Unit 56 Elk Hunting, Idaho
Idaho hunting unit · South Hills Elk Zone · 915 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 56 is in the South Hills Elk Zone, whose A and B tags carry different seasons. Nonresident general tags are allocated by random draw. It also has 1 controlled hunt, drawn by pure random draw with no points — resident odds very long odds. The zone's B tag is capped: a limited number, sold first-come, first-served.
What hunting Unit 56 is like
Unit 56 sits in rolling country, with some steeper breaks, ranging from about 4,200 feet up to 7,500 feet, with most hunting happening around 5,200 feet. Lower and mid elevations run heavy to sagebrush and grass and meadow openings, while the higher country shifts to mostly sagebrush with some conifer, a little aspen, and pockets of grass and meadow mixed through. With mean slope around 9 degrees and steep or rugged ground making up only a small share of the unit, this is mostly foot-friendly hunting rather than technical mountain country, though the steeper breaks demand real effort to reach and can hold elk that get less pressure. There is no designated wilderness named for this unit, so access is largely about roads, terrain, and land ownership rather than wilderness regulations.
About half of Unit 56, roughly 455 square miles, is generally open to public hunting across BLM, National Forest ground including Caribou National Forest and Sawtooth National Forest, Idaho state endowment land, and a State Wildlife Management Area. That public half is the only ground a hunter can count on, and even then state endowment parcels can be posted closed or under lease, so it pays to check before setting a plan. The other half of the unit is private and requires written permission to hunt, meaning success often hinges on piecing together access between public blocks and any private ground a hunter can arrange to use.
Unit 56 falls in the South Hills Elk Zone, along with Units 46, 47, 54, 55 and 57, and general tags here are sold by zone rather than by unit. Residents buy the zone's A or B tag over the counter with no draw required, while nonresidents apply for a specific tag — either the A tag or the B tag — through a random draw, choosing which one they want at the time they apply rather than after the draw. Alongside the general season, Unit 56 also holds a controlled hunt with a limited, randomly drawn number of tags for hunters wanting a different season timing or weapon situation.
General-season elk (2026)
General elk tags are sold by zone. Unit 56 is in the South Hills Elk Zone (Units 46, 47, 54, 55, 56 and 57); 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 56. Residents buy the tag over the counter; nonresident general tags are allocated by random draw.
| Season | Dates | Legal elk | Rut phase |
|---|---|---|---|
| A tag · Archery Valid area: Units 55, 56 and 57 | August 30 – September 30 | Any elk | Pre-Rut Transition, Rut Onset, Primary Rut |
| B tag · Any weapon Valid area: Unit 56 | October 25 – November 15 | Antlerless only | Post-Rut Recovery, Migration Transition |
A tag · Archery · August 30 – September 30
This is the early-season archery hunt, running while bulls are still finishing the Pre-Rut Transition and then moving into Rut Onset and Primary Rut phases through September. In the opening stretch, bulls are shedding velvet and tend to hang close to where they summered, so glassing the sagebrush and grass and meadow openings at lower and mid elevations, or sitting water sources, can put a hunter in position for a stalk. As the month progresses into the rut, archers can work the timber edges at higher elevation where sagebrush dominates but conifer and aspen offer cover. The A tag is valid for any elk and covers Units 55, 56 and 57, giving archery hunters room to work across unit lines if needed.
B tag · Any weapon · October 25 – November 15
By the time this any-weapon season opens in late October, elk have moved past the rut and into Post-Rut Recovery before shifting into the Migration Transition phase through mid-November, with animals beginning to drift off summer range. This tag is antlerless only, so the focus is on locating cow and calf groups rather than chasing any bull sign. Early-season snow and colder lows in November can push animals out of higher sagebrush and conifer country toward lower elevations, so still-hunting or glassing the grass and meadow and sagebrush flats at lower and mid elevations as elk move toward wintering areas is a sound approach. The B tag is valid only within Unit 56 and is capped, so tags can run out before the season does.
