Unit 38 Elk Hunting, Idaho
Idaho hunting unit · Boise River Elk Zone · 2,006 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 38 is in the Boise River Elk Zone, whose A and B tags carry different seasons. Nonresident general tags are allocated by random draw.
What hunting Unit 38 is like
Unit 38 is gentle, rolling country from about 2,100 to 3,500 feet in elevation, with a mean slope of just two degrees and effectively no steep or rugged ground by area. That kind of topography makes for a different kind of elk hunt than the mountain units — it favors walking and glassing over climbing, and a hunter who is willing to cover flat and rolling miles on foot will see more country than one who tries to glass it all from one spot. Two wildfires burned into the unit in 2025: the Range fire took roughly 27,000 acres on the southeast side, and a second, unnamed fire burned about 8,900 acres on the east side. Both are within their first year after the fire this fall, meaning the ground is bare in spots and the elk that were displaced during the burns have likely shifted toward whatever water and green-up they could find nearby.
About 37 percent of Unit 38, roughly 744 square miles, is generally open to public hunting through a mix of BLM, Idaho state endowment land, and a State Wildlife Management Area — the endowment ground can be closed or leased on individual parcels, so it pays to check before counting on a piece of it. The remaining 62 percent is private and requires written permission to hunt. Given how much of the unit is private, success here depends heavily on knowing which blocks of public ground are actually open in a given year, and hunters should check for current fire closures before heading out given the two recent burns.
Unit 38 falls in the Boise River Elk Zone alongside Unit 39, and general tags are sold by zone rather than by unit. Residents buy an over-the-counter general elk tag with no draw and no application. Nonresidents go through a random draw, but they apply for a specific tag — either the zone's A tag or its B tag — at the time of application, not after the draw; only the B tag windows apply in Unit 38. The zone's B tag covers two very different seasons here, one running through the September rut and one that opens after it, each with its own legal animal.
General-season elk (2026)
General elk tags are sold by zone. Unit 38 is in the Boise River Elk Zone (Units 38 and 39); 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 38. 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: Unit 38 | August 1 – September 30 | Any elk | Late Summer / Velvet, Pre-Rut Transition, Rut Onset, Primary Rut |
| B tag · Any weapon Valid area: Unit 38 | October 1 – December 31 | Antlerless or spike bull | Late Rut / Early Post-Rut, Post-Rut Recovery, Migration Transition, Winter Range |
B tag · Any weapon · August 1 – September 30
This B tag season opens right at the start of velvet-shedding and runs through the pre-rut transition, rut onset, and the full primary rut, so it covers the entire arc of bulls going from summer patterns into full rutting behavior. In the early weeks bulls are still hanging close to where they spent the summer and are freshly out of velvet, which makes sitting water sources or glassing across the unit's open, rolling ground a sound way to find a shooter before making a stalk. Because the terrain here is almost entirely gentle, spot-and-stalk hunting is realistic over a lot more ground than in steeper units, though the flat, rolling country also means elk can be spread out and harder to pin down without covering miles on foot. Any elk is legal under this tag, giving a hunter flexibility to fill it on the first good bull or cow that presents a shot, and hunting the recent burns on the southeast and east sides is worth considering since regrowth can draw elk back through in search of feed.
B tag · Any weapon · October 1 – December 31
By the time this B tag season opens, the rut has wound down into late rut and early post-rut, then post-rut recovery, migration transition, and finally winter range, so elk behavior shifts from breeding activity to settling into fall and winter patterns. Only antlerless elk or spike bulls are legal during this stretch, so this is a season built around finding cows and calves rather than working mature bulls. The gentle, open terrain keeps glassing effective through the fall, and by December, with roughly 2.3 inches of snowfall and lows near 24°F, animals tend to concentrate on lower winter range where cover and feed hold up. The bare ground left by the two 2025 burns can turn slick and prone to flash flooding in heavy rain, so footing and drainage crossings are worth watching late in this season.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 2,100–3,500 ft, typically around 2,700 ft
- Slope breakdown
- 97% gentle · 2% moderate · 0% steep · 0% rugged
- Ground you can count on
- ~744 sq mi
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.
Across the unit
- Other cover50%
- Grass and meadow36%
- Sagebrush14%
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 38. 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.
- Range fire, 2025 — about 27,000 acres in the unit (2%), mostly on its southeast side.
- Unnamed fire, 2025 — about 8,900 acres in the unit, mostly on its east side.
Fire perimeters from the National Interagency Fire Center.
Land & access
About 37% of Unit 38 is public land a hunter can generally count on — BLM, Idaho state endowment land and State Wildlife Management Area.
- BLM32%
- Idaho state endowment land4%
- State Wildlife Management Area<1%
- Unclassified ownership<1%
- Private62%
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 91°F, lows around 58°F
- September — highs around 81°F, lows around 50°F
- October — highs around 66°F, lows around 39°F
- November — highs around 50°F, lows around 30°F, about 0.6 in of snowfall
- December — highs around 40°F, lows around 24°F, about 2.3 in of snowfall
Unit 38 elk hunting FAQ
Can a resident hunter buy an elk tag for Unit 38 without applying for anything?
Yes. Residents purchase a general elk tag over the counter for the Boise River Elk Zone, which covers Unit 38, with no draw and no application required.
How do nonresidents get a general elk tag for Unit 38?
Nonresident general elk tags are allocated through a random draw, but the applicant chooses a specific tag — the Boise River Elk Zone's A tag or B tag — at the time of application, not after being drawn. Only the zone's B tag seasons are valid in Unit 38.
Which elk zone covers Unit 38?
Unit 38 lies within the Boise River Elk Zone, which also includes Unit 39. General elk tags for this unit are sold by zone rather than by individual unit.
Does either general season in Unit 38 fall during the rut?
The August 1 to September 30 B tag season spans the pre-rut transition, rut onset, and the full primary rut in September, so it lands squarely in rutting activity. The October 1 to December 31 B tag season begins after the rut, covering late rut/early post-rut through winter range.
How much of Unit 38 can a hunter count on for public access?
About 37 percent of the unit, roughly 744 square miles, is generally open to public hunting through BLM, Idaho state endowment land, and a State Wildlife Management Area. The remaining 62 percent is private land requiring written permission, and even the endowment parcels can be closed or leased, so access is not something to take for granted.
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.