Montana Mountain Lion — Hunting District 123
Montana Hunting District 123 covers 152,778 acres and lies 7 miles south-west of Thompson Falls and 28 miles west of Plains. 91% of it is public land, mostly national forest (91%). In 2025, hunters took 6 mountain lion here.
Your chance of drawing here
Every mountain lion license type on offer in Hunting District 123, with the prior-draw chance for a first-choice nonresident applicant. Type your points in to see your own number.
Chances are from the 2025 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
| Hunt | Your odds (0 pts) | Points needed | Tags / applicants | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 123-00 ↗ Limited Mountain Lion License 123-00 | Not open to nonresidents | — | 0 / 0 | Dec 1 – Apr 14, 2026 |
What these columns mean
- Your odds —
- the share of applicants at your point level who drew this tag in the 2025 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 2025 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 | $65 | $65 | $65 |
Application window: opens Jun 30, closes Jul 22, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.
Other licenses valid in Hunting District 123
Not in the table above because they had no result in the 2025 draw.
The country
Boundaries are drawn for orientation only — the written boundary description in the regulations governs.
Who owns the ground
- National Forest 138,600 ac · 91%
- Private 13,413 ac · 9%
- State trust land 672 ac · 0%
- County or city land 30 ac · 0%
- BLM 0 ac · 0%
- Bureau of Reclamation 0 ac · 0%
- Department of Defense 0 ac · 0%
- National Park Service 0 ac · 0%
- State land 0 ac · 0%
- National Wildlife Refuge 0 ac · 0%
- Tribal 0 ac · 0%
- Other public 0 ac · 0%
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.
| Season | Harvest |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 6 |
| 2024 | 5 |
| 2023 | 7 |
| 2022 | 6 |
| 2021 | 4 |
| 2020 | 7 |
| 2019 | 5 |
| 2018 | 4 |
| 2017 | 6 |
| 2016 | 6 |
| 2015 | 3 |
| 2014 | 4 |
Residents vs nonresidents (2025)
- Nonresident 5 taken
- Resident 1 taken
Boundary: Mountain Lion Management Units (2026 and 2027 Seasons)
Harvest: 2025 Reported Mountain Lion Harvest
Harvest: 2024 Reported Mountain Lion Harvest
Harvest: 2023 Reported Mountain Lion Harvest