Idaho › Hunting seasons › Units › Unit 48
Smoky-Bennett Zone · 1 county
Unit 48 hunting: seasons, hunts and harvest
Unit 48 sits in the IDFG Magic Valley Region and the Southern Mountains wolf zone; its 14 controlled hunts carry 692 tags in 2026.
Photo: Stephen Hanafin (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Where Unit 48 lies
Blaine County carries 100% of the 389,791 acres in Unit 48, which IDFG assigns to its Magic Valley Region. No county line crosses Unit 48: every acre is in Blaine County, where the unit makes up 23% of the county.
| County | Of the unit | Of the county | Named by IDFG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blaine County | 100% | 23% | Yes |
Questions about access, closures or animal numbers in Unit 48 go to the Magic Valley Region Office in Jerome, (208) 324-4359.
Region, elk zone and boundary counties from the IDFG Hunt Planner unit page; acreage from the Hunt Planner hunt page; shares from the IDFG Game Units layer over Census county lines (GIS measures); office from the IDFG offices page; data read November 11, 2026, checked November 12, 2026.
Unit 48 unit-level rules
- General elk tags are sold per zone, and Unit 48 belongs to the Smoky-Bennett Zone with Units 43, 44, 45 and 52.
- The Southern Mountains wolf zone takes in Unit 48; IDFG uses those zones for analysis and writes the seasons unit by unit.
- CWD: Unit 48 is neither a management zone nor a mandatory testing unit in 2026.
Open the zone: Smoky-Bennett Zone · Wolf zones · CWD Management Zone
Elk zone from the Hunt Planner unit page and elk zone list; wolf zone from the IDFG Wolf Zones layer; CWD: CWD rules, Big Game 2026 p. 9; 2026 CWD changes; checked November 12, 2026.
Unit 48 draw list
14 controlled hunt numbers include Unit 48 for 2026 (6 elk, 3 mountain goat, 2 deer, 2 pronghorn and 1 moose), carrying 692 tags between them. 8 of the hunts spread beyond Unit 48, so a tag there is not tied to this unit alone.
Idaho controlled hunts are drawn at random: deer, elk, pronghorn and fall bear apply May 1 to June 5, moose, sheep and goat April 1 to 30. Hunt Planner pages still show 2025 dates for the moose, sheep and goat hunts; the brochure month and day are used here.
White-tailed deer moving through autumn woods
Deer, antlered (1)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1038 | 48 | Any Weapon | Nov 10 to Nov 24, 2026 | Antlered | 10 | Only here | p. 23 | — |
Deer, archery (1)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1075 | 43-1 | Archery | Aug 15 to Sep 30, 2026 | Antlerless or Antlered | 50 | 43, 48 | p. 24 | Either Sex |
Elk, antlered (2)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 48 | Any Weapon | Oct 1 to Oct 14, 2026 | Antlered | 20 | Only here | p. 51 | — |
| 2027 | 48 | Any Weapon | Oct 15 to Nov 10, 2026 | Antlered | 150 | Only here | p. 51 | — |
Elk, antlerless (3)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2087 | 48-1 | Any Weapon | Oct 15 to Nov 14, 2026 | Antlerless | 175 | Only here | p. 53 | — |
| 2088 | 48-2 | Any Weapon | Oct 15 to Nov 14, 2026 | Antlerless | 150 | Only here | p. 53 | — |
| 2089 | 48-3 | Any Weapon | Aug 1 to Aug 29, 2026 | Antlerless | 25 | 44, 48 | p. 53 | — |
Elk, muzzleloader (1)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2137 | 48 | Muzzleloader | Nov 15 to Nov 30, 2026 | Antlerless or Antlered | 75 | Only here | p. 55 | Either sex |
Pronghorn, archery (1)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4032 | 44-3 | Archery | Aug 15 to Sep 15, 2026 | Antlerless or Antlered | Unlimited | 44, 45, 48, 52 | p. 66 | Either sex, Motorized Hunting Rule Applies in Units 45 and 52, See Pages 104 – 106 |
Pronghorn, either sex (1)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4016 | 52-1 | Any Weapon | Sep 25 to Oct 24, 2026 | Antlerless or Antlered | 25 | 48, 52 | p. 65 | Motorized Hunting Rule Applies in Unit 52, See Pages 104 – 106 |
Moose, antlered (1)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3053 | 48 | Any Weapon | Aug 30 to Nov 23, 2026 | Antlered | 4 | 48, 49, 52 | p. 10 | — |
Mountain goat, either sex (3)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6009 | 36A-1 | Any Weapon | Aug 30 to Nov 12, 2026 | Either-sex | 1 | 36A, 48, 50 | p. 26 | — |
| 6010 | 36A-2 | Any Weapon | Aug 30 to Nov 12, 2026 | Either-sex | 1 | 36A, 48 | p. 26 | — |
| 6016 | 43 | Any Weapon | Aug 30 to Nov 12, 2026 | Either-sex | 6 | 36, 43, 48 | p. 26 | — |
Hunt numbers, dates, bags and 2026 tags from the Idaho Big Game 2026 Seasons and Rules and the Moose, Bighorn Sheep and Mountain Goat 2025 and 2026 brochure (page links per row); units and notes from each Hunt Planner hunt page; draw periods from the brochure draw rules; checked November 12, 2026.
