last updated 12/13/23 by Brandon Guhy
Bighorn Sheep
Bighorn Sheep in the Missouri River Breaks country could easily be regarded as the crown jewel of Eastern Montana. Although quality is down compared to years passed, the sheep hunting in the Missouri River Breaks is still known as some of the best in the world. It seems the four units have had there turn at the top in the last ten years with 680 and 482 being the most consistent on an annual basis. These tags are also some of the hardest tags to draw in all of the west and unfortunatley, many will not get to experience having a tag. Be sure to try and go along on atleast one sheep hunt with a successful tag holder or consider a ewe hunt if really behind on points and just want to go on a sheep hunt. Just in the last couple years quality has started to slip mainly from a prolonged drought with quotas staying the same and even increasing in one unit, creating somewhat of a plateau effect or a slightly downward trend in quality. In general, these rams will start out higher up and stay in the tree lines in large bachelor groups throughout the summer. When September comes they start moving into smaller groups and become active through random times of the day, that generally goes on through most of October with some covering much more ground than others. Like clock work, at the beginning of November they will start moving in with ewes and become much more visible. With units 482 and 680, one should be careful relying on the river too long into November to access these sheep as early winters can make this river unreliable.
Mule Deer
For many years Mule Deer were considered the bread and butter for Eastern Montana and is far from a secret as it’s the last place in the west with liberal seasons and very accessible areas. It was a high quality general tag with amazing numbers and surprising quality given the pressure. A few amazing bucks in that 190-200+ mark were harvested in various parts of the state every year with a good number of them coming from public ground. There were many bucks in the 150-170 class range throughout both Region 6 and 7 for those willing to get after it. These higher end bucks were usually predicted with heavy sweet clover years. Mule Deer numbers and quality are on a steep decline and the future does not look bright. With several years of drought with no changes in quotas or regulations, the deer are really starting to suffer. Large swaths of Block Management continue to open up across the region. It is obvious the number one management strategy for Mule Deer is access rather than herd health. I would rather see healthy deer on private ground than not see them at all. With the continued management practices put forth every year, it has become unsustainable and these deer are really showing signs of further decline especially with non ideal weather conditions. 2023 did show a little better sign of fawn recruitment but we have a long way to go. Uncontrolled access on both BLM and Block Management, increased hunting pressure with rifles during the rut and using CWD as a reason for current management practices are all playing a part. CWD is a very hot topic in Eastern Montana and with MFWP. We look to discuss this further at a later date.
Elk
Elk numbers and quality are down compared to 5-10 years ago and a staggering amount compared to 20 years ago, with a few units like 620 and 622 really struggling. High quotas during archery with expansion of Block Management and shoulder seasons is starting to decrease the quality hunting in large portions of the Missouri River Breaks country. The drought also played a role on horn growth and overall quality from 2020-2023. Nearly every elk unit in the breaks would produce 360+ bulls with some bigger on wet years. The upper end on most units is going to be 330-340 with a few going bigger. 410 and 417 are not a highlight with pressure and road access being really frustrating as areas of 621, 700, 690 and a few 700+ units further south are producing some good bulls and it has little to do with habitat and feed compared to hard to access areas or private landowners restricting access. When watching the number of elk fall the last ten years, the quality mostly went with it but Elk throughout the west have always shown how easy they get through cycles and Eastern Montana Elk can once again be towards the top in the west in short order.
Antelope
Antelope numbers are stable but nowhere near the numbers of pre 2011. Locals have a lot of fun kicking of their hunting seasons early in August chasing these speed goats before the other big game seasons open in early September. Not many goats are in the category of B&C but every now and then someone knocks down a great buck. Those willing to hold out with a rifle buck tag and hope for rough weather around the end of October can find animals in very large groups as they start migrating through some well known drainages. you will likely be one of the only ones hunting them as most fill there tags between when the season opens and the closed period between Deer/Elk archery closing and rifle beginning. When they get in these large groups, you may be able to spot a large buck before they shed. Private land is not much of an issue as they spend a lot of time of large swatchs of BLM sage flats.
Upland
Lot of folks travel from different parts of the country to take advantage of the various different types of upland bird species in Eastern Montana. We have Hungarian Partridge, Sharp-Tailed Grouse, Sage Grouse, Doves and Pheasants. Pheasant numbers are currently lower than normal in most of Region 6 and 7 with some pockets of better than average numbers. Most of those higher densities are on private land with thicker vegetation not found on majority of BLM grounds. There are plenty of public lands and Block Management areas that produce a good number of pheasants. One of those used to be Bowdoin Refuge before they really put a damper in some vital pheasant habitat. This greatly affected the area east of Malta towards the Beaver Creek drainage. Many wildlife upland projects south of the Missouri River can hold good numbers of birds, private land will become more of an issue especially further east. Sage Grouse numbers still remain low but stable especially in some of the sage flats surrounding Fort Peck and the Missouri River. Most are found south of Highway 2 towards Highway 200. Some folks burn their legs out and put dogs through some unwanted September heat in search of Sage Grouse but the best way is to cover ground with your truck and glass without putting your dog through a lot of work with no reward. Hungarian Partridge are one of the highlights in the area as just a few years ago, it was becoming rare to see them, but in the last two years they have really started to show up in higher numbers and seem to be thicker as you head Northeast towards North Dakota. Sharpies are probably down a bit but still plenty throughout most of the region.
Waterfowl
There is some early and late season waterfowl hunting to be had in areas of Eastern Montana. Open river systems late in the year with mallards and honkers with mixed bags of both local geese and various waterfowl species in the early season pretty much sums it up. I think even more important is the part Eastern Montana plays in spring nesting for various duck species in the spring. Most waterfowl enthusiasts hear about Sprig populations dropping very low or having a rebound from year to year. You can almost guarantee that spring moisture and winter run off in Eastern Montana, Southern Alberta and Saskatchewan play a huge part in the central flyway zone. Years of drought especially, we hear about problems with the Pintail populations while wet years we hear positive things. Late season waterfowl hunting on open water river systems can be brutal and unpredictable, so plan accordingly and keep you and the dog safe if you are using one. Field hunting is a lot more safe and many landowners are more likely to say yes to doing a little goose hunting in the fall.