Hunting districts / Deer · Elk · Lion
Deer · Elk · Lion hunting district · Region 4 (Great Falls)
District 404
Montana hunting district 404 (Deer · Elk · Lion), FWP Region 4 (Great Falls): 1,944 sq mi in Teton, Chouteau, Cascade, Pondera counties; 6% USFS, BLM, state trust and FWP land; median elevation 3,609 ft; FWP estimated 3 elk harvested in 2025.
What stands out
- Among the lowest elk harvests of 138 deer, elk and lion districts: 3 elk harvested in 2025 (FWP estimate). FWP harvest estimates
- Elk harvest down sharply of 106 deer, elk and lion districts: -64% (2013–2015 vs 2023–2025 three-year averages). FWP harvest estimates (calculated)
- Among the quietest for elk hunters of 138 deer, elk and lion districts: 0.4 elk hunter-days per square mile in 2024. FWP harvest estimates (calculated per sq mi)
- Among the most private of 139 deer, elk and lion districts: 6% USFS, BLM, state trust and FWP land. MSL Public Lands (calculated)
- Among the largest of 139 deer, elk and lion districts: 1,944 square miles. FWP district boundary
Publicly administered land
| Montana state trust land | 6.1% | |
| US Fish & Wildlife Service | 0.7% | |
| Other federal | 0.5% | |
| Montana FWP | 0.2% | |
| City & county | 0.2% | |
| Bureau of Land Management | 0.1% | |
| Other State of Montana | 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 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 2024 | 134 | 713 | 17 | 6 | 11 | 0 |
| 2023 | n/e | n/e | 15 | 5 | 9 | 0 |
| 2022 | 139 | 747 | 15 | 6 | 9 | 0 |
| 2021 | n/e | n/e | 12 | 8 | 0 | 4 |
| 2020 | 168 | 909 | 23 | 9 | 14 | 0 |
| 2019 | n/e | n/e | 15 | 12 | 3 | 0 |
| 2018 | 172 | 864 | 19 | 6 | 7 | 6 |
| 2017 | n/e | n/e | 23 | 14 | 9 | 0 |
| 2016 | 156 | 802 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 2015 | 232 | 1,399 | 47 | 12 | 23 | 12 |
| 2014 | 191 | 857 | 25 | 3 | 19 | 3 |
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 | 1,850 | 9,575 | 994 | 658 | 332 | 4 |
| 2024 | n/e | n/e | 1,227 | 774 | 453 | 0 |
| 2023 | 1,812 | 9,049 | 1,216 | 797 | 409 | 10 |
| 2022 | n/e | n/e | 1,205 | 710 | 496 | 0 |
| 2021 | 1,844 | 8,999 | 1,258 | 842 | 400 | 16 |
| 2020 | n/e | n/e | 1,417 | 952 | 456 | 10 |
| 2019 | 2,296 | 10,760 | 1,523 | 973 | 541 | 10 |
| 2018 | n/e | n/e | 1,398 | 918 | 458 | 22 |
| 2017 | 2,071 | 8,938 | 1,234 | 1,036 | 196 | 3 |
| 2016 | n/e | n/e | 1,156 | 934 | 222 | 0 |
| 2015 | n/e | n/e | 925 | 850 | 69 | 6 |
| 2014 | n/e | n/e | 768 | 731 | 36 | 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 | 1,850 | 9,575 | 491 | 381 | 110 | 0 |
| 2024 | n/e | n/e | 653 | 446 | 207 | 0 |
| 2023 | 1,812 | 9,049 | 636 | 471 | 162 | 3 |
| 2022 | n/e | n/e | 496 | 348 | 148 | 0 |
| 2021 | 1,844 | 8,999 | 651 | 505 | 138 | 8 |
| 2020 | n/e | n/e | 625 | 532 | 92 | 0 |
| 2019 | 2,296 | 10,760 | 606 | 469 | 134 | 3 |
| 2018 | n/e | n/e | 622 | 489 | 133 | 0 |
| 2017 | 2,071 | 8,938 | 643 | 535 | 105 | 3 |
| 2016 | n/e | n/e | 643 | 533 | 109 | 0 |
| 2015 | n/e | n/e | 428 | 422 | 6 | 0 |
| 2014 | n/e | n/e | 368 | 362 | 6 | 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 | 1,850 | 9,575 | 503 | 277 | 222 | 4 |
| 2024 | n/e | n/e | 574 | 328 | 246 | 0 |
| 2023 | 1,812 | 9,049 | 580 | 327 | 247 | 7 |
| 2022 | n/e | n/e | 710 | 362 | 348 | 0 |
| 2021 | 1,844 | 8,999 | 608 | 337 | 262 | 8 |
| 2020 | n/e | n/e | 793 | 420 | 363 | 10 |
| 2019 | 2,296 | 10,760 | 917 | 504 | 407 | 7 |
| 2018 | n/e | n/e | 776 | 429 | 326 | 22 |
| 2017 | 2,071 | 8,938 | 591 | 500 | 91 | 0 |
| 2016 | n/e | n/e | 513 | 400 | 113 | 0 |
| 2015 | n/e | n/e | 497 | 428 | 63 | 6 |
| 2014 | n/e | n/e | 400 | 369 | 31 | 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
- Teton, Chouteau, Cascade, Pondera counties
- National forests
- —
- Wilderness
- None
- Wildlife management areas
- Freezout Lake
- Mountain ranges (GNIS)
- —
- Highest named summits
- Bosseler Ridge (≈4,016 ft), West Knee (≈3,829 ft), East Knee (≈3,638 ft), Hill Fifty-seven (≈3,579 ft)
- Passes and gaps
- T L Gap
- Towns and places
- Agawam, Aznoe (historical), Beck (historical), Benton Lake (historical), Bole, Brady, Burton (historical), Bynum, Cleiv, Collins, Cordova, Countryside Village, Diamond Valley, Dutton
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.