Considered by many to be North Dakota’s premiere elk unit. The Little Missouri River flows right through the center of this unit, creating a heavily forested valley of deciduous trees. The state’s primary elk range follows the river. You can basically go 10 miles either direction from the river and remain in the primary range.

If you’re able to draw Unit E3, it boasts North Dakota’s best success rate for elk hunters. Don’t be afraid to get away from Theodore Roosevelt National Park – there are enough excellent public access properties in this unit that you’ll be able to harvest an elk elsewhere. The key to success on these public access areas is putting in the time to scout, stopping frequently to glass, and putting in the miles on foot. Stick to the tops of ridges, just low enough to block your silhouette.

The west and east edges of Unit E3 include farmland and milder terrain. The rest of this unit on both sides of the Little Missouri River is extremely rough. Steep, rough, forested draws and creek bottoms are found closer to the river. Brush-covered, forested draws as you move farther east and west from the river. The bottoms of draws throughout this unit support thick stands of deciduous trees. Overall, there are a bunch of places for elk to graze and hide.

The Little Missouri River flows right through the center of this unit, creating a heavily forested valley of deciduous trees, primarily aspen and oak. There’s also some dense stands of ponderosa pine along the river valley. Drainages, valleys and creek bottoms that branch off the river are forested with aspen and oak as well as some ash, elm, birch and juniper. Thickets of brush are common in Unit E3 as well. The agricultural properties in this unit are primarily wheatgrass fields. Blue grama grass prairies are found throughout the unit as well.

Tough area to navigate if you’re not familiar with it. Scouting, not only to locate elk, but so you have some understanding of the unit’s roads, is essential. Just off I-94 near where it crosses the Little Missouri River is the town of Medora. This area has the only bridges across the river in this portion of the unit. There are crossings in other areas, but there’s no guarantee that you’ll be able to use them. Don’t get caught on the wrong side of the river. A good PAPER map is essential in this unit. You never know phone service will cut out, so don’t rely on your phone’s map apps for navigation. There are active oil fields in this unit, so the roads that support heavy oil field traffic are in excellent condition. Unit E3 features a LOT of public access hunting areas. You’ll find a lot of public access along both sides of the river in the Little Missouri National Grassland, but it’s extremely rough country. The unit’s largest public access area, the Little Missouri National Grassland, includes well over 100,000 acres of badlands to hunt. There’s also some BLM land along the northern border of the unit. The creeks branching off the Little Missouri have carved out flat, lush valleys that are full of trees and monster elk. This unit truly is a haven for elk with food, water, steep ridges and deep canyons. You’ll find some great State Trust Lands and PLOTS areas with fantastic draws that hold elk throughout this unit. Drainages, deep badland draws and creek bottoms are generally covered with aspen and oak trees. There’s generally PLOTS properties that are attached to each other in this unit as well. Some PLOTS properties are also attached to Little Missouri National Grassland property, creating some large areas of consecutive public access. The unit’s east and west portions are primarily agricultural property, both livestock pasture and cropland.

There are enough campgrounds in the Little Missouri National Grassland that you should be able to find a great camping spot near where you’d like to hunt. If you’re looking for hotel accommodations, Medora in the center of the unit and New England just across the southeast border of the unit each have hotels as well as RV parks. If you’re in a bind and need supplies or something unique, Dickinson is around 40 miles east of Medora along I-94. Dickinson has multiple sporting goods stores and enough variety that you’ll be able to find what you’re needing. Once you’re away from the primary highways around this unit, you’re basically in no-man’s land. Don’t get stuck out there low on fuel or without food and water.