Unit E50-1 (Elk Hunt Area 50-1)

Idaho Hunting Guide — Elk

Hunt Area 50-1 is drawn from unit 50, in Blaine, Butte and Custer counties. Named ground inside it runs from 5,256 to 11,996 feet. Idaho Fish and Game publishes no per-unit elk success figure we can verify for this hunt area. Check land status on a current map before you plan a route.

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Elk guide

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Elk Hunting in Unit E50-1

Where to Find Elk in Hunt Area 50-1

Idaho Fish and Game's material on hunt area 50-1 stops at the boundary — there is no agency account of where its elk live. So the ground below is the unit's own and the read on where to start is ours, labelled as such.

What hunt area 50-1 is

Idaho Fish and Game describes elk hunt area 50-1 as that portion of Unit 50 south of the Doublespring Pass Road east of U.S. Highway 93, and that portion south of the Trail Creek Road west of U.S. Highway 93. That makes it a piece of ground drawn for this hunt, not a unit, and the outline on this page is IDFG's own polygon for it rather than a unit outline. The units it is drawn from lie in Blaine, Butte and Custer counties. Idaho Fish and Game also uses the code 50-1 for deer hunts, and in its own words "hunt areas are different for each species" — those are other pieces of ground, and this page is the elk area.

High ground inside the line: Donaldson Peak, The Devils Bedstead and Standhope Peak

Named high points inside the hunt area include Donaldson Peak at 11,996 feet, The Devils Bedstead at 11,802 feet, Standhope Peak at 11,795 feet, Mount McCaleb at 11,607 feet and Pyramid Peak at 11,567 feet. Several carry a public-land flag in our data, which makes them the first places to try for a view. Elk want timber to bed in and open ground to feed on, within a short walk of each other.

Holding ground: Star Hope Gulch, Doublespring Pass and Mammoth Canyon

Below them sit Star Hope Gulch at 8,353 feet, Doublespring Pass at 8,327 feet, Mammoth Canyon at 8,313 feet, Stewart Canyon at 8,313 feet and Anderson Canyon at 8,289 feet. Those are the basins, parks and bottoms this hunt area has, and they are what you glass into from above. Work out which of them you can see from one position before you pick a camp.

Water: Big Spring, Big Buck Spring and Birch Springs

Named sources include Big Spring, Big Buck Spring, Birch Springs, Coyote Spring, Cold Spring and Richardson Spring. Nothing in the data says which of them run in autumn, so a scouting trip earns its fuel.

How high the named ground goes

Named ground inside hunt area 50-1 runs from 5,256 feet to 11,996 feet — more than 4,000 feet between the named features alone, so the season you draw decides which part of it you hunt.

Unit E50-1 terrain and land status

Measured from the unit boundary, not from the agency write-up

Named features inside the unit

Glass from: Donaldson Peak (11,996 ft), The Devils Bedstead (11,802 ft), Standhope Peak (11,795 ft), Mount McCaleb (11,607 ft)

Holding ground: Surprise Valley (9,180 ft), Antelope Pass (8,916 ft), Corral Creek Summit (8,735 ft), Big Spring, Big Buck Spring

Every one of these was tested against the unit polygon before it went on the map. They are starting points, not agency recommendations.

How to Hunt Elk in Hunt Area 50-1

Idaho Fish and Game's per-unit harvest statistics describe general seasons on game management units, so there is no elk success figure we can tie to hunt area 50-1 alone, and we won't borrow one from a unit. 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

Idaho Fish and Game's 2026 rules list 4 controlled hunts for elk in hunt area 50-1.

Hunt 2030 — antlered elk, 60 tags, Oct 15–Oct 31. Motorized Hunting Rule Applies
Hunt 2139 — muzzleloader only elk, 50 tags, Oct 1–Oct 14. Either sex, Motorized Hunting Rule Applies
Hunt 2197 — outfitter allocation elk, 3 tags, Oct 1–Oct 14. Either Sex, Muzzleloader only, Motorized Hunting Rule Applies
Hunt 2198 — outfitter allocation elk, 4 tags, Oct 15–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 hunt area 50-1

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 Redbird Mountain, White Knob Mountains and Shelly Mountain

Take a position on one of Redbird Mountain (11,263 ft), White Knob Mountains (11,245 ft), Shelly Mountain (11,223 ft) and Cabin Mountain (11,219 ft) and be on it before light. In the dark the air runs downhill. Pick an approach that doesn't send it into the country you want to see, and plan to move once the slope warms. Work the glass in strips and go back over ground you already covered — animals appear in country you looked at ten minutes ago. On the rut hunts, September bugling works where you can get above a drainage and let the thermals carry sound downhill.

A first plan from the pins on this page

The map above marks Donaldson Peak, The Devils Bedstead, Standhope Peak and Mount McCaleb as places to see from, and Surprise Valley, Antelope Pass, Corral Creek Summit and Big Spring as ground to watch. Each pin is a named feature verified to fall inside the hunt-area line, not a spot anyone has hunted. Take the pair you can reach on one road and treat the rest as a second trip.

What a day here costs you

With 6,740 feet between the lowest and highest ground, the walk back up out of a kill site is the part to plan first. Decide the night before where you will be at first light, and go there in the dark.