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 56 is valid only in its own hunt area.
| Season | Dates | Legal elk | Resident draw | Rut phase |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Controlled hunt 55-1 · Any weapon Motorized Hunting Rule Applies in Unit 56 | October 1 – October 31 | Antlered only | Very long odds | Late Rut / Early Post-Rut, Post-Rut Recovery |
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 55-1 · Any weapon · October 1 – October 31
Controlled hunt 55-1 runs through October, spanning the Late Rut / Early Post-Rut phase into Post-Rut Recovery, a window when bulls are settling down from the rut but may still respond to close-range tactics before going quiet. This is an antlered-only hunt, and the Motorized Hunting Rule applies in Unit 56, so hunters relying on vehicle access for the steeper breaks and higher sagebrush and timber country need to plan around those restrictions and be ready to cover ground on foot. Resident draw odds for hunt 55-1 run very long, so it's a hunt to apply for opportunistically rather than count on. Those who do draw get a full month to work the unit's mix of open sagebrush and pockets of conifer and aspen at higher elevation without the crowds of the general season.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 4,200–7,500 ft, typically around 5,200 ft
- Slope breakdown
- 64% gentle · 29% moderate · 7% steep · 0% rugged
- Ground you can count on
- ~455 sq mi
- National forests
- Caribou National Forest and Sawtooth 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
- Other cover43%
- Sagebrush31%
- Grass and meadow26%
Mid elevations
- Sagebrush50%
- Grass and meadow25%
- Other cover24%
- Conifer1%
Higher elevations
- Sagebrush73%
- Conifer12%
- Grass and meadow11%
- Other cover3%
- Aspen1%
Cover classes from the USGS National Land Cover Database. “Other cover” is the remainder — bare ground, water, agriculture and developed land.
Land & access
About 50% of Unit 56 is public land a hunter can generally count on — BLM, National Forest, Idaho state endowment land and State Wildlife Management Area.
- BLM31%
- National Forest17%
- Idaho state endowment land2%
- State Wildlife Management Area<1%
- Unclassified ownership<1%
- Private50%
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 86°F, lows around 52°F
- September — highs around 75°F, lows around 44°F
- October — highs around 60°F, lows around 34°F, about 0.1 in of snowfall
- November — highs around 46°F, lows around 25°F, about 2.3 in of snowfall
- December — highs around 35°F, lows around 18°F, about 6.1 in of snowfall
Unit 56 elk hunting FAQ
Can a resident buy an elk tag for Unit 56 over the counter?
Yes. Residents can buy either the South Hills Elk Zone A tag or B tag over the counter with no draw or application required. The A tag covers archery season from August 30 to September 30, while the B tag covers the antlerless-only any-weapon season from October 25 to November 15.
How do nonresidents get a general elk tag for Unit 56?
Nonresidents cannot simply buy a general tag over the counter the way residents can. Instead they enter a random draw, and when applying they must choose a specific tag — either the South Hills Elk Zone A tag or the B tag — since the tag is selected at the time of application rather than after the draw.
How hard is it to draw Controlled hunt 55-1 in Unit 56?
Resident first-choice odds for Controlled hunt 55-1 are rated very long, meaning it is not a hunt to count on drawing in any given year. It offers a limited number of antlered-only tags for an any-weapon season running October 1 through October 31, and the Motorized Hunting Rule applies within the unit.
Which elk zone covers Unit 56?
Unit 56 is part of the South Hills Elk Zone, which also includes Units 46, 47, 54, 55 and 57. General elk tags for this zone are sold as an A tag or a B tag, each with its own season, and the hunter chooses one when buying or applying.
How much of Unit 56 is public land a hunter can count on?
About half of the unit, roughly 455 square miles, is generally open to public hunting across BLM, National Forest land including Caribou National Forest and Sawtooth National Forest, Idaho state endowment land, and a State Wildlife Management Area. The remaining half is private land that requires written permission to hunt, and even the public state endowment parcels can occasionally be posted closed or leased.
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.