Unit 48 general seasons
General tags open 8 dated lines in Unit 48, grouped below by species and by tag or season type. Rifle deer hunters on a general tag start October 10, 2026 in Unit 48.
Deer (2)
| Tag or type | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Area | Notes | Now |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regular tag | Archery | Aug 30 to Sep 30, 2026 | Antlerless or Antlered | This unit | — | |
| Regular tag | Any Weapon | Oct 10 to Oct 31, 2026 | Antlered | This unit | — |
Elk (1)
| Tag or type | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Area | Notes | Now |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A tag | Archery | Aug 30 to Sep 30, 2026 | Antlerless or Antlered | 43, 48 | Units 43 & 48 ONLY |
Black bear (2)
| Tag or type | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Area | Notes | Now |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall 2026 | Any weapon | Aug 30 to Oct 31, 2026 | One black bear per tag; females with young protected | 43, 44, 48, 49 | Dogs prohibited: Oct 1 – Oct 31 | |
| Spring 2027 | Any weapon | Apr 15 to Jun 15, 2027 | One black bear per tag; females with young protected | 43, 44, 48, 49 | Dogs prohibited: Oct 1 – Oct 31 |
Mountain lion (1)
| Tag or type | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Area | Notes | Now |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lion tag | Any weapon | Jul 1, 2026 to Jun 30, 2027 | One mountain lion per tag; females with spotted kittens protected | 17 units | Dogs prohibited: July 1 – Aug 29; Oct 1 – Nov 30; Apr 1 – June 30 |
Gray wolf (2)
| Tag or type | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Area | Notes | Now |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hunting, private land | Hunting | Jul 1, 2026 to Jun 30, 2027 | Per wolf tag (see brochure for tag limits) | Statewide | — | |
| Hunting, public land | Hunting | Jul 1, 2026 to Jun 30, 2027 | Per wolf tag (see brochure for tag limits) | 38 units | — |
Unit 48 gets 1 A tag elk line and 0 B tag lines from the Smoky-Bennett Zone tags.
Smoky-Bennett Zone tag rows (2)
| Tag | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Zone tags | In Unit 48 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A tag | Archery | Aug 30 to Sep 30, 2026 | Antlerless or Antlered | — | Yes |
| B tag | Any Weapon | Nov 10 to Nov 24, 2026 | Antlerless | 600 | No |
Season rows from the Idaho Big Game 2026 Seasons and Rules (deer, elk, black bear, mountain lion, wolf) and the Upland Game, Turkey and Furbearer 2026 and 2027 brochure (turkey), with unit lists from the Hunt Planner; over-the-counter sales from the brochure; checked November 12, 2026.
Five seasons in Unit 48
30% of the 2,309 general deer hunters in Unit 48 filled a tag in 2025 (686 deer).
497 general elk hunters brought home 52 elk here last season.
Bear, lion, wolf and turkey rows for 2025 show 29 black bear, 1 mountain lion and 2 gray wolf.
General rows count general tag holders only; drawn hunts sit in their own table.
