Hunting districts / Deer · Elk · Lion
Deer · Elk · Lion hunting district · Region 3 (Bozeman)
District 324
Montana hunting district 324 (Deer · Elk · Lion), FWP Region 3 (Bozeman): 517 sq mi in Beaverhead, Madison counties; 48% USFS, BLM, state trust and FWP land; median elevation 6,626 ft; FWP estimated 416 elk harvested in 2025.
What stands out
- Among the busiest for elk hunters of 138 deer, elk and lion districts: 32.4 elk hunter-days per square mile in 2024. FWP harvest estimates (calculated per sq mi)
- Among the highest elk harvests of 138 deer, elk and lion districts: 416 elk harvested in 2025 (FWP estimate). FWP harvest estimates
Publicly administered land
| Bureau of Land Management | 33.8% | |
| Montana state trust land | 14.2% | |
| Other federal | 0.1% | |
| City & county | 0.1% |
Area of Montana State Library 'Montana Public Lands' polygons (derived from the Montana Cadastral Framework, Department of Revenue ownership records) intersected with the FWP district boundary, measured in NAD83(2011) Montana State Plane (EPSG:6514). Ownership is not access: some public land is closed to hunting or has no legal access.
Elk harvest estimates
| Year | Hunters | Days | Total Harvest | Bulls | Cows | Calves |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | n/e | n/e | 416 | 232 | 185 | 0 |
| 2024 | 2,475 | 16,754 | 614 | 252 | 339 | 24 |
| 2021 | n/e | n/e | 475 | 223 | 233 | 18 |
| 2020 | 1,488 | 10,868 | 400 | 204 | 189 | 7 |
| 2019 | n/e | n/e | 266 | 167 | 96 | 3 |
| 2018 | 1,463 | 9,723 | 281 | 137 | 133 | 12 |
| 2017 | n/e | n/e | 328 | 158 | 165 | 6 |
| 2016 | 1,717 | 10,971 | 262 | 126 | 129 | 6 |
| 2015 | 1,913 | 12,326 | 574 | 215 | 330 | 29 |
| 2014 | 1,727 | 10,514 | 407 | 178 | 203 | 25 |
| 2013 | n/e | n/e | 176 | 98 | 78 | 0 |
| 2012 | 1,165 | 6,784 | 229 | 139 | 84 | 6 |
FWP estimates from the annual hunter harvest survey; they carry sampling error. "n/e": FWP did not estimate district-level hunter numbers that year (2019, 2021, 2023, 2025). Boundaries of a numbered district can change between years.
Deer harvest estimates
| Year | Hunters | Days | Total Harvest | Bucks | Does | Fawns |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,535 | 9,522 | 573 | 361 | 213 | 0 |
| 2024 | n/e | n/e | 570 | 335 | 235 | 0 |
| 2021 | 532 | 3,545 | 130 | 80 | 50 | 0 |
| 2020 | n/e | n/e | 101 | 46 | 48 | 7 |
| 2019 | 476 | 2,679 | 118 | 82 | 32 | 3 |
| 2018 | n/e | n/e | 44 | 29 | 15 | 0 |
| 2017 | 416 | 2,639 | 84 | 62 | 22 | 0 |
| 2016 | n/e | n/e | 107 | 59 | 39 | 9 |
| 2015 | n/e | n/e | 116 | 80 | 36 | 0 |
| 2014 | n/e | n/e | 82 | 55 | 24 | 3 |
| 2013 | 289 | 1,922 | 42 | 25 | 17 | 0 |
| 2012 | n/e | n/e | 92 | 51 | 40 | 0 |
FWP estimates from the annual hunter harvest survey; they carry sampling error. "n/e": FWP did not estimate district-level hunter numbers that year (2018, 2020, 2022, 2024). Boundaries of a numbered district can change between years.
Mule Deer harvest estimates
| Year | Hunters | Days | Total Harvest | Bucks | Does | Fawns |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,535 | 9,522 | 274 | 189 | 86 | 0 |
| 2024 | n/e | n/e | 295 | 204 | 91 | 0 |
| 2021 | 532 | 3,545 | 60 | 39 | 21 | 0 |
| 2020 | n/e | n/e | 43 | 23 | 20 | 0 |
| 2019 | 476 | 2,679 | 53 | 46 | 7 | 0 |
| 2018 | n/e | n/e | 31 | 28 | 3 | 0 |
| 2017 | 416 | 2,639 | 44 | 39 | 6 | 0 |
| 2016 | n/e | n/e | 41 | 32 | 6 | 3 |
| 2015 | n/e | n/e | 50 | 50 | 0 | 0 |
| 2014 | n/e | n/e | 35 | 30 | 6 | 0 |
| 2013 | 289 | 1,922 | 25 | 17 | 8 | 0 |
| 2012 | n/e | n/e | 42 | 32 | 10 | 0 |
FWP estimates from the annual hunter harvest survey; they carry sampling error. "n/e": FWP did not estimate district-level hunter numbers that year (2018, 2020, 2022, 2024). Boundaries of a numbered district can change between years.
Whitetail harvest estimates
| Year | Hunters | Days | Total Harvest | Bucks | Does | Fawns |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,535 | 9,522 | 299 | 172 | 127 | 0 |
| 2024 | n/e | n/e | 275 | 130 | 144 | 0 |
| 2021 | 532 | 3,545 | 70 | 41 | 29 | 0 |
| 2020 | n/e | n/e | 58 | 23 | 28 | 7 |
| 2019 | 476 | 2,679 | 65 | 36 | 26 | 3 |
| 2018 | n/e | n/e | 14 | 2 | 12 | 0 |
| 2017 | 416 | 2,639 | 39 | 24 | 16 | 0 |
| 2016 | n/e | n/e | 66 | 27 | 34 | 6 |
| 2015 | n/e | n/e | 66 | 30 | 36 | 0 |
| 2014 | n/e | n/e | 47 | 25 | 19 | 3 |
| 2013 | 289 | 1,922 | 17 | 8 | 9 | 0 |
| 2012 | n/e | n/e | 50 | 19 | 30 | 0 |
FWP estimates from the annual hunter harvest survey; they carry sampling error. "n/e": FWP did not estimate district-level hunter numbers that year (2018, 2020, 2022, 2024). Boundaries of a numbered district can change between years.
Landscape
- Counties
- Beaverhead, Madison counties
- National forests
- —
- Wilderness
- None
- Wildlife management areas
- —
- Mountain ranges (GNIS)
- Blacktail Mountains
- Highest named summits
- Benson Peak (≈8,438 ft), Gallagher Mountain (≈8,369 ft), Monument Hill (≈8,117 ft), Gallagher Butte (≈8,064 ft)
- Passes and gaps
- Beaverhead Canyon Gateway
- Towns and places
- Barretts, Dalys, Dillon, Ford, Guntner Place, Kidd, Red Rock
Elevations sampled on a regular grid inside the district from AWS Terrain Tiles (Terrarium, zoom 10, ~105 m pixels; compiled from USGS 3DEP and SRTM). Approximate: summits read lower than their surveyed height.
Sources
- District boundary: Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks hunting district layer.
- Public land: Montana State Library, Montana Public Lands (published 2026-10-06).
- Harvest: FWP Harvest Estimates, retrieved 2026-10-30.
- Places: USGS Geographic Names Information System. Wilderness and forests: USDA Forest Service.
- Elevation: AWS Terrain Tiles (USGS 3DEP, SRTM).
Live weather, snow, fire and access conditions are in the atlas card for this district.