Montana Unit 240 Moose Hunting Guide

Montana Unit 240 moose hunting represents one of the most sought-after and hardest-to-draw big game opportunities in the state. With rugged, high-elevation terrain spanning from 3,193 to 9,946 feet, nearly half the unit locked inside wilderness boundaries, and a tightly controlled draw structure that issues only a handful of tags per year, Unit 240 is the kind of hunt most western hunters apply for a lifetime and draw once, if ever. This article breaks down what the data shows about this unit — harvest trends, access, terrain, and trophy potential — so hunters can decide whether to spend points or applications chasing a tag here.

Unit 240 covers 430,201 acres, with 80% of that ground classified as public land. That's a strong number for DIY access, meaning the large majority of the unit is open to hunters without needing private land permission. But raw public land percentage only tells part of the story in a unit like this — 48% of Unit 240 is designated wilderness, which fundamentally changes how a moose hunt here needs to be planned, especially for nonresidents.

Hunt Structure: A Pure Draw Unit

There is no general season for moose in Unit 240. Every moose hunt here — including hunts for antlered, either-sex animals — is issued through a limited-quota draw. This is standard for moose management across the West, where populations are managed conservatively and tag numbers are kept low by design. Hunters should not expect an over-the-counter path into this unit; drawing a tag is the only way to hunt moose here, and that tag, once drawn, is typically a once-in-a-lifetime allocation under Montana's moose licensing structure.

HuntPilot Analysis: Is Unit 240 Worth Applying For?

Based on the data compiled by HuntPilot, Unit 240 is worth applying for, but hunters need to go in with realistic expectations about both the draw difficulty and the physical demands of the terrain.

The harvest numbers tell a clear story of a small, tightly managed hunt. In 2024, three hunters held tags and all three harvested, a 100% success rate. The same pattern held in 2023 — three hunters, three harvests, 100% success. In 2022, three hunters were in the field but only one tagged out, a 33% success rate, and 2021 also saw three hunters afield. Across these four years, the unit has consistently issued only three tags annually, and in three of those four years hunters converted at extremely high rates. That's a strong signal: when Montana issues a Unit 240 moose tag, the hunter holding it has a very good chance of connecting, assuming they put in the effort to locate animals in this demanding country.

That said, three tags a year is about as limited as it gets. This isn't a unit where volume hunters can expect consistent opportunity — it's a unit built around a small number of hunters getting a rare shot at a quality animal in big, wild country. The trophy history for the counties overlapping Unit 240 shows moderate potential for trophy-class animals, meaning there is a real history of quality bulls coming out of this area, even if it isn't among the most decorated moose country in the region. Hunters drawing this tag should treat it as a genuine trophy opportunity, not just a meat hunt, while keeping expectations grounded — moderate trophy history means solid, respectable bulls are realistic, not necessarily record-class giants on every outing.

The terrain is the other half of the equation. With elevation ranging from valley floors near 3,193 feet up to nearly 9,946 feet, and with wilderness covering 48% of the total acreage, this unit demands serious physical preparation and, frequently, pack-string or backpack-style access to reach the best moose habitat. Moose in this kind of country tend to hold in timbered drainages, willow-choked creek bottoms, and high basins — areas that don't always see heavy pressure precisely because they're hard to reach.

Bottom line: Unit 240 is worth every application for hunters who want a legitimate shot at a quality bull in big, rugged Montana wilderness country, and who are prepared — physically and logistically — for what that terrain demands. It is not a unit for hunters looking for an easy, roadside hunt.

Harvest Success Rates

The available harvest data for Unit 240 spans 2021 through 2024, and it paints a consistent picture of a small-quota, high-success unit:

• 2024: 3 hunters, 3 harvested — 100% success
• 2023: 3 hunters, 3 harvested — 100% success
• 2022: 3 hunters, 1 harvested — 33% success
• 2021: 3 hunters afield (harvest total not broken out)

Three of the last four years for which harvest totals are available show either perfect or near-perfect success, with 2022 standing out as the one down year. This kind of success rate is typical of very low-quota moose hunts — when only three tags go out across hundreds of thousands of acres, the hunters who draw tend to be well-prepared, often have scouted extensively, and are hunting a species that, once located, doesn't require the kind of marathon pursuit that elk or deer can demand. Still, a single down year like 2022 is a reminder that moose hunting in big wilderness country is never a guaranteed thing — weather, access conditions, and bull distribution can all affect outcomes even with a small, dedicated hunter pool.

Trophy Quality

Trophy records from the counties overlapping Unit 240 show a moderate history of trophy-class moose. This means the area has produced quality bulls over time, but it isn't among the elite, heavily-decorated moose units in the region. Hunters should view Unit 240 as a place where a well-prepared hunter has a realistic chance at a solid, mature bull, rather than a unit defined by consistent record-book production.

