Hunt Area HX-01 Helix (HX-01)
Columbia Basin wheat country: wide-open private-land deer opportunity, Umatilla refuge draw hunts, and knock-on-doors access.
ODFW Northeast Region — Umatilla & Heppner districts, Columbia Plateau · Last reviewed 2026-07-17
Area
1,653
sq mi
Public land
9%
approx.
Elevation
265–2,500
feet
Motorized
moderate
access
Overview
Helix HX-01 is a roughly 1,650-square-mile 2026 deer hunt area on the Columbia Plateau of Umatilla, Morrow, and Gilliam counties, running from the Columbia River at Arlington east past Hermiston to the wheat towns of Helix and Athena, bounded by Hwy 11, I-84, and the Hwy 74/Baseline Road country near Lexington. It is the northern portion of the legacy Columbia Basin Unit (44) — ODFW's transition guide shows most of the old 144 Columbia Basin hunt now falling in Helix 01, with the southern remainder going to North Blues NB-02. This is dryland wheat, CRP, irrigated circles, and shrub-steppe canyon country that is only about 9 percent public land; ODFW classifies the Helix 01 buck hunt as Tier 1 (more than 75 percent private), so the real access story is landowner permission plus a handful of small federal and state parcels along the Columbia. The marquee public opportunities are the Umatilla National Wildlife Refuge draw hunts on the refuge's Morrow County ground, alongside a general Helix 01 buck hunt, a bow hunt, youth hunts, and a private-lands-only antlerless hunt. Mule deer are the main game, scattered wherever cover meets grain; expect a farm-country hunt, not a backcountry one.
Terrain
Low-relief Columbia Plateau: sweeping dryland wheat and fallow benches cut by brushy draws and basalt-rimmed canyons that drain north to the Columbia, with irrigated circle farms and river-bottom cottonwood/willow corridors around Hermiston, Boardman, and Irrigon. Elevation runs from about 265 feet on the Columbia pools to roughly 2,500 feet where the plateau rises toward the Blue Mountain foothill fringe west of Hwy 11. Deer live on edges — CRP fields, canyon rims, creek brush — because most of the country is open grain.
Cover: Wheat stubble, fallow, and CRP grass over most of the area; sagebrush/bitterbrush shrub-steppe and bunchgrass in the canyons and breaks; russian olive, willow, and cottonwood riparian stringers along the Umatilla River, Willow Creek, and Columbia backwaters; irrigated alfalfa, potatoes, and corn on the circles near Hermiston, Boardman, and Echo.
Landmarks: Columbia River / I-84 corridor (Arlington to Umatilla) · Umatilla National Wildlife Refuge — McCormack Unit (Morrow County) · Cold Springs Reservoir / Cold Springs NWR (northeast of Hermiston) · Umatilla River · Willow Creek (Morrow County) · Helix–Athena wheat plateau along Hwy 11 · NWSTF Boardman (Navy training range — closed to entry) · Hat Rock State Park on the Columbia
Access
ODFW lists Helix HX-01 at only 9 percent public land, and its Tier 1 (>75 percent private) classification tells the honest story: most of the huntable deer live on private wheat and river-bottom ground where permission is everything. Start asking farmers in summer, well before harvest ends. The public exceptions are small: the Umatilla NWR deer hunts are draw-only on the refuge's Morrow County portion, with the open area set each year by refuge staff and refuge-specific weapon and access rules — read the refuge regulations before applying. The four ODFW-managed Columbia Basin wildlife areas (Irrigon, Willow Creek, Coyote Springs, Power City) total only about 1,885 acres and are managed primarily for bird hunting — Coyote Springs allows no big game at all, Irrigon is shotgun-only, and Willow Creek is the one that lists deer — all requiring an ODFW Wildlife Area Parking Permit. Cold Springs NWR is best treated as a bird-hunting refuge. The Navy's Boardman training range is closed to public entry, and the private antlerless 'Helix 01 Private' hunt is valid on private land only. Check ODFW's hunting access map for any Access & Habitat or open-fields parcels enrolled in a given year.
Managers: Private dryland-wheat and irrigated farms (large majority), US Fish & Wildlife Service (Umatilla NWR, Cold Springs NWR), US Army Corps of Engineers / ODFW Columbia Basin wildlife areas (Irrigon, Willow Creek, Coyote Springs, Power City), US Navy (NWSTF Boardman — closed), BLM and state (scattered small tracts)
Access points: I-84 exits from Arlington east to Pendleton (Boardman, Irrigon, Echo, Stanfield) · US 730 along the Columbia through Irrigon and Umatilla (wildlife-area parking pull-outs) · Hwy 11 corridor Pendleton–Athena for the eastern wheat plateau · Hwy 74 / Baseline–McNab road country near Lexington and Ione (southern edge) · Umatilla NWR McCormack Unit entrances off Paterson Ferry Road area (per refuge hunt map)
Species notes
Mule Deer
common opportunityFarm-country mule deer scattered wherever cover meets grain — CRP fields, canyon rims, and riparian brush hold most of the deer in an otherwise open landscape. ODFW rates the Helix herd at 'High' population concern (better than the 'Very High' and 'Extreme' ratings across much of eastern Oregon), and tag numbers are relatively generous for hunters who have ground to hunt.
- →Glass at first light from county-road vantage points, then move in — deer feed in wheat stubble and alfalfa edges at night and bed in CRP, draws, and rimrock by mid-morning.
- →Lock up private permission in July and August; after harvest, farmers can often point you to the exact draws their deer are using.
- →Hunt the brushy canyon systems draining to the Columbia and Willow Creek — the few folds in this country concentrate both deer and the day-bed cover they need.
