WDFW's WILD system.

Do game bags make an elk legal to transport outside the 100-series GMUs?

No. Caribou Gear game bags help protect and organize edible meat after deboning, but legal transport depends on current WDFW sampling, carcass preparation, tagging and evidence-of-sex requirements.

Do Not Let the Boundary Become the First Checkpoint

A 100-series elk packout now has two finish lines.

The first is getting clean, cooled meat out of the field. The second is leaving Region 1 with the sample completed and every part of the animal prepared for legal transport.

Know the testing route. Decide how the sample will be handled. Preserve evidence of sex. Debone before the boundary. Move the edible meat in organized Caribou Gear bags, and keep the carcass material where WDFW says it belongs.

Do that planning before the hunt, and the drive home begins with answers instead of a truck full of questions.

Build the Boned-Out Elk System Before the Hunt

The Carnivore system uses five matching meat bags to divide a boned-out elk into manageable loads after the required sample and carcass preparation are complete.

Carnivore Boned-Out Game Bags for Elk

Five 16-by-30-inch meat bags plus one storage bag for controlled boned-out elk loads.

CHOOSE CARNIVORE COLOR