Idaho Elk · Unit 36A-1X
Idaho Unit 36A-1X covers 122,906 acres and lies 52 miles north of Ketchum and 63 miles north of Hailey. 91% of it is public land, mostly BLM (64%) and national forest (24%). In 2025, 31 people hunted elk here and took 21, a 68% success rate (sum of published weapon rows). Its most applied-for hunt, 2280, put up 50 tags (all residencies) in the 2026 draw for 14 nonresident first-choice applicants, 3 of whom drew.
No points in this draw. Every applicant has the same chance each year.
1 license · NR capped at 10%
first choice, NR
2025, all licenses
64% BLM
122,906 acres
Boundaries are drawn for orientation only. The written boundary description in the regulations governs.
Best Bets
Ranked by your odds times how often that license type's hunters filled their tag in 2025. Nonresident, first choice, 2026 draw; licenses with at least 10 tags that anyone can buy.
Every License in Unit 36A-1X
| What | Season | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2280 | Antlerless elk, any weapon, Hunt Area 36A-1X (extra tag) | 21% (small sample) |
First-choice nonresident odds, 2026 draw. No points in this draw: every applicant has the same chance. Not in the table, with no 2026 result: 2250.
Draw results: IDFG 2026 Hunt Planner drawing odds, retrieved Aug 31, 2026.
If you draw (2026 nonresident fees): $854.75 ($203 to apply). Open May 1 – Jun 5, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.
Harvest
| Year | Hunters | Elk | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 (summed) | 31 | 21 | 68% |
| 2025 by License | Hunters | Elk | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2280 | 31 | 21 | 68% |
2025 split: firearm 21 (100%) from 31 hunters, 68%
What Idaho Department of Fish and Game publishes after each season, for everyone who hunted the area: harvest statistics, not draw odds. Idaho Department of Fish and Game publishes no whole-unit line for 2025; a year's total is the sum of published weapon rows, added only where the lines do not overlap. Idaho's figures are counts from mandatory hunter reports and check stations rather than survey estimates, so they behave differently from the survey states. Source: IDFG 2025 Hunt Planner Harvest Statistics, elk.
The Ground
| BLM | 78,612 ac | 64% |
| National Forest | 29,095 ac | 24% |
| Private | 11,528 ac | 9% |
| State land | 3,385 ac | 3% |
| Other public | 285 ac | <1% |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Idaho State Office 2026 BLM Surface Management Agency.
What the Agency Says About the Area
That portion of unit 36A north of the following boundary. Starting at the junction of Highway 93 and Spar Canyon Road. West on Spar Canyon road to the junction with Powerline Road. North on Powerline Road to the Malm Gulch Road. Then continuing north on the Malm Gulch road to its junction with Highway 75 and the unit boundary. See Hunt Planner or contact Salmon Regional Office for map of hunt area.
▸ Sources 5
- IDFG 2026 Hunt Planner drawing odds draw results, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- IDFG 2026 License, Tag, and Permit Costs fees, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- IDFG 2025 Hunt Planner Harvest Statistics, elk harvest, area description, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- IDFG 2025 Controlled hunt area boundaries boundary, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Idaho State Office 2026 BLM Surface Management Agency land ownership, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
About These Numbers
Odds are from the 2026 draw, the latest on file, computed from Idaho Department of Fish and Game's published results. They are what happened in that draw, not a forecast. Under five tags a percentage carries a *, because one applicant either way swings it. A dash means the agency did not publish the number, and a date marked expected is last cycle's schedule rolled forward. How we compute these.
Report an error on this page
We don't take applications: check Idaho Department of Fish and Game's site and apply there.
Prior-draw odds from Idaho Department of Fish and Game's results, not a forecast · Methodology · All Idaho elk hunts