- →For the refuge draw hunts, scout the McCormack Unit's field-and-slough edges beforehand and plan around the refuge's designated hunt-area map for that year.
- →Don't overlook the river-bottom cottonwood corridors near Echo, Stanfield, and Hermiston in the evenings — irrigation ground pulls deer all season.
Whitetail Deer
limited opportunityWhite-tailed deer occur in the unit's brushy river corridors and toward the Blue Mountain foothill fringe on the east side — third-party unit profiles list both species for the legacy Columbia Basin unit, and ODFW describes northeast Oregon whitetails as tied to agricultural lands. They are a bonus here, not the main event; confirm current species rules for your tag before shooting.
- →Concentrate on the Umatilla River bottom and thick creek brush — whitetails hold to dense riparian cover far more tightly than the mule deer on the open plateau.
- →The eastern wheat-and-foothill edge west of Hwy 11 (Helix–Athena country) is the most likely whitetail ground; ask landowners which species they see.
- →Still-hunt or stand-hunt travel corridors between crop fields and brush at dawn and dusk rather than trying to spot-and-stalk them.
Pro tips
- →Treat this as a permission hunt: the Tier 1, >75-percent-private classification means the hunters who do well are the ones who lined up farm access months ahead.
- →Apply for the Umatilla NWR draw hunts if you lack private ground — they are the one quality public opportunity in the area, on refuge fields and slough edges that see no other deer pressure.
- →Carry a current ownership map app and respect every corner — public parcels here are small, scattered, and easy to walk off of.
- →Glass more than you walk: in open grain country a good vantage and 30 minutes of optics beat miles of boot leather.
- →Scout the canyon systems (Willow Creek and the Columbia breaks) — the folds hold the deer, and most freeway-scouting hunters never look into them.
- →If a farmer mentions deer damage, ask about the private-lands antlerless hunt — access for a doe hunt often turns into buck access later.
Watch out for
- !Almost no general-access public land — do not show up with a tag and no plan; 9 percent public land is mostly small bird-hunting parcels.
- !The Navy's Boardman training range (NWSTF) is closed to all public entry — know its boundary when hunting the Boardman country.
- !Umatilla NWR hunts are limited to the portion of the refuge designated by refuge staff each year, with refuge-specific rules — read the current refuge hunting regulations, not just the state ones.
- !Coyote Springs Wildlife Area allows no big game hunting and Irrigon Wildlife Area is shotgun-only — the state wildlife areas here are not rifle-deer ground.
- !ODFW Wildlife Area Parking Permits are required at the Columbia Basin wildlife areas.
- !Rattlesnakes are common in the canyons and rimrock during warm early-season weather.
- !Wet weather turns unpaved farm roads to impassable gumbo — getting towed off a farmer's road is a fast way to lose access.
Logistics
Easy logistics by eastern Oregon standards: I-84 and I-82 cross the whole area, with full services (motels, fuel, groceries, sporting goods) in Hermiston, Pendleton, and Boardman and smaller services in Arlington, Irrigon, and Umatilla. Camping options are limited to Columbia River parks (Boardman Marina Park RV sites, Hat Rock State Park area) since there is almost no public backcountry to camp on. Cell coverage is strong along the interstate and farm country, weaker down in the canyons. Distances are deceptive — the area spans about 90 minutes of freeway from Arlington to the Hwy 11 country — so base near your permission ground.
Nearest towns: Hermiston, Pendleton, Boardman, Umatilla / Irrigon, Arlington, Echo
Seasons & regulations
This page carries no season dates or regulations. Get current rules from the official Oregon sources:
Research sources: ODFW — Helix Hunt Area HX-01 (boundary, 9% public land, refuge hunts) · ODFW — Eastern Oregon Deer Hunt Areas for 2026 · ODFW — WMUs to Deer Hunt Areas Transition Guide (144 Columbia Basin → HX101/NB102) · ODFW — Columbia Basin Unit 44 (legacy boundary, 5% public land) · ODFW — 2026 Limited Landowner Preference Mule Deer Tags (HX101 'High' concern, Tier 1 >75% private) · eRegulations — Oregon Antlerless Deer Hunt Descriptions (Umatilla NWR hunts in Morrow Co., Helix 01 Private = private lands only) · USFWS — Hunting at Umatilla National Wildlife Refuge · ODFW — Columbia Basin Wildlife Areas Management Plan (Irrigon, Willow Creek, Coyote Springs, Power City) · USFWS — Hunting at Cold Springs NWR (bird hunting; no general deer season listed) · GoHunt — Oregon Unit 44 Columbia Basin profile (both deer species, terrain/ownership color)
FAQ
- How big is Hunt Area HX-01 in Oregon?
- Hunt Area HX-01 (Helix (HX-01)) covers about 1,653 square miles, ranging from roughly 265 to 2,500 feet in elevation. Area is computed from the unit boundary polygon.
- How much public land is in Hunt Area HX-01?
- Approximately 9% of the unit is public land. Primary managers: Private dryland-wheat and irrigated farms (large majority), US Fish & Wildlife Service (Umatilla NWR, Cold Springs NWR), US Army Corps of Engineers / ODFW Columbia Basin wildlife areas (Irrigon, Willow Creek, Coyote Springs, Power City), US Navy (NWSTF Boardman — closed), BLM and state (scattered small tracts). Always verify ownership boundaries on the ground.
- What species does the catalog list for Hunt Area HX-01?
- Mule Deer, Whitetail Deer. For seasons, tags, and regulations, use the official Oregon agency resources linked on this page — this page carries no regulatory information.
Put Hunt Area HX-01 on your map.
Boundary lines, public/private ownership, topo, and offline maps for this unit — in Baseline Maps, free for 14 days.