Hunting districts / Deer · Elk · Lion
Deer · Elk · Lion hunting district · Region 4 (Great Falls)
District 448
Montana hunting district 448 (Deer · Elk · Lion), FWP Region 4 (Great Falls): 384 sq mi in Judith Basin, Meagher, Cascade counties; 74% USFS, BLM, state trust and FWP land (mostly Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest); median elevation 6,339 ft; FWP estimated 124 elk harvested in 2025.
Publicly administered land
| US Forest Service | 72.6% | |
| Montana state trust land | 1.0% | |
| Bureau of Land Management | 0.2% |
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 | 124 | 75 | 49 | 0 |
| 2024 | 1,072 | 7,397 | 122 | 73 | 40 | 9 |
| 2023 | n/e | n/e | 143 | 79 | 59 | 6 |
| 2022 | 941 | 6,637 | 191 | 88 | 95 | 9 |
| 2021 | n/e | n/e | 116 | 78 | 38 | 0 |
| 2020 | 794 | 4,998 | 142 | 83 | 57 | 3 |
| 2019 | n/e | n/e | 124 | 39 | 74 | 11 |
| 2018 | 936 | 6,123 | 134 | 81 | 44 | 9 |
| 2017 | n/e | n/e | 158 | 84 | 67 | 8 |
| 2016 | 1,074 | 6,985 | 118 | 61 | 55 | 3 |
| 2015 | 1,065 | 6,962 | 176 | 75 | 90 | 11 |
| 2014 | 1,238 | 7,817 | 148 | 93 | 47 | 9 |
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 | 788 | 5,434 | 304 | 234 | 70 | 0 |
| 2024 | n/e | n/e | 267 | 152 | 115 | 0 |
| 2023 | 677 | 3,952 | 256 | 193 | 60 | 3 |
| 2022 | n/e | n/e | 212 | 174 | 37 | 0 |
| 2021 | 574 | 3,981 | 195 | 161 | 33 | 0 |
| 2020 | n/e | n/e | 175 | 109 | 66 | 0 |
| 2019 | 444 | 3,141 | 155 | 111 | 37 | 6 |
| 2018 | n/e | n/e | 178 | 159 | 19 | 0 |
| 2017 | 585 | 3,644 | 179 | 153 | 26 | 0 |
| 2016 | n/e | n/e | 181 | 176 | 6 | 0 |
| 2015 | n/e | n/e | 196 | 180 | 13 | 3 |
| 2014 | n/e | n/e | 181 | 164 | 17 | 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 | 788 | 5,434 | 213 | 178 | 35 | 0 |
| 2024 | n/e | n/e | 174 | 114 | 60 | 0 |
| 2023 | 677 | 3,952 | 172 | 163 | 10 | 0 |
| 2022 | n/e | n/e | 144 | 138 | 6 | 0 |
| 2021 | 574 | 3,981 | 126 | 122 | 4 | 0 |
| 2020 | n/e | n/e | 133 | 92 | 41 | 0 |
| 2019 | 444 | 3,141 | 91 | 85 | 7 | 0 |
| 2018 | n/e | n/e | 131 | 131 | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 | 585 | 3,644 | 144 | 133 | 12 | 0 |
| 2016 | n/e | n/e | 139 | 139 | 0 | 0 |
| 2015 | n/e | n/e | 153 | 149 | 1 | 3 |
| 2014 | n/e | n/e | 141 | 138 | 3 | 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 | 788 | 5,434 | 91 | 56 | 35 | 0 |
| 2024 | n/e | n/e | 93 | 38 | 55 | 0 |
| 2023 | 677 | 3,952 | 84 | 30 | 51 | 3 |
| 2022 | n/e | n/e | 68 | 36 | 31 | 0 |
| 2021 | 574 | 3,981 | 68 | 39 | 29 | 0 |
| 2020 | n/e | n/e | 42 | 17 | 25 | 0 |
| 2019 | 444 | 3,141 | 64 | 27 | 31 | 6 |
| 2018 | n/e | n/e | 47 | 28 | 19 | 0 |
| 2017 | 585 | 3,644 | 35 | 20 | 14 | 0 |
| 2016 | n/e | n/e | 42 | 36 | 6 | 0 |
| 2015 | n/e | n/e | 43 | 32 | 12 | 0 |
| 2014 | n/e | n/e | 40 | 26 | 14 | 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
- Judith Basin, Meagher, Cascade counties
- National forests
- Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest
- Wilderness
- None
- Wildlife management areas
- —
- Mountain ranges (GNIS)
- —
- Highest named summits
- Yogo Peak (≈8,763 ft), Sand Point (≈8,202 ft), Kelly Mountain (≈8,107 ft), Big Deer Point (≈8,097 ft)
- Passes and gaps
- Elk Saddle
- Towns and places
- Lehigh, Scholtztown
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.