When to Hunt in Montana - Hunting Season Dates and Definitions

Time to gear up for hunting season! In looking at the deer and elk hunting seasons in Montana 2007 you have 3 different start and stop dates.
Deer & Elk - archery September 1, 2007 to October 14, 2007
Deer & Elk - back country HD's 150, 151, 280 & 316 September 15, 2007 to November 25, 2007
Deer & Elk - general October 21, 2007 to November 25, 2007. What do these mean?

Archery Hunting

Archery is also called 'bow hunting' and allows those choosing to hunt without a firearm to have first chance at hunting. From the Montana Fish and Game Website, "Archery Only Season: A season usually prior to the "General Season," when deer, elk and antelope may be hunted only with
lawful archery equipment. Occasionally, some hunting districts with special circumstances may allow concurrent fi rearm use
to address game damage issues; or firearms may be used for hunting other species, such as black bear."

An Arrow is defined as being at least 20 inches in overall length. Fletching is attached to the nook end. A boradhead is mounted to the front end. The broadheads have at least 2 cutting edges. Expandable broadheads are legal if they expand to at least 7/8 of an inch.

A hunting bow for hunting big game must be any one of the following: Long bow, flat bow, recurve bow, compound bow, or any combination. The bow must be a minimum of 28 inches. It must be for launching an arrow and hand drawn. It must be hand-held and not mounted. Physically disabled huntered are allow exceptions but must be certified by FWP.

Back Country Hunting Districts

Back country districts 150, 151, 280, & 316 start on September 15th, over 2 months before general hunting season opens. These can be traveled with various guides, on horseback or by foot. Reservations required.

General Rifle Hunting

General rifle hunting in Montana starts on October 21st and extends until November 25th, 2007.

Firearms: There is no rifle or handgun caliber limitation for big game animals. Additionally, shotguns (with 00 or 0 or slugs), archery equipment, and crossbows are legal.

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks officials said that the 2007 over the counter Deer B, Antelope and Surplus hunting licenses will go on sale beginning August 13th, 2007. Don't miss this important date!

What is a Deer B tag?

A Deer B tag allows hunting of antler less white-tailed deer only, in one region only. Conservation License and Hunting Access Enhancement Fee are prerequisites. Before you buy you must state which region you wish to use it in and it is only good for that region.
Cost for a resident is $15 and nonresident is $75. We buy a Deer A tag, and a Deer B tag and then as we use up the Deer B tags we buy more. They are available at Ray's in Harlowton and other places, such as Walmart, where hunting licenses are sold.

What time of day can I hunt?

Hunting hours for big game animals (Deer, elk, bear, etc) begin one hour before sunrise and end 30 minutes after sunset. Sunrise and Sunset official times are found here:

http://fwp.mt.gov/content/getItem.aspx?id=26842