Hunter success rate up in Northwest Montana

The general deer and elk hunting season kicked off in Montana last weekend with overall better success than last year in the northwest corner of the state.

Nearly 2,000 hunters stopped at Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Region 1 game check stations on Saturday and Sunday. Overall, 10 percent of hunters reported game, a 3 percent increase over last year’s opening weekend. 

According to FWP data, more than 1,000 hunters stopped at the check station west of Kalispell on U.S. 2. They reported 82 harvested white-tailed deer, 39 more than the 2023 opening weekend. Of the 82 reported, 36 were bucks.

Harvested mule deer were 12, up from just two a year ago. Elk kills also increased with 10 reported after just four were reported in 2023.

In Thompson Falls, 258 hunters stopped at check stations, 42 more than a year ago. Harvest numbers were similar to 2023. Ten whitetails were reported, the same as the prior year. Mule deer kills were up from one on the opening weekend in 2023 to six this year. Hunters bagged three elk, down from five last year.

At the Olney check station, 484 hunters stopped, 67 more than 2023. They had 59 white-tailed deer, up 20 from a year ago. Hunters reported two mule deer and two elk, nearly identical to a year ago.

The 2024 general deer and elk season runs Oct. 26-Dec. 1.

Check stations are open on weekends during general season from 10 a.m. to approximately 1.5 hours past sunset. The northwest Montana stations are located at U.S. Highway 2 West of Kalispell, Montana Highway 83 north of Swan Lake, Highway 200 west of Thompson Falls and Highway 93 near Olney.

The counts at the stations represent a sampling of the harvest and do not represent the complete number of animals taken.

Chronic Wasting Disease

Last week chronic wasting disease (CWD) was detected in a white-tailed deer in Kalispell. This is the first time CWD has been detected in a wild herd in Hunting District 170.

FWP is increasing the availability of antlerless white-tailed deer hunting licenses in HD 170 following the detection. Hunters can now buy two 170-00 Deer B licenses over the counter. Previously, hunters were only allowed to buy one.

The 170-00 Deer B License allows hunters in Hunting District 170 to harvest a white-tailed deer without antlers or with antlers less than 4 inches long as measured from the top of the skull.

CWD Testing

CWD sample submission is voluntary in most places in Montana.

All hunters in HD 170 are encouraged to get their harvested deer and elk tested for CWD. 

There are new mandatory testing requirements for tags associated with CWD management near Libby. Testing is required for all animals harvested using the Deer B License 199-20 in HDs 100, 103 and 104, or Deer Permit 103-50 in HD 103.

FWP strongly recommends that hunters receive a negative CWD test result before bringing their deer, elk or moose to a meat processor or donating it to a foodbank. 

If the animal tests positive for CWD, FWP will advise the hunter on proper carcass and meat disposal and give instructions on how to request a replacement license.

How to Submit Samples for Testing

All hunters who want their harvested animal sampled can submit samples themselves by following steps on the Montana CWD Submission Guide or by visiting a CWD Sampling Station.

CWD Sample Stations

In northwest Montana, hunters can bring their harvested animal to the FWP office in Kalispell, Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. for sample collection. Reservations are not required and sampling will be done first-come, first-serve.

A CWD sampling station in Libby will operate Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays, 10 a.m. to 1.5 hours past sunset, and Tuesdays from 1 p.m. to sunset at the Montana Department of Transportation shop on U.S. Highway 2 south of town.

Hunters who want their animal sampled should leave 2 to 4 inches of the neck below the low jawbone and base of the skull to ensure lymph nodes are present and not inadvertently left with the carcass. Samples cannot be collected from frozen heads.

Carcass Disposal

Carcass parts, such as brain, eyes, spleen, lymph glands, and spinal cord material, should be left at the kill site when possible. If the animal is transported for taxidermy or meat processing, the brain and spinal tissue must be bagged and disposed of in a Class II landfill.

Carcass Disposal Sites

A carcass may be transported within the state regardless of where it was harvested if the carcass parts are disposed of in a landfill after butchering and processing.

Dumping carcasses is illegal, unethical, and can spread diseases, including chronic wasting disease. This requirement applies to all deer, elk, and moose carcasses wherever in the state they are harvested by hunters or as vehicle-killed salvage.