Unit 37A (Lemhi Zone)

Idaho Fish and Game's own harvest estimates put elk success in unit 37A at 15% across all manners of take. A number that low means most hunters here go home empty, and the ones who don't put the days in first. The plan: find the feed, find the timber it backs onto, then watch the seam between them at the edges of the day.

The 2026 controlled hunts in unit 37A

Idaho Fish and Game's 2026 rules list 3 controlled hunts for elk on unit 37A under its own number.

• Hunt 2013 — antlered elk, 100 tags, Oct 1–Oct 31. Motorized Hunting Rule Applies
• Hunt 2080 — antlerless elk, 45 tags, Dec 10–Dec 31
• Hunt 2189 — outfitter allocation elk, 5 tags, Oct 1–Oct 31. Antlered only, Motorized Hunting Rule Applies

Dates and tag numbers are IDFG's as printed for that season, and IDFG changes hunt areas between years, so check the current booklet before you apply.

Applying for a unit 37A tag

Idaho Fish and Game's first application period for deer, elk and pronghorn runs May 1 to June 5, with results in early July, and a second period runs August 5 to 15 for what is left. A hunter drawn for a limited antlered-only elk hunt sits out the next year's first period for that kind of hunt; unlimited and extra hunts are exempt. Two to four hunters may apply together for the same hunt. Idaho's draw is random, with no preference or bonus points to build.

Glassing from Flatiron Mountain, Lem Peak and May Mountain

Take a position on one of Flatiron Mountain (11,011 ft), Lem Peak (10,959 ft), May Mountain (10,924 ft) and Red Point (9,910 ft) and be on it before light. Work the morning with the air falling away from you, then accept that by mid-morning the wind has reversed and the plan has to change with it. Glass the edges first, then the shaded timber, then the edges again as the light goes. On the rut hunts, September bugling works where you can get above a drainage and let the thermals carry sound downhill.

Water against feed

There are 1 mapped stream reaches and 1 tanks inside the unit, so water is rarely the limiting factor. Where water is everywhere, feed is what concentrates animals, so hunt the feed and treat water as a convenience. A tank with no tracks is a tank with no reason to sit on it.

Timing the season: Sep, Oct, Nov

Season normals here run Sep 76/36°F, Oct 60/26°F and Nov 43/17°F. By Nov the lows are around 17°F, and the first hard storm after that moves animals off the high ground — a late tag is a bet on that storm arriving. Precipitation runs about 0.9 in. in Sep, 0.9 in. in Oct and 0.5 in. in Nov, and the graded gravel in this unit turns greasy wet.

Getting past the roads: Pahsimeroi Road and US 93

US 93 is the paved frame, which is also where everyone else starts. National Forest Development Road 099 needs clearance, and that is usually where the boot tracks thin out. There is little true four-wheel-drive road here, so distance from the gravel is the only thing separating you from the next hunter.