Unit 37A Elk Hunting, Idaho
Idaho hunting unit · Lemhi Elk Zone · 349 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 37A is in the Lemhi Elk Zone, whose A and B tags carry different seasons. Nonresident general tags are allocated by random draw. It also has 2 controlled hunts, drawn by pure random draw with no points — resident odds good odds.
What hunting Unit 37A is like
Unit 37A sits in the Salmon-Challis National Forest with elevations ranging from around 4,400 feet up to 11,400 feet, and the terrain reflects that spread: a mix of gentle benches and moderate slopes give way to a lot of steep ground, with mean slope over 21 degrees. This is mostly foot-and-boots country, where hunters willing to climb into the steeper drainages will find fewer people. Cover shifts with elevation — sagebrush dominates the lower and higher bands, while the mid-elevation country is roughly split evenly between conifer timber and sagebrush, giving elk both open feeding areas and timbered cover to retreat into.
About 94% of the unit, roughly 328 square miles, is generally open to public hunting across National Forest, BLM and Idaho state endowment land, making this a unit where a hunter can count on room to roam. That said, public access is not automatically easy access given the steep terrain, and state endowment parcels can occasionally be posted closed or leased, so it pays to check status before heading in. Private land makes up about 6% of the unit and requires written permission to hunt.
Elk tags here run through the Lemhi Elk Zone, which also covers Units 29, 37 and 51, and General season hunters choose between an A tag and a B tag with different seasons and weapons. Residents buy general elk tags over the counter with no draw required, while nonresidents go through a random draw in which they apply for a specific tag — for elk, a named zone's A tag or B tag — chosen at the time of application, not afterward. Beyond the general season, Unit 37A also offers controlled hunts drawn separately by pure random draw, each with a limited number of tags.
General-season elk (2026)
General elk tags are sold by zone. Unit 37A is in the Lemhi Elk Zone (Units 29, 37, 37A and 51); 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 37A. Residents buy the tag over the counter; nonresident general tags are allocated by random draw.
| Season | Dates | Legal elk | Rut phase |
|---|---|---|---|
| A tag · Any weapon Valid area: Units 29, 37 and 37A | August 1 – October 31 | Antlerless only | Late Summer / Velvet, Pre-Rut Transition, Rut Onset, Primary Rut, Late Rut / Early Post-Rut, Post-Rut Recovery |
| A tag · Archery Valid area: Units 29, 37, 37A and 51 | August 30 – September 30 | Any elk | Pre-Rut Transition, Rut Onset, Primary Rut |
| A tag · Muzzleloader Valid area: Units 29, 37, 37A and 51 | November 25 – December 9 | Antlerless only | Migration Transition, Winter Range |
A tag · Any weapon · August 1 – October 31
This long antlerless season runs from the height of summer through the end of October, giving a cow or calf hunter a wide window to work with. Early on, elk are still holding in the patterns of late summer, and as the weeks pass they move through the transition into and out of the rut, though none of that behavior matters for an antlerless hunt — the focus stays on locating animals in the sagebrush and timber mix that defines this unit's mid and lower elevations. Glassing open sagebrush slopes at the lower and higher bands, then working into the mixed conifer-sagebrush mid-elevations, gives an antlerless hunter the best shot at closing distance in country that runs steep in many places. The tag is antlerless only, valid in Units 29, 37 and 37A, and covers a long enough stretch that hunters can pick their weather and terrain conditions carefully.
A tag · Archery · August 30 – September 30
Archery season opens right at the tail end of summer and runs through the primary rut, covering the pre-rut transition, rut onset, and the peak of the rut itself. In the first week or two, bulls are shedding velvet and still hanging close to the areas where they summered, making this a good stretch for sitting water sources or glassing from a vantage point and setting up a spot-and-stalk. As the season progresses into rut onset and the primary rut, hunters can expect bulls to become more responsive to calling and more active generally, though the terrain here — steep in many stretches — rewards patience and careful glassing over covering ground fast. Any elk is legal on this tag, and the season is valid across Units 29, 37, 37A and 51.
A tag · Muzzleloader · November 25 – December 9
By the time the muzzleloader season opens in late November, elk have shifted into the migration transition and are settling into winter range as December arrives. Snow builds through this stretch, with November bringing over 10 inches and December better than 16 inches, and lows dropping into the teens and single digits, which pushes elk out of the high country and concentrates them at lower elevations where sagebrush cover dominates. An antlerless hunter working this season should focus on those lower bands and the edges where timber meets open ground, since deepening snow limits mobility and elk have less reason to be scattered across the steep upper terrain. The tag is antlerless only and valid across Units 29, 37, 37A and 51.
