Montana elk season 2026: dates and free maps

Season dates

Archery: Saturday, September 5 to Sunday, October 18, 2026
Source: Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks
Backcountry general, HDs 150, 280 and 316: Tuesday, September 15 to Sunday, November 29, 2026
Backcountry archery Sept. 5-14 (HD 316 has no archery-only season).
Source: Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks
General season: Saturday, October 24 to Sunday, November 29, 2026
Nonresident dates can differ.
Source: Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks

Checked on the agency's site November 6, 2026. Licenses, units, bag limits and shooting hours differ, and dates can vary by unit: the regulations are what count, so read them before you go.

Legal shooting hours for big game in Montana, generally: 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset.

Elk hunting covers a lot of ground, far from roads and cell service. Download the maps for your unit ahead of time and Cartahaven shows your GPS position on them offline, so you know which side of a boundary you are on and how to get back to camp.

Montana hunting districts Open the map app

Free public land maps in Montana

Montana USGS topo maps (3,003)
Montana Forest Service FSTopo maps (844)
Montana historical topo maps (175)
Montana national forest maps (61)
Montana wildlife refuge maps (18)
Montana BLM maps (14)
Montana national park maps (7)
Montana geologic maps (3)

All free maps in Montana

Before you go

Cartahaven is not affiliated with or endorsed by Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks. Season dates come from the agency pages linked above.