Idaho Unit 40 Elk Hunting Guide

Idaho Unit 40, tucked into the southwestern corner of the state, is a big, rugged draw unit that draws serious interest from elk hunters willing to put in miles. Spanning nearly 1.45 million acres with elevations ranging from 2,201 to 8,335 feet, this unit offers the kind of vertical relief and terrain diversity that defines quality elk country in the Owyhee/Payette region of Idaho. With 80% public land, hunters have substantial room to roam, though the private land inholdings scattered throughout the unit require some homework before season.

Unit 40 has built a reputation among elk hunters as a unit that rewards effort and scouting over convenience. It's not an easy unit, and it's not a unit where elk come looking for hunters — but for those who draw a tag and put in the legwork, it consistently produces opportunity. This article breaks down what the data says about Unit 40's elk hunting, from harvest trends to application logistics, using verified numbers pulled from HuntPilot's unit database.

Harvest Success Rates

Unit 40's elk harvest data over the past several seasons shows a unit that produces respectable, if not eye-popping, success rates for a limited-draw hunt. In 2025, 207 hunters harvested 69 elk for a 33% success rate. That's roughly in line with recent history: 2024 saw 220 hunters harvest 89 elk for a 40% success rate — the strongest of the last five years — while 2023 produced a 35% success rate (221 hunters, 77 harvested) and 2022 came in at 34% (226 hunters, 77 harvested).

The outlier in this data set is 2021, when just 59 hunters harvested 30 elk for a 51% success rate. That jump in success correlates with a much smaller hunter pool that year, which is worth keeping in mind — a smaller sample size can skew success rates upward without necessarily reflecting a fundamentally different hunt. Looking at the four-year run from 2022 to 2025, success rates have held in a fairly tight band between 33% and 40%, which suggests a stable, if moderately difficult, hunt rather than one trending sharply in either direction.

For a unit this size with 80% public land, success rates in the 33-40% range are solid. They reflect a unit where elk are present and huntable, but where hunters need to work for it — consistent with the forum chatter describing a unit that demands covering serious ground.

Trophy Quality

Trophy data for the counties overlapping Unit 40 shows a limited history of record-book entries. This doesn't mean big bulls don't exist in the unit — forum accounts specifically mention "the occasional monster" showing up — but the structured trophy record data available for this area doesn't support a characterization of strong or exceptional trophy production. Hunters targeting this unit should approach it with realistic expectations: opportunity and solid bulls are achievable, but Unit 40 shouldn't be selected primarily as a trophy-hunting destination based on the available record-book history.

Given the limited trophy record density here, hunters looking purely for score should weigh this unit against others with deeper trophy pedigrees. Hunters who value big public land, solid success rates, and the chance encounter with an exceptional bull will find Unit 40 more appealing than those chasing a guaranteed shot at a record-class animal.

Access & Terrain

Unit 40 covers 1,446,996 acres with 80% public land — a favorable ratio that gives DIY hunters plenty of room to spread out and find elk away from crowded access points. The elevation range of 2,201 to 8,335 feet is substantial, meaning hunters will encounter everything from low-elevation sagebrush and canyon country to high-elevation timber and open ridgelines within the same unit. This kind of vertical diversity typically pushes elk through several habitat types depending on weather and time of year, so hunters need to be ready to hunt multiple elevation bands rather than committing to one area all season.

There is no wilderness acreage listed for Unit 40, which means access isn't constrained by wilderness-only travel restrictions — motorized access to trailheads and roads is more available here than in units with heavy wilderness designations.

That said, forum accounts consistently flag private land as a real factor in this unit, with one hunter describing it as "a lot of private" ground and noting that elk tend to shift onto private land as pressure builds during the season. With 20% of the unit in private ownership, hunters need to identify boundaries carefully and may find that elk push toward private inholdings once hunting pressure increases — a pattern common in mixed-ownership units across southwestern Idaho. Public land hunters should expect to cover significant distances to find elk that haven't already relocated to unpressured private ground.

The terrain itself demands fitness and planning. Multiple forum posts emphasize the need to "cover ground, lots of ground, then some more ground" — advice that applies to elk hunters in Unit 40 just as much as it does to the mule deer hunters who frequent the same country. Scouting trips in summer months (as one hunter described making trips in early July and again in August) are a smart strategy given the size of the unit and the amount of ground that needs to be evaluated before season.

Hunters planning to scout Unit 40 should lean on mapping tools that overlay public land boundaries and access routes — HuntPilot's map tools, including public land overlays, can help hunters identify where public ground exists relative to private inholdings and plan routes without relying on outdated forum descriptions of access points.

