Montana Deer — Hunting District 361
Montana Hunting District 361 covers 143,607 acres and lies 8 miles north-west of West Yellowstone and 50 miles south-east of Ennis. 80% of it is public land, mostly national forest (80%) and state land (1%). In 2025, 308 people hunted deer here and took 44 — 14% of them killed something. The 2009 draw put up 2 tags here for 1 first-choice applicants.
Your chance of drawing here
Every deer license type on offer in Hunting District 361, 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-
100% Undersubscribed 100% as 2nd choice
-
100% No first-choice applicants
| Hunt | Your odds (0 pts) | As 2nd choice | Points needed | Tags / applicants | License |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 361-00 ↗ Deer B License 361-00 | 100% Undersubscribed | 100% | — | 2 / 1 undersubscribed | Standard |
| 361-00 ↗ Deer B License 361-00 | 100% No first-choice applicants | — | — | 2 / 0 | Landowner |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard license | $65 | $65 | $65 |
| Landowner license | $65 | $65 | $65 |
Application window: opens Mar 1, closes Apr 1, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.
The country
Boundaries are drawn for orientation only — the written boundary description in the regulations governs.
Who owns the ground
- National Forest 114,196 ac · 80%
- Private 14,676 ac · 10%
- State land 732 ac · 1%
- County or city land 129 ac · 0%
- BLM 0 ac · 0%
- Bureau of Reclamation 0 ac · 0%
- Department of Defense 0 ac · 0%
- National Park Service 0 ac · 0%
- National Wildlife Refuge 0 ac · 0%
- Tribal 0 ac · 0%
- State trust land 0 ac · 0%
- Other public 0 ac · 0%
- Private or other non-public land 13,872 ac · 10%
Source: Deer Elk Lion 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.
All deer
| Season | Hunters | Harvest | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 308 | 44 | 14% |
| 2024 | 0 | 32 | — |
| 2023 | 229 | 27 | 12% |
| 2022 | 0 | 37 | — |
Mule Deer
| Season | Hunters | Harvest | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 308 | 37 | 12% |
| 2024 | 0 | 29 | — |
| 2023 | 229 | 17 | 7% |
| 2022 | 0 | 28 | — |
White-tailed Deer
| Season | Hunters | Harvest | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 308 | 8 | 3% |
| 2024 | 0 | 3 | — |
| 2023 | 229 | 10 | 4% |
| 2022 | 0 | 9 | — |
Residents vs nonresidents (2025)
- Nonresident 16 taken · 183 hunters
- Resident 72 taken · 741 hunters
What the agency says about the area
Elk Management Unit: Gallatin/Madison
Source: Deer and Elk Hunting Districts (2026 and 2027 Seasons)
Boundary: Deer and Elk Hunting Districts (2026 and 2027 Seasons)
Harvest: 2025 Deer Harvest Estimates (MyFWP Harvest Estimates Search, District=ALL)
Harvest: 2024 Deer Harvest Estimates (MyFWP Harvest Estimates Search, District=ALL)
Harvest: 2023 Deer Harvest Estimates (MyFWP Harvest Estimates Search, District=ALL)