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Who has hunted montana public lands?

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    #1

    Who has hunted montana public lands?

    Thinking of trying my luck in Montana next year. I've always wanted to visit the area and hear the hunting for elk is excellent.

    Any tips on units to look into or avoid?
    Only looking at public land archery DIY -I don't want to hunt private or pay an outfitter.

    I've hunted alot of public lands in other states and not worried about that- so my biggest concern is finding a unit with public access and good number of elk to go after.. the rest of details would fall in place.
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    #2
    I would love to go hunt up there

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      #3
      My uncle went to Montana on a PL hunt I had already scheduled a private land hunt in Colorado and he came home empty handed, I scored a nice bull , imo public property is good for hiking, except in Alaska! My buddy who has lived in Montana shares the same opinion
      Last edited by S-3 Ranch; 01-17-2018, 11:42 AM.

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        #4
        Originally posted by kingranch View Post
        Thinking of trying my luck in Montana next year. I've always wanted to visit the area and hear the hunting for elk is excellent.

        Any tips on units to look into or avoid?
        Only looking at public land archery DIY -I don't want to hunt private or pay an outfitter.

        I've hunted alot of public lands in other states and not worried about that- so my biggest concern is finding a unit with public access and good number of elk to go after.. the rest of details would fall in place.
        I am going up this year (putting in anyway) with my brother and buddy, public land, DIY.

        I worked in Helena last year and got to tag along with a couple locals. Public land only (some private land that is "walk in"). Also spent a lot of weekends cruising the mountains.

        We have researched the units around Helena and are looking at Units 392, 391, 455 and 446. Each has good access and the elk numbers are good. The Elkhorn unit outside of Helena is a highly sought after unit. Even the residents have to get drawn for branch antler tags for that unit.

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          #5
          Have you ever considered becoming a motivational speaker? Boy, you got the talent for it.
          Originally posted by pilar View Post
          My uncle went to Montana on a PL hunt I had already scheduled a private land hunt in Colorado and he came home empty handed, I scored a nice bull , imo public property is good for hiking, except in Alaska! My buddy who has lived in Montana shares the same opinion

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            #6
            Yes, I hunted the Bob Marshall back in the 90's on horseback. Saw elk but nothing in range. A friend shot one with rifle but not much bigger than a raghorn. Good overall experience but cant say how things are now.

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              #7
              Originally posted by Rack Ranch View Post
              Have you ever considered becoming a motivational speaker? Boy, you got the talent for it.
              LMAO.........just spit soda on my screen!

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                #8
                Originally posted by kingranch View Post
                Thinking of trying my luck in Montana next year. I've always wanted to visit the area and hear the hunting for elk is excellent.

                Any tips on units to look into or avoid?
                Only looking at public land archery DIY -I don't want to hunt private or pay an outfitter.

                I've hunted alot of public lands in other states and not worried about that- so my biggest concern is finding a unit with public access and good number of elk to go after.. the rest of details would fall in place.
                Subscribe to gohunt.com, that is the best place to start. Will give you more info then you could ever expect, like draw odds, bull:cow ratio, if fishing is nearby, typical hunting pressure, elevations, % of public land in unit, camping in the area, etc...

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                  #9
                  Originally posted by Landrover View Post
                  Yes, I hunted the Bob Marshall back in the 90's on horseback. Saw elk but nothing in range. A friend shot one with rifle but not much bigger than a raghorn. Good overall experience but cant say how things are now.
                  I want to do a multi-day fishing trip into the Bob.

                  I know the public land hunting is tough, but to me that would be part of the experience. The trophy to me would be the hunt itself.

                  I have a buddy up there that hunts both public and private and has success. People are not as strict about property up there as here. Private land access is obtainable. Some ranches have granted access to the private land and there are access points marked on maps.

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                    #10
                    Originally posted by pilar View Post
                    My uncle went to Montana on a PL hunt I had already scheduled a private land hunt in Colorado and he came home empty handed, I scored a nice bull , imo public property is good for hiking, except in Alaska! My buddy who has lived in Montana shares the same opinion
                    I hate to tell u this but u are dead wrong
                    I've harvested very nice elk and deer on diy public lands so your buddy's are either lazy or don't know what to do when it comes to maps and scouting. If u don't want to contribute to the thread kindly move on- thx

                    Looking at areas just north of the Wyoming border and Custer nf- after speaking with a friend unit 520 is a possibility

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                      #11
                      Originally posted by pilar View Post
                      My uncle went to Montana on a PL hunt I had already scheduled a private land hunt in Colorado and he came home empty handed, I scored a nice bull , imo public property is good for hiking, except in Alaska! My buddy who has lived in Montana shares the same opinion
                      Don't listen to this guy.

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                        #12
                        Following. Meant to put in for a preference point there last year and missed the deadline. My grandpa lived there for many years, but has since passed on. Sure wish I could have been old enough to pick his brain about all the hiking he did over the years. Going to try to hit up a local contact there in the next year or so when I decide to go.

                        I have heard that there were a lot more hunters last year. I’m guessing it was a combination of the world record elk killed the year before, more hunters in general, the TV show, and just more available knowledge. Either way, I’m going!

                        I have a bucket list item of spending a calendar year in Montana. Love it!

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                          #13
                          Originally posted by kingranch View Post
                          I hate to tell u this but u are dead wrong
                          I've harvested very nice elk and deer on diy public lands so your buddy's are either lazy or don't know what to do when it comes to maps and scouting. If u don't want to contribute to the thread kindly move on- thx

                          Looking at areas just north of the Wyoming border and Custer nf- after speaking with a friend unit 520 is a possibility
                          Sorry I didn't mean to be a killjoy, my friend Henry,lived near Bozeman mt. And knows the area you are looking At and says the crow Indian reservation has some great access points into to the Custer NF , he has killed a decent moose and has had some good success on mule deer, and his wife drew a resident mountain goat permit in Montana! I would be more than happy to pass any questions you have on to him !
                          My uncle was unsuccessful on his hunt(in bitter root area)due to the area he drew having large amounts of hunters during first part of his hunt and then extremely heavy snow in the later parts pushing the elk into a different unit (he was late season rifle) I believe a early season bow / bugle hunt he would have been successful, that was my reason for the Colorado hunt was higher success in early season!
                          Best of luck!

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                            #14
                            There are no elk in Montana.

                            Good thing about Montana unlike Colorado you purchase your tag and you are good to hunt from September (archery) to Nov 26. That is a long season and no reason a local shouldn't be able to get it done given they have ample time to research and hunt. I think rifle starts in November and lasts to 26th but archery is all September and October.

                            Use Gohunt.com worth the money

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                              #15
                              I'm from Montana! Are there elk? You bet, lots! Are there deer? Yessir! Are there millions of acres of public land? Yep! Is it the best place to go for elk as a non resident *from Texas*? No, probably not... Montana is a LOOOONG way to drive, and very expensive to fly there. Which is true of other western states, but the license system in Montana kinda screws over non resident hunters, to be honest.

                              Idaho has a much better system for non residents at half the cost. I dunno about you, but I wouldn't want to pay over $1k for the tag to shoot an elk in Montana, then tack on the price of travel just to get there. At that price you can drive to Colorado or New Mexico, which have plenty of public land and elk to hunt, and still cover your licenses. Heck, you could drive to Idaho and buy their tags, and still save several hundred bucks to put into good boots!

                              All that said, I am partial to the land in Montana, so I wouldn't discourage you if money isn't a problem. The place is amazing.

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