Montana Elk — Hunting District 290

Montana Hunting District 290 covers 33,766 acres and lies 40 miles north of Deer Lodge. 18% of it is public land, mostly wildlife refuge (12%) and state land (4%). In 2025, hunters took 80 elk here. The 2026 draw put up 20 tags here for 16 first-choice applicants.

Tags (2026):40 Nonresident share:capped at 10% Applicants:16 Public land:18% Size:33,766 acres

Your chance of drawing here

Every elk license type on offer in Hunting District 290, 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

290-01 Elk B License 290-01 — Antlerless Elk 20 tags · 16 applicants · Standard

— No data
290-01 Elk B License 290-01 — Antlerless Elk 20 tags · 0 applicants · Landowner

— No data

Hunt	Your odds (0 pts)	Points needed	Tags / applicants	License	Season
290-01 ↗ Elk B License 290-01 — Antlerless Elk	— No data	—	20 / 16	Standard	Aug 15 – Jan 8, 2027
290-01 ↗ Elk B License 290-01 — Antlerless Elk	— No data	—	20 / 0	Landowner	Aug 15 – Jan 8, 2027

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
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

Hunting District 290 within Montana

Hunting District 290 and its neighbours

Zoomable USGS topo, aerial imagery and shaded relief, with the neighboring areas drawn on.

Boundaries are drawn for orientation only — the written boundary description in the regulations governs.

Who owns the ground

Private 26,935 ac · 80%
National Wildlife Refuge 4,119 ac · 12%
State land 1,225 ac · 4%
State trust land 584 ac · 2%
BLM 84 ac · 0%
County or city land 3 ac · 0%
Bureau of Reclamation 0 ac · 0%
Department of Defense 0 ac · 0%
National Park Service 0 ac · 0%
National Forest 0 ac · 0%
Tribal 0 ac · 0%
Other public 0 ac · 0%
Private or other non-public land 813 ac · 2%

Source: Deer Elk Lion 2026-2027 Hunting District Landcover and Land Ownership Calculations

Nearby areas

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.