Idaho rules that decide your day

Summarised from IDFG regulations. They change — read the current regulations and your permit-tag before you hunt.

Legal shooting hours

Big game may be taken from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset.

Motorized retrieval

Idaho has no general off-road retrieval allowance on federal ground; stay on designated routes.

Tagging

Validate the tag by cutting out the month and day, and attach it to the carcass before moving it.

Leaving meat

Wasting edible meat is illegal.

Where you may not shoot

Occupied structures — No shooting from or across a public highway, and no shooting toward an occupied dwelling.

Elk: where to put the shot

Broadside or quartering away, on the back edge of the front leg about a third of the way up the body. That is lungs, and on a quartering-away angle it picks up the far shoulder.

Shots to refuse

No straight-on and no straight-away shots. An elk's chest is deep and the margin is small.
Nothing standing behind or overlapping the animal you picked. A pass-through kills the elk behind it too.
Your maximum range is the farthest you have put three shots in a paper plate off the sticks you are actually carrying. Not the farthest you have ever hit anything.
Scope on 3–4x. A herd fills a 12x field of view and you lose the animal you picked.

Identification:On an antlerless tag, legal means no antler of any kind through the skin. A spike looks exactly like a cow until it turns its head. If you can't see the head, don't shoot.

Plan the carry: roughly 150– 220 lb of boned-out meat, before head and hide — two to four large coolers, plus bagged ice from town. ProHunt planning estimate, not an agency figure.

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Elk Success Rates

Idaho Fish and Game's per-unit harvest statistics describe general seasons on game management units, and hunt area 50-1 is a controlled-hunt area, not a unit, so there is no figure here we can tie to it. A unit's general-season number would describe different hunters on different ground. Idaho Fish and Game's hunt planner reports controlled-hunt results hunt by hunt, which is the figure to check before you apply.

Elk Draw Odds

Season	Tags	Applicants	Draw %	Pts (n/p)
Controlled — 1st Drawing either sex (resident)	54	736	7.0%	—
Controlled — 1st Drawing either sex (nonresident)	6	132	5.0%	—

Data from 2025 draw results. Each row is one residency pool — read the label before the number. This agency publishes no point thresholds, so the Pts column stays blank and these are pool odds, not what a point total draws.

Open in Draw Odds Engine

Idaho Fish and Game's 2025 first drawing for elk in hunt area 50-1, with residents and nonresidents kept apart because they draw from different tag pools:

Hunt 2030 — residents 736 applicants for 54 tags, 7% drawn; nonresidents 132 applicants for 6 tags, 5% drawn
Hunt 2139 — residents 169 applicants for 45 tags, 27% drawn; nonresidents 55 applicants for 5 tags, 9% drawn

Idaho draws at random with no point system, so these are what that year happened to look like, not a requirement to build toward. Idaho Fish and Game reuses hunt numbers for different areas between years, so the figures are matched on the area each hunt had in 2025. Checked against Idaho Fish and Game's hunt planner draw results on 2026-06-09.

Unit Logistics & Expectations

Planning Notes

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Water

19 named water sources inside the hunt area in our water layer, including Big Spring, Big Buck Spring and Birch Springs. Which of them run in autumn is something only a scouting trip will tell you.

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Road Conditions

Idaho Fish and Game's boundary for the hunt area follows U.S. Highway 93. That is the edge, not a promise of access inside — check a current motor-vehicle-use map before you drive in.

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Terrain Difficulty

Named features inside the hunt area run from 5,256 to 11,996 ft. More than 4,000 feet between them alone, so plan the pack-out before the shot.

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Permit Notes

Idaho Fish and Game controlled hunts 2030, 2139, 2197 and 2198 (2026 rules). The first application period runs May 1 to June 5 and the second August 5 to 15. Idaho's draw is random, with no preference or bonus points.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Idaho hunt area 50-1?

Hunt Area 50-1 is drawn from unit 50, in Blaine, Butte and Custer counties. Idaho Fish and Game describes elk hunt area 50-1 as that portion of Unit 50 south of the Doublespring Pass Road east of U.S. Highway 93, and that portion south of the Trail Creek Road west of U.S. Highway 93.

What is the elk success rate in hunt area 50-1?

Idaho Fish and Game's per-unit harvest statistics cover general seasons on game management units, and hunt area 50-1 is a controlled-hunt area, so there is no figure we can tie to it. Idaho Fish and Game's hunt planner reports controlled-hunt results hunt by hunt, and that is the number to check before you apply.

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Sources & Verification

Every fact on this page is tied to a primary source below. Last fact-checked 2026-10-24.

Idaho Big Game 2026 Seasons & Rules — Idaho Department of Fish and Game · supports: Controlled hunt area description for elk hunt area 50-1, The game management units the area is drawn from, Controlled hunt numbers, tags and season dates · accessed 2026-10-24
IDFG Hunt Planner — controlled hunt drawing odds — Idaho Department of Fish and Game · supports: Applicants, tags and percent drawn by hunt, year and residency · accessed 2026-06-09
IDFG GameManagementUnits and ControlledHunts_All feature services — game management units and every species' controlled-hunt areas — Idaho Department of Fish and Game · supports: Mapped extent of the unit or hunt area, Which named ground falls inside its line · accessed 2026-10-24