HuntPilot Analysis: Is Unit 40 Worth Applying For?

Unit 40 is a legitimate option for elk hunters who value opportunity and are prepared to hunt hard. The harvest data tells a consistent story: success rates in the 33-40% range across the last four full seasons indicate a unit where elk are present in huntable numbers and where hunters who put in scouting time and physical effort have a real chance of connecting. That's a meaningfully higher success rate than many over-the-counter or general elk hunts across the West, and it reflects favorably on Unit 40 as a limited-draw option.

The 80% public land figure is a major point in this unit's favor. Hunters aren't fighting for scraps of public ground — the vast majority of this 1.45-million-acre unit is open to hunt, giving DIY hunters room to get away from other pressure and find their own pockets of elk. Combined with the lack of wilderness designation, access is relatively straightforward compared to units where foot or stock travel is the only option into the backcountry.

Where Unit 40 falls short is trophy potential. The limited record-book history for the counties overlapping this unit means hunters shouldn't bank on this being a destination for a record-class bull. It's a hunt-hard, cover-ground, take-a-good-bull-when-you-see-one unit rather than a wait-for-a-giant unit. Forum accounts back this up, describing the unit as one that "has gone downhill" in some hunters' eyes but still produces occasional exceptional bulls for those willing to put in the time.

For nonresidents, the calculus is different given Idaho's significantly higher nonresident tag fee, but the unit's strong public land access and consistent harvest success make it a reasonable target for hunters willing to invest in the trip.

Overall, Unit 40 is worth applying for if hunters are seeking a public-land-heavy, physically demanding elk hunt with solid odds of harvesting an elk, and are not specifically chasing trophy genetics. It's a working hunter's unit, not a trophy hunter's unit.

How to Apply

Idaho's draw system is a true lottery — there is no preference point or bonus point system in the state. Every applicant, whether applying for the first time or the twentieth, has identical odds on any given application. There's nothing to accumulate and nothing to "bank" toward future years; the only strategic lever hunters have is which hunt they choose to apply for.

Note that the license fee is required in addition to the application fee before a hunter can even submit an application — this is a real cost that's easy to overlook when budgeting for the draw.

Because Idaho's draw is a pure lottery with no points system, hunters should apply every year they're interested in Unit 40 — waiting or "saving" an application accomplishes nothing here, since there's no points mechanism to build. For current draw odds specific to Unit 40's elk hunt, check HuntPilot's Idaho unit pages and the state's draw statistics at /states/id.

Application dates and fees change every draw cycle. For the current deadlines, fees, and draw odds, see HuntPilot's Idaho page at /states/id.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the terrain like in Idaho Unit 40? Unit 40 spans a dramatic elevation range from 2,201 to 8,335 feet across nearly 1.45 million acres, encompassing everything from low-elevation canyon and sagebrush country to high-elevation timbered ridges. There is no wilderness acreage in the unit, so access via roads and trailheads is more available than in wilderness-heavy units. The terrain is large and demands significant ground-covering — hunters consistently describe needing to explore extensively to locate elk.

What is harvest success in Unit 40 for elk? Recent harvest data shows success rates ranging from 33% to 40% across the last four full seasons (2022-2025), with 2024 producing the highest rate at 40% (89 elk harvested from 220 hunters). The 2021 season showed a 51% success rate, but with a much smaller hunter sample (59 hunters), making it less representative of what most hunters should expect in a typical year.

How big are the elk in Unit 40? Trophy record data for the counties overlapping Unit 40 shows a limited history of entries, suggesting this unit is not primarily known as a trophy destination. Hunters can encounter quality bulls, and forum accounts mention occasional exceptional animals, but the available data does not support strong trophy-quality claims for this unit.

Is Unit 40 worth applying for? Based on the available data, yes — particularly for hunters prioritizing opportunity and public land access over trophy potential. With 80% public land, consistent harvest success rates in the 33-40% range over recent seasons, and a low resident application cost, Unit 40 represents a solid, hard-hunting elk option. It is not, however, a strong choice for hunters specifically seeking record-class bulls given the limited trophy record history in the area.

Does Idaho use a preference point system for elk draws? No. Idaho's elk draw is a pure lottery with no preference points or bonus points of any kind. Every applicant has identical odds each year regardless of how many times they've applied previously. Hunters should apply annually for Unit 40 or any other unit of interest, since there is no benefit to waiting or accumulating points in Idaho's system.