Controlled elk hunts (2026)
Controlled hunts have a limited number of tags and are drawn by pure random draw — Idaho uses no points, so years of applying do not improve the odds. First choices are drawn before second choices. A hunt marked as covering part of Unit 37A is valid only in its own hunt area.
| Season | Dates | Legal elk | Resident draw | Rut phase |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Controlled hunt 37A · Any weapon Motorized Hunting Rule Applies | October 1 – October 31 | Antlered only | — | Late Rut / Early Post-Rut, Post-Rut Recovery |
| Controlled hunt 37A · Any weapon | December 10 – December 31 | Antlerless only | Good odds | Winter Range |
Resident draw is a band in words from the 2026 first-choice results: good, fair, long or very long odds. It is not a published percentage, and nonresident odds differ. Youth-only hunts are shown without a band.
Controlled hunt 37A · Any weapon · October 1 – October 31
This controlled hunt runs through October, spanning the late rut and early post-rut into full post-rut recovery, when bull activity is winding down from its peak but bulls are still catchable as they settle into fall patterns. The motorized hunting rule applies here, which shapes how hunters can access the steep, mixed terrain that makes up much of Unit 37A. Only antlered bulls are legal, and the hunt draws a limited number of tags through a pure random draw with no points involved.
Controlled hunt 37A · Any weapon · December 10 – December 31
This controlled antlerless hunt falls entirely within the winter range phase, when elk have settled into their late-season pattern at lower elevations as snow piles up — December typically brings over 16 inches of snowfall with lows near 10°F. Hunters chasing this tag should concentrate on the lower-elevation sagebrush country where wintering elk group up, since the steep upper terrain becomes harder to access and less relevant once snow deepens. The tag is antlerless only, and residents drawing this hunt face good odds in the first-choice draw, though the number of tags remains limited.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 4,400–11,400 ft, typically around 7,700 ft
- Slope breakdown
- 22% gentle · 33% moderate · 41% steep · 3% rugged
- Ground you can count on
- ~328 sq mi
- National forests
- Salmon-Challis National Forest
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
- Sagebrush87%
- Other cover6%
- Conifer6%
- Grass and meadow2%
Mid elevations
- Conifer51%
- Sagebrush49%
Higher elevations
- Sagebrush68%
- Conifer30%
- Grass and meadow2%
Cover classes from the USGS National Land Cover Database. “Other cover” is the remainder — bare ground, water, agriculture and developed land.
Land & access
About 94% of Unit 37A is public land a hunter can generally count on — National Forest, BLM and Idaho state endowment land.
- National Forest64%
- BLM26%
- Idaho state endowment land3%
- Private6%
Idaho state endowment land is generally open to hunting unless posted closed or leased — check the parcel before planning around it.
Fall weather
- August — highs around 71°F, lows around 45°F
- September — highs around 61°F, lows around 38°F, about 0.1 in of snowfall
- October — highs around 47°F, lows around 28°F, about 4 in of snowfall
- November — highs around 34°F, lows around 18°F, about 10.4 in of snowfall
- December — highs around 27°F, lows around 10°F, about 16.4 in of snowfall
Unit 37A elk hunting FAQ
Can a resident buy an elk tag for Unit 37A over the counter?
Yes, residents can buy a general elk tag over the counter with no draw or application required. The tag is sold by the Lemhi Elk Zone, which includes Unit 37A along with Units 29, 37 and 51, and the hunter chooses between the zone's A tag and B tag based on season and weapon.
How do nonresidents get a general elk tag for Unit 37A?
Nonresidents go through a random draw for general elk tags rather than buying over the counter. In that draw, the applicant applies for a specific tag — for elk, a named zone's A tag or B tag — and that choice is made at the time of application, not after the draw is complete.
How hard are the controlled hunts in Unit 37A to draw?
The controlled antlerless hunt running December 10 through December 31 carries a resident first-choice draw rating of good odds. The controlled any-weapon hunt running October 1 through October 31 does not have a stated draw band in the same way, but both are pure random draws with a limited number of tags and no points system involved.
Which elk zone and tags cover Unit 37A?
Unit 37A falls within the Lemhi Elk Zone, which also covers Units 29, 37 and 51. The zone offers an A tag and a B tag, each with its own season and weapon restriction, and general season hunters choose one.
How much of Unit 37A is public land?
About 94% of the unit, roughly 328 square miles, is generally open to public hunting across National Forest, BLM and Idaho state endowment land. The remaining land, around 6%, is private and requires written permission to 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.