GMU 490 Cedar River
Seattle's Cedar River Municipal Watershed — a ~90,000-acre closed drinking-water reserve holding game but shut to all hunting and public entry.
WDFW Region 4 — North Puget Sound (King County, District 12) · Last reviewed 2026-07-12
Area
134
sq mi
Public land
—
approx.
Elevation
1,500–5,500
feet
Motorized
limited
access
Overview
GMU 490 "Cedar River" is a closed unit. It is coextensive with the City of Seattle's Cedar River Municipal Watershed, roughly 90,000 acres of forest in southeast King County that supplies unfiltered drinking water to about 1.4 million people. To protect that supply, the City closes the entire watershed to public entry and manages it as a protected reserve under a Habitat Conservation Plan — and WDFW lists GMU 490 as 'currently closed to state hunters.' The unit holds healthy blacktail deer, elk (North Rainier herd), black bear, and cougar precisely because it has been undisturbed for over a century, but there is no legal hunting access of any kind here. Include it for completeness and boundary awareness; treat it as off-limits.
Terrain
The upper Cedar River drainage on the west slope of the Cascades, spanning from the Chester Morse Lake/reservoir bottoms up to forested ridges and the Cascade crest near the GMU 466 boundary. Because it has been protected for water supply for over a century, the watershed contains extensive mature and old-growth forest alongside second growth, an unusually intact west-Cascade landscape.
Cover: A mix of mature/old-growth and second-growth Douglas fir, western hemlock, and western redcedar, with higher-elevation silver fir and subalpine forest near the crest — far more late-successional forest than the surrounding managed timberlands, a product of restricted logging under the Habitat Conservation Plan.
Landmarks: Cedar River (upper drainage) · Chester Morse Lake / Masonry Dam / Cedar River reservoir · Cedar River Watershed Education Center (near Rattlesnake Lake, at the closed boundary) · Cascade crest ridgelines shared with GMU 466 (Stampede) · Posted City of Seattle watershed boundary (unit perimeter)
Access
CLOSED. The entire GMU is the City of Seattle's Cedar River Municipal Watershed, which is completely closed to public entry to protect an unfiltered drinking-water supply and is managed as a conservation reserve under a Habitat Conservation Plan. WDFW lists GMU 490 as currently closed to state hunters — there is no general season, no special permit, and no walk-in access. The only public contact with the watershed is guided/educational programming at the Cedar River Watershed Education Center near Rattlesnake Lake, outside the closed core. Do not enter the posted watershed boundary.
Managers: City of Seattle (Seattle Public Utilities) — Cedar River Municipal Watershed
Access points: No hunting access — entire watershed closed to public entry · Cedar River Watershed Education Center (Rattlesnake Lake) offers guided/educational visits only, outside the closed core
Species notes
Roosevelt Elk
common lowElk of the North Rainier herd use the Cedar River watershed, benefiting from a century of protection, but the unit is closed to hunting — 'quality: low' reflects zero legal opportunity, not the animals. There is no huntable elk resource in GMU 490.
- →None — GMU 490 is closed to all hunting; there is no legal way to pursue elk here
- →For open west-Cascade elk near this area, look to adjacent GMU 466 (Stampede)
Blacktail Deer
common lowColumbian blacktail inhabit the watershed's forest and edges, but as with all game here they are entirely protected — the unit is closed to state hunters and there is no deer season or permit. Listed for completeness only.
- →None — no hunting is permitted in the closed Cedar River watershed
- →Pursue blacktail in the surrounding open units (e.g., GMU 466 Stampede) instead
Black Bear
common lowBlack bears are present throughout the forested watershed (Black Bear Management Unit 4 region), but GMU 490 is closed to hunting — no bear opportunity exists here.
- →None — the watershed is closed to public entry and hunting
- →Hunt bears in adjacent open units where legal access exists
Cougar
common lowCougars occur throughout the intact, prey-rich watershed forest, but as a closed unit GMU 490 offers no cougar hunting opportunity.
- →None — GMU 490 is closed to hunting
- →Cougar tags apply only in open units; check PMU status where you can legally hunt
Pro tips
- →GMU 490 is the closed Cedar River Municipal Watershed — there is no legal hunting here of any species. Do not plan a hunt in this unit.
- →The watershed's posted boundary abuts open GMU 466 (Stampede) — carry a mapping app and know exactly where the line is so you don't drift into the closed area while hunting next door.
- →Because it's been protected for over a century, GMU 490 acts as a game reservoir that can seed animals into adjacent huntable units — scout the open edges of GMU 466 accordingly.
- →The Cedar River Watershed Education Center (Rattlesnake Lake) is the only place to legally experience the watershed, via guided programs — it is not a hunting access point.
- →For a legal west-Cascade blacktail/elk hunt in this area, focus on GMU 466 (Stampede).
Watch out for
- !Entire unit is CLOSED to state hunters and to all public entry — it is Seattle's unfiltered drinking-water supply, managed as a Habitat Conservation Plan reserve. Trespass is prosecuted.
- !The closed boundary directly adjoins open GMU 466; the biggest real risk to hunters is inadvertently crossing the posted line while hunting adjacent ground.
- !No permits, no general season, no walk-in — do not attempt to arrange access.
- !The only sanctioned public access is guided/educational programming outside the closed core.
Logistics
There is no hunting logistics to plan for GMU 490 — the entire unit is closed. The nearest towns (North Bend, Maple Valley, Enumclaw) serve the surrounding open country. The only sanctioned public visit to the watershed is the Cedar River Watershed Education Center at Rattlesnake Lake near North Bend, which runs guided programs outside the closed core. Hunters should route around this unit and plan their season in adjacent open GMUs.
Nearest towns: North Bend, WA, Maple Valley, WA, Enumclaw, WA, Ravensdale, WA
Seasons & regulations
This page carries no season dates or regulations. Get current rules from the official Washington sources:
Research sources: WDFW — Game Management Units (GMUs) · WDFW — 2024 District 12 Hunting Prospects (King County; GMU 490 closed to state hunters) · Seattle Public Utilities — Cedar River Watershed (closed, ~90,000 acres, unfiltered supply)
FAQ
- How big is GMU 490 in Washington?
- GMU 490 (Cedar River) covers about 134 square miles, ranging from roughly 1,500 to 5,500 feet in elevation. Area is computed from the unit boundary polygon.
- What species does the catalog list for GMU 490?
- Roosevelt Elk, Blacktail Deer, Black Bear, Cougar. For seasons, tags, and regulations, use the official Washington agency resources linked on this page — this page carries no regulatory information.
Put GMU 490 on your map.
Boundary lines, public/private ownership, topo, and offline maps for this unit — in Baseline Maps, free for 14 days.