Montana Bighorn Sheep — Hunting District 283
Montana Hunting District 283 covers 228,343 acres and lies 14 miles north-east of Missoula and 36 miles north-east of Stevensville. In 2009, 8 people hunted bighorn sheep here and took 5 — 63% of them killed something. The 2009 draw put up 1 tag here for 2 first-choice applicants.
Your chance of drawing here
Every bighorn sheep license type on offer in Hunting District 283, with the prior-draw chance for a first-choice nonresident applicant. Type your points in to see your own number.
Chances are from the 2009 draw (the most recent) for a first-choice nonresident. "Points needed" = the cut in the last draw.
Simple view Odds at every point level-
— Not open to nonresidents
-
4% Point builder 0% as 2nd choice
| Hunt | Your odds (0 pts) | As 2nd choice | Points needed | Tags / applicants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 283-00 ↗ Bighorn Sheep License 283-00 | Not open to nonresidents | — | — | 0 / 0 |
| 283-30 ↗ Bighorn Sheep License 283-30 | 4% Point builder | 0% | — | 1 / 2 |
What these columns mean
- Your odds —
- the share of applicants at your point level who drew this tag in the 2009 draw. Not a forecast: quotas and demand move every year.
- The badge —
- plain language for that number. Likely draw 75% or better · Real chance 40%+ · Long shot 15%+ · Point builder below that, so you are applying mainly to bank a point · Undersubscribed means fewer first-choice applicants than tags, so everyone who applied drew.
- As 2nd choice —
- Montana lets you name more than one hunt on the application. Miss on your first choice and you go into the pot for whatever tags are left, alongside everyone else's second choices. Points never help a lower choice, so this number is the same whatever you have banked — it is usually worth naming a hunt that goes undersubscribed.
- Points needed —
- the lowest point total that still got a tag in the 2009 draw, and how that cut has moved since the earliest draw we hold.
- Tags / applicants —
- tags on offer and first-choice applicants for them, as the agency published them. Under five tags we print counts instead of a percentage, because one applicant either way swings it.
What it costs to apply (2026 nonresident fees)
| License | Up front | Gone if you miss | If you draw |
|---|---|---|---|
| Per application | $110 | $110 | $110 |
Application window: opens Mar 1, closes May 1, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.
The country
Boundaries are drawn for orientation only — the written boundary description in the regulations governs.
How the hunting has gone
What Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks publishes for this area after each season — harvest statistics for everyone who hunted it, not draw odds and not a forecast. Montana's figures blend mandatory reporting with a phone and mail survey. FWP does not publish district-level hunter counts for elk or antelope, so success rates are missing for those.
| Season | Hunters | Harvest | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 8 | 5 | 63% |
| 2008 | 12 | 11 | 92% |
| 2007 | 9 | 9 | 100% |
| 2006 | 5 | 5 | 100% |
| 2005 | 8 | 8 | 100% |
Residents vs nonresidents (2009)
- Resident 5 taken · 8 hunters
Boundary: ADMBND_HD_SHEEP_ALL - All Past Years (targeted per-district queries)
Harvest: FWP Harvest Estimates CSV export - bighorn sheep, all districts, 2005-2025