It's worth noting that trophy records are logged at the county level, not the unit level, so the moderate trophy history reflects a broader geographic area that includes Unit 240 and its neighboring units. The animals behind those records could have come from anywhere within that shared county boundary, not necessarily from inside Unit 240's specific borders. Still, it's a reasonable proxy for the general trophy caliber of moose in this part of Montana, and it suggests hunters drawing this tag have a fair shot at a mature, respectable bull if they put in the scouting time and hunt the better pockets of habitat.

Access & Terrain

Unit 240 spans an enormous elevation gradient — from 3,193 feet at its lowest to 9,946 feet at its highest point — which means hunters could be glassing sagebrush-adjacent valley bottoms one day and working alpine basins and high timber the next, depending on where moose are holding during the season. This elevation range alone tells hunters that physical conditioning and altitude acclimation matter here.

Of the unit's 430,201 total acres, 80% is public land, giving hunters a strong base of accessible ground to hunt without needing to negotiate private land access. That's a meaningful advantage for DIY hunters relative to units with heavier private land concentrations.

The bigger access consideration is the 48% wilderness designation covering nearly half the unit. Wilderness acreage in Montana (unlike Wyoming) does not require nonresidents to hire a guide — Montana has no such legal requirement, so DIY hunters are free to hunt wilderness portions of Unit 240 on their own. But practically speaking, wilderness terrain means no motorized access: no trucks, no ATVs, no e-bikes. Hunters working these areas need to plan on foot or horseback access, longer pack-in times, and a higher level of self-sufficiency for multi-day camps far from a trailhead. Moose, with their preference for thick, undisturbed timber and willow bottoms, often concentrate in exactly this kind of hard-to-reach wilderness terrain, so hunters who are willing and equipped to get deep into the unit are likely to find less pressure and better odds at a mature bull.

How to Apply

Montana moose tags are issued exclusively through the state's limited-quota draw system — there is no general season option for this species in Unit 240 or in Montana generally. Both resident and nonresident hunters must apply through the draw, and Montana's system uses a squared bonus point structure, meaning a hunter's number of points is squared to determine their number of entries in the draw pool. This gives hunters with more accumulated points a mathematically larger share of entries, but it's important to understand that no point level guarantees a tag in Montana — it remains a weighted lottery at every point level, including for hunters with many years of points invested.

Montana also maintains separate resident and nonresident applicant pools for moose, so residents and nonresidents are not competing directly against each other for the same tags. A successful draw consumes a hunter's accumulated points for that species, meaning a hunter who draws a Unit 240 moose tag will restart their point accumulation from zero for future moose applications — this is standard across all western states with bonus or preference point systems.

Because Montana's application structure, deadlines, and fees change from year to year, hunters should not rely on fixed dates or dollar figures from any article, including this one. For current application windows, fees, and point requirements, see HuntPilot's Montana state page for the most up-to-date information before applying.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the terrain like in Montana Unit 240? Unit 240 covers a dramatic elevation range from 3,193 feet to 9,946 feet, encompassing everything from lower valley terrain to high alpine country. Nearly half the unit (48%) is designated wilderness, meaning large sections are accessible only by foot or horseback, with no motorized access. The unit is heavily public (80%), giving hunters substantial room to roam, but the wilderness component means successful hunters typically need to be prepared for backcountry-style camps and travel.

What is harvest success in Unit 240 for moose? Based on recent data, harvest success in Unit 240 has been high in most years — 100% in both 2024 and 2023 with three hunters tagging three bulls each year, though 2022 saw a lower 33% success rate with only one harvest among three hunters. The consistently small tag numbers (three hunters per year in the data available) make this one of the more exclusive moose hunts in the state.

How big are the moose in Unit 240? Trophy records from the counties overlapping Unit 240 indicate a moderate history of trophy-class bulls. This suggests hunters have a realistic chance at a mature, quality bull, though the area isn't defined by heavy record-book production. Because trophy records are tracked by county rather than by unit boundary, this assessment reflects a broader region shared with neighboring units, not Unit 240 exclusively.

Is Unit 240 worth applying for? Yes, for hunters willing to invest in the draw process and prepared for demanding wilderness terrain. The combination of high public land access (80%), strong recent harvest success, and moderate trophy potential makes this a legitimate option for hunters chasing a quality Montana moose. The tradeoff is the unit's small annual tag numbers and the physical demands of hunting wilderness country that makes up nearly half the unit's acreage.

Do nonresidents need a guide to hunt moose in Unit 240's wilderness areas? No. Unlike Wyoming, Montana does not require nonresident hunters to hire a licensed outfitter or guide to hunt wilderness areas. Nonresidents who draw a Unit 240 moose tag can hunt the wilderness portions of the unit on a DIY basis, though they should plan for the logistical challenges of foot or horseback access given the lack of roads in those areas.