Quick Tips
- It appears moose numbers are currently stable and there is a reasonable chance to harvest a mature bull
- Bring good optics even though much of the unit is forested, as well as some maps showing land ownership
- You are in grizzly bear habitat, so hunt with a buddy and pack bear spray, be bear aware
On The Ground
This unit is located in southwest Montana and is just south of Livingston. It is the western slope of the Absaroka Mountain Range. All of the drainages flow into the Yellowstone River and that is also the western boundary. The southern boundary is just north of Yellowstone National Park. Much of the moose habitat is on national forest land, but there is private land at all of the lower elevations and along the stream corridors.
Moose numbers are lower than historic levels but appear to be stabilizing. After the wolf introduction moose numbers declined and tag numbers were reduced. With only two tags now the harvest has been varied and there was a 100% success last year. There is a chance to kill a mature bull in the 40 plus inch category, but you will have to hunt hard and cover a lot of country.
Terrain
The unit starts along the Yellowstone River and rises to peaks of over 10,000 feet. Moose do inhabit the Yellowstone River valleys at times. Most of the drainages are quite long with some riparian bottoms and the adjacent mountain slopes are extremely steep and rocky. Hiking can be extreme to access the higher elevations.
Roughly 323 square miles
68% public land
Elevations from 4,800-10,400 feet
Vegetation
The riparian areas along the Yellowstone River and main streams have cottonwoods, willows and brush in many areas. Most of the valleys have irrigated crops in them. The drainages have some open meadows of grass, forbs and shrubs with some wet boggy areas. Most slopes above the riparian areas are open grasslands. Some of the upper basins have some lush meadows with dwarf willow and other shrubs that are good browse. Many of the slopes are forested with fir, pine and spruce. Many of the logged areas have grown in with good brush growth that is also utilized by moose.
Access
Much of the moose habitat is on national forest lands with trails in every drainage. All of the trails have good road access to the trailheads. Mill Creek has a public road that travels at least 15 miles up it with most of it national forest lands; there is some private adjacent to the stream corridor in the lower half. Mill Creek has numerous trailheads in this drainage. There is private ground at the lower elevations and moose can be found here at times so know where you are at.
ATVs will be of some use in Mill Creek, Emigrant Gulch and Livingston Peak but check the regulations at the Livingston Forest Service office on trail use
Some of this unit can be hunted on foot via vehicle access, but horses would save a lot of hiking and be extremely helpful for the pack out
Highway 89 will get you access to Suce Creek, Deep Creek, Emigrant Gulch, Six Mile Creek, and the Dailey Lake area. Interstate 90 will get you access to Mission Creek and Livingston Peak area
Camping and Lodging
There are numerous places to camp throughout the unit on the national forest, and there are Forest Service campgrounds in the unit. Livingston has numerous motels, gas, restaurants and a sporting goods store.
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