Montana hunting

[midtndeerhunter]

Father in law just got a job in Billings, is there anything I should try to capitalize on while he is living there ? I have never been out west but dream of doing some sort of hunt. What is the most economical and fastest?

 

[fairchaser]

Probably a whitetail or mule deer hunt would be the easiest to DIY. Start by studying the regs and see what's available for non residents. There's lots of public ground but you may need to draw for the better areas. In the end you can hunt all the big game of North America there but muleys and elk would be the most plentiful.

 

[Dean Parisian]

Spend some hours reviewing the different REGIONS of the state that are divided up by the GFP department. Examine the differences between hunting on Block Management Access, usually private ranches open for public hunting access and hunting State, Federal and BLM, Bureau of Land Management, not Black Lives Matter. The offices in Helena are helpful in understanding how to obtain licenses. Within 3 hours of the Billings airport are maybe a half-million to a million acres of public ground. If you put in the time, work at it, you can kill a quality buck on public ground.

Get ready to do some work. Most people don't want to do the work so they don't kill good bucks. Good bucks don't like commotion, pickups, 4-wheelers and gun fire. Figure out how to get your animal packed out as well. Good luck.

 

[Mattt]

Yea
I'd move with him. Billings is a good location also. Beautiful place. Also gets a little cold

 

[Jmed]

Coming on my third year to hunt MT. First of all, as a non-res. you will have to draw for deer, elk, or antelope. The draw for deer has been 100% until this past year, and I know a few folks did not get a tag. Elk is based on the unit you apply for. You can get a general tag which is 100% but the bull permit may be tough to get for certain units (2 world records were taken in the past two years in Eastern MT so the tags are getting harder. the farther East you go from Billings the less elk there are but they are huge! Especially in the Mo river breaks area. That being said, You should be able to get a deer tag, and an antelope archery no problem. I got both last year and was lucky enough to take a nice whitetail and a great pronghorn. There is quite a bit of BLM land along the Yellowstone that is easily accessed for deer, and all of the islands are loaded with whitetails. Last year I went the first week of Septemeber and temps were as warm as 105 degrees. A couple weeks later, it snowed. So be prepared. I would advise you to check out the Custer NAtional forrest as it has tons of land and lots of good muleys, white tail, and antelope. Also, take a shot gun as we have seen so many pheasants, grouse, and other game birds. good luck!