Unit 16A Elk Hunting, Idaho
Idaho hunting unit · Selway Elk Zone · 279 sq mi
General season — resident tags over the counter
Residents buy general elk tags over the counter — no draw, no points. General elk is sold by zone: Unit 16A is in the Selway Elk Zone, whose A and B tags carry different seasons. Nonresident general tags are allocated by random draw. The zone's A tag and B tag are capped: a limited number, sold first-come, first-served.
What hunting Unit 16A is like
Unit 16A sits entirely within the Nezperce National Forest in steep and broken country, with about 16% of the unit inside the Selway Bitterroot Wilderness where motorized access is closed. Elevations run from a low of 1,700 feet up to 7,800 feet, with most of the hunting happening around the 5,400 foot mid-elevations. Timber dominates the mid-elevation band at 82% conifer cover, with sagebrush and grass and meadow making up small pockets; higher up, sagebrush opens up to a third of the ground, giving hunters more visibility once they climb. This is foot-hunting country by and large, with mean slope pushing 24 degrees and nearly half the unit falling into steep or rugged ground.
Nearly the entire unit, about 279 square miles, is National Forest generally open to public hunting, which is the one figure a hunter can count on going in — though open ground in terrain this steep and broken is still a serious physical undertaking, not a guarantee of easy access. The Shissler fire burned about 11,000 acres, roughly 6% of the unit, mostly on the southeast side in 2020; this fall marks five to eight years out, a stage when burns are still worth hunting but have grown thick with brush, saplings, and downed timber. Hunters should check for current fire closures before heading in.
General elk tags here are sold through the Selway Elk Zone, which also covers Units 17, 19, and 20. Residents buy an A tag or B tag over the counter with no draw required, while nonresidents apply for a specific tag — either zone's A tag or B tag — through a random draw, choosing which one when they apply rather than after drawing. Both the A tag and B tag are capped, sold first-come, first-served until they're gone, so hunters who want a particular season should plan to buy early.
General-season elk (2026)
General elk tags are sold by zone. Unit 16A is in the Selway Elk Zone (Units 16A, 17, 19 and 20); a hunter chooses its A tag or its B tag, and each carries its own seasons. The windows below are the ones valid in Unit 16A. Residents buy the tag over the counter; nonresident general tags are allocated by random draw.
| Season | Dates | Legal elk | Rut phase |
|---|---|---|---|
| B tag · Any weapon Valid area: Units 16A, 17, 19 and 20 | September 15 – September 30 | Antlered only | Primary Rut |
| A tag · Any weapon Valid area: Units 16A, 17, 19 and 20 | October 1 – October 31 | Antlered only | Late Rut / Early Post-Rut, Post-Rut Recovery |
| B tag · Any weapon Valid area: Units 16A, 17, 19 and 20 | November 1 – November 11 | Antlered only | Migration Transition |
B tag · Any weapon · September 15 – September 30
This late-September season lands square in the primary rut, the best window on the calendar for bulls responding to each other across this steep, broken country. The B tag is antlered-only and any weapon, and covers Units 16A, 17, 19, and 20, so hunters need to be ready to work timbered mid-elevation slopes where bulls are holding and vocal. Access is on foot through National Forest ground, and the steep terrain rewards hunters willing to get above or below elk rather than push straight up a slope. Anyone working the Shissler fire scar should expect thick brush and scattered deadfall that can hide animals at close range.
A tag · Any weapon · October 1 – October 31
October's A tag spans the tail end of the rut and the post-rut recovery that follows, a stretch when bulls are winding down from breeding activity and settling into more predictable daily patterns. Antlered bulls are legal with any weapon across the same four-unit zone area, and the full month gives hunters time to work through the unit's mid and higher elevations as elk start shifting with the season. Snowfall picks up modestly, around an inch and a half for the month, with lows near 30 degrees, enough to move animals but rarely enough to shut down access. Hunters willing to push into the steep and rugged pockets, or work the sagebrush openings at higher elevation, will find better visibility than the timber below.
