Hunting districts / Moose
Moose hunting district · Region 2 (Missoula)
District 280
Montana hunting district 280 (Moose), FWP Region 2 (Missoula): 304 sq mi in Lewis And Clark, Powell counties; 100% USFS, BLM, state trust and FWP land (mostly Lolo National Forest); median elevation 6,739 ft; FWP estimated 1 moose harvested in 2025.
What stands out
- Among the most public of 74 moose districts: 100% USFS, BLM, state trust and FWP land. MSL Public Lands (calculated)
- Among the quietest for moose hunters of 74 moose districts: 0.0 moose hunter-days per square mile in 2025. FWP harvest estimates (calculated per sq mi)
- Among the most wilderness of 74 moose districts: 78% designated wilderness. USFS wilderness boundaries (calculated)
- Among the lowest moose harvests of 74 moose districts: 1 moose harvested in 2025 (FWP estimate). FWP harvest estimates
Publicly administered land
| US Forest Service | 100.0% |
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.
Moose harvest estimates
| Year | Hunters | Days | Total Harvest | Bulls | Cows | Calves |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | 1 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2015 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2014 | 1 | 18 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 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. Boundaries of a numbered district can change between years.
Landscape
- Counties
- Lewis And Clark, Powell counties
- National forests
- Lolo National Forest, Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest
- Wilderness
- Scapegoat Wilderness (77%), Bob Marshall Wilderness (1%)
- Wildlife management areas
- —
- Mountain ranges (GNIS)
- —
- Highest named summits
- Evans Peak (≈8,799 ft), Olson Peak (≈8,747 ft), Pyramid Peak (≈8,550 ft), Galusha Peak (≈8,488 ft)
- Passes and gaps
- Windy Pass, Camp Pass, Hahn Creek Pass, Dry Fork Flathead Divide
- Towns and places
- —
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.