Weapon split, 2025
| Kind and method | Taken | Hunters | Success | Days | Antlered | Antlerless |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deer, Any Weapon | 654 | 2,084 | 31% | 10,032 | 646 | 7 |
| Deer, Archery | 32 | 217 | 15% | 1,604 | 18 | 14 |
| Deer, Muzzleloader | 0 | 7 | 0% | 7 | — | — |
| Deer, All Weapons Combined | 686 | 2,309 | 30% | 11,643 | 664 | 22 |
| Elk, Any Weapon | 0 | 9 | 0% | 38 | — | — |
| Elk, Archery | 52 | 488 | 11% | 4,108 | 49 | 3 |
| Elk, All Weapons Combined | 52 | 497 | 10% | 4,146 | 49 | 3 |
2021-2025 results
| Year | Deer (all weapons) | Elk (all weapons) | Black bear | Mountain lion | Gray wolf | Spring turkey |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 621 | 91 | 29 | 2 | 4 | — |
| 2022 | 650 | 60 | 16 | 1 | 8 | — |
| 2023 | 578 | 57 | 15 | 1 | 1 | — |
| 2024 | 690 | 82 | 31 | — | 4 | — |
| 2025 | 686 | 52 | 29 | 1 | 2 | — |
Hunt numbers, 2021-2025 (14)
| Hunt | Species | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | Hunters 2025 | Success 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1038 | Deer | 4 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 62% |
| 1075 | Deer | 18 | 12 | 15 | 11 | 16 | 48 | 33% |
| 2026 | Elk | 9 | 28 | 54 | 59 | 8 | 19 | 42% |
| 2027 | Elk | 7 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 54 | 142 | 38% |
| 2087 | Elk | 40 | 27 | 38 | 41 | 46 | 148 | 31% |
| 2088 | Elk | 16 | 77 | 9 | 12 | 38 | 118 | 32% |
| 2089 | Elk | 37 | 31 | 37 | 57 | 8 | 23 | 35% |
| 2137 | Elk | 2 | 1 | 4 | 8 | 10 | 60 | 17% |
| 4032 | Pronghorn | 83 | 100 | 27 | 38 | 45 | 294 | 15% |
| 4016 | Pronghorn | 36 | 36 | 19 | 15 | 22 | 22 | 100% |
| 3053 | Moose | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 100% |
| 6009 | Mountain goat | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 100% |
| 6010 | Mountain goat | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | 1 | 1 | 100% |
| 6016 | Mountain goat | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 6 | 100% |
A young mule deer buck stepping out of green brush
IDFG Hunt Planner harvest statistics 2021-2025 (2025 pages linked): general deer, general elk, black bear, mountain lion, gray wolf, turkey, controlled deer, controlled elk, controlled pronghorn, controlled moose, controlled mountain goat; data read November 11, 2026, checked November 12, 2026.
Public land across Unit 48
Our land data places 12 records in Unit 48; 12 have a page of their own and 0 are sections on county pages or the public land hub.
1 closed place sit in the counties of Unit 48, among them Craters of the Moon National Monument.
Land records and their units from IDFG, USFS, BLM, USFWS and IDL sources (see each land page); closed places from the Big Game 2026 Seasons and Rules and 18 U.S.C. 1165 for tribal land; checked November 12, 2026.
Near Unit 48
Start from Ketchum for Unit 48, or from Hailey and Sun Valley just outside the boundary.
- KetchumIn unit · Blaine County
- HaileyWithin 10 mi · Blaine County
- Sun ValleyWithin 10 mi · Blaine County
Stanley Lake and McGown Peak under a cloudy sky
Units that overlap the same counties as Unit 48, sorted by distance:
| Unit | Shared counties | Elk zone | Deer 2025 | Hunts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit 49 | Blaine | Pioneer | 722 | 10 |
| Unit 52A | Blaine | Big Desert | 207 | 4 |
| Unit 52 | Blaine | Smoky-Bennett | 5 | 13 |
| Unit 44 | Blaine | Smoky-Bennett | 0 | 18 |
| Unit 50 | Blaine | Pioneer | 383 | 18 |
| Unit 36 | Blaine | Sawtooth | 338 | 17 |
| Unit 68 | Blaine | Big Desert | 148 | 7 |
| Unit 53 | Blaine | Big Desert | 115 | 3 |
Towns and their units from places.json (Census places joined to the IDFG Game Units layer); 2025 deer from the Hunt Planner; checked November 12, 2026.
Sun and shooting hours for Unit 48
The dates in this Unit 48 table come from the season lines that reach its own units, plus the shortest day of the year.
| When | Event | First sun | Last sun | Legal light |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