Montana Bighorn Sheep — Hunting District 501
Beartooth Mountains
Montana Hunting District 501 covers 380,652 acres and lies 26 miles west of Red Lodge and 36 miles south-west of Columbus. 69% of it is public land, mostly national forest (68%) and state trust land (1%). In 2025, 84 people hunted bighorn sheep here and took 5 — 6% of them killed something.
Your chance of drawing here
Every bighorn sheep license type on offer in Hunting District 501, with the prior-draw chance for a first-choice nonresident applicant. Type your points in to see your own number.
Chances are from the 2026 draw (the most recent) for a first-choice nonresident. "Points needed" = the cut in the last draw.
Simple view Odds at every point level-
100% Undersubscribed
| Hunt | Your odds (0 pts) | Points needed | Tags / applicants | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 501-60 ↗ Bighorn Sheep License 501-60 — Legal Ram (unlimited quota) | 100% Undersubscribed | — | — / 55 undersubscribed | Sep 15 – Nov 29, 2026 |
What these columns mean
- Your odds —
- the share of applicants at your point level who drew this tag in the 2026 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.
- Points needed —
- the lowest point total that still got a tag in the 2026 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.
Other licenses valid in Hunting District 501
Not in the table above because they had no result in the 2026 draw.
The country
Boundaries are drawn for orientation only — the written boundary description in the regulations governs.
Who owns the ground
- National Forest 258,920 ac · 68%
- Private 115,832 ac · 30%
- State trust land 3,197 ac · 1%
- BLM 989 ac · 0%
- National Park Service 114 ac · 0%
- State land 114 ac · 0%
- Bureau of Reclamation 0 ac · 0%
- Department of Defense 0 ac · 0%
- County or city land 0 ac · 0%
- National Wildlife Refuge 0 ac · 0%
- Tribal 0 ac · 0%
- Other public 0 ac · 0%
Source: Bighorn sheep 2026-2027 Hunting District Landcover and Land Ownership Calculations
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 84 | 5 | 6% |
| 2024 | 77 | 4 | 5% |
| 2023 | 71 | 5 | 7% |
| 2022 | 57 | 2 | 4% |
| 2021 | 55 | 2 | 4% |
| 2020 | 75 | 7 | 9% |
| 2019 | 49 | 1 | 2% |
| 2018 | 42 | 2 | 5% |
| 2017 | 37 | 0 | 0% |
| 2016 | 38 | 2 | 5% |
| 2015 | 51 | 1 | 2% |
| 2014 | 51 | 3 | 6% |
| 2013 | 51 | 2 | 4% |
| 2012 | 31 | 2 | 6% |
| 2011 | 42 | 1 | 2% |
| 2010 | 60 | 3 | 5% |
| 2009 | 56 | 2 | 4% |
| 2008 | 54 | 3 | 6% |
| 2007 | 50 | 3 | 6% |
| 2005 | 41 | 3 | 7% |
Residents vs nonresidents (2025)
- Nonresident 2 taken · 30 hunters
- Resident 3 taken · 53 hunters
Boundary: Bighorn Sheep Hunting Districts (2026 and 2027 Seasons)
Harvest: FWP Harvest Estimates CSV export - bighorn sheep, all districts, 2005-2025