B tag · Any weapon · November 1 – November 11
By early November, elk are in the migration transition, shifting off summer range as conditions push them toward lower ground, and this short B tag window from November 1 through 11 is built around catching that movement. Antlered bulls only, any weapon, across the same Units 16A, 17, 19, and 20 area. Snowfall averages around 11 inches for the month with lows dropping to about 23 degrees, enough to start driving elk out of the high country and concentrate them along travel routes between elevation bands. Hunters who can read that migration and get ahead of it, rather than waiting on elk to come to them, have the better chance in this compressed eleven-day season.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 1,700–7,800 ft, typically around 5,400 ft
- Slope breakdown
- 9% gentle · 43% moderate · 44% steep · 4% rugged
- Ground you can count on
- ~279 sq mi
- National forests
- Nezperce National Forest
- Designated wilderness
- Selway Bitterroot Wilderness (16%) — closed to motorized vehicles
Habitat & cover
What grows here, by elevation. Each band adds to 100% on its own — these are shares of that band, not of the unit.
Lower elevations
- Conifer77%
- Sagebrush21%
- Grass and meadow2%
Mid elevations
- Conifer82%
- Sagebrush9%
- Grass and meadow8%
Higher elevations
- Conifer55%
- Sagebrush33%
- Grass and meadow11%
Cover classes from the USGS National Land Cover Database. “Other cover” is the remainder — bare ground, water, agriculture and developed land.
Recent fires
Wildfires in the last several seasons that burned a meaningful share of Unit 16A. Fire perimeters show where a fire burned, not how hot — and closures change through the year, so check current fire closures and restrictions before you go.
- Shissler fire, 2020 — about 11,000 acres in the unit (6%), mostly on its southeast side.
Fire perimeters from the National Interagency Fire Center.
Land & access
About 100% of Unit 16A is public land a hunter can generally count on — National Forest.
- National Forest100%
- Private<1%
Fall weather
- August — highs around 78°F, lows around 43°F
- September — highs around 68°F, lows around 37°F
- October — highs around 53°F, lows around 30°F, about 1.3 in of snowfall
- November — highs around 40°F, lows around 23°F, about 11.1 in of snowfall
- December — highs around 33°F, lows around 17°F, about 27.3 in of snowfall
Unit 16A elk hunting FAQ
Can a resident buy an elk tag for Unit 16A over the counter?
Yes. Residents purchase a Selway Elk Zone A tag or B tag over the counter with no draw or application required, and either tag covers hunting in Unit 16A along with Units 17, 19, and 20.
How do nonresidents get a general elk tag for this unit?
Nonresidents enter a random draw for a general elk tag, and when applying they choose a specific tag, either the Selway Elk Zone's A tag or its B tag. The tag is selected at the time of application, not after the draw results come back.
Which elk zone and tags cover Unit 16A?
Unit 16A falls in the Selway Elk Zone along with Units 17, 19, and 20. The zone offers an A tag and a B tag with different season dates, and both are capped, meaning a limited number are sold first-come, first-served.
Which Unit 16A elk season falls during the rut?
The September 15 through September 30 B tag season falls within the primary rut phase. The October A tag covers the late rut and post-rut recovery, and the November B tag falls after the rut during the migration transition.
How much of Unit 16A is public land a hunter can count on?
About 100 percent of the unit, roughly 279 square miles, is National Forest land generally open to public hunting. That said, open access in this steep and broken terrain still takes real effort to reach and hunt.
Data sources & methodology
- Idaho Fish and Game — Idaho Big Game 2026 Seasons & Rules — general and controlled season dates, legal animals and the brochure's unit notes
- Idaho Fish and Game — Idaho Hunt Planner — unit boundaries, the national forests and wilderness areas in each unit, and controlled-hunt drawing results behind the odds bands
- Idaho Fish and Game — 2026 Nonresident General Tags and Tags Allocated to Outfitters — which general elk zone tags are capped
- USGS / MRLC — National Land Cover Database — habitat and cover classes by elevation band
- USGS PAD-US — Protected Areas Database of the United States — land ownership and access
- Daymet daily climate, 1991–2020 (Oak Ridge National Laboratory) — fall weather
- National Interagency Fire Center — wildfire perimeters — recent fires, their size and where they burned
Controlled-hunt draw difficulty is a qualitative band from resident first-choice results, not published odds. Land shares are separate, non-overlapping categories. Confirm current dates and rules in the Idaho Big Game Seasons & Rules brochure before you hunt. Unit data last updated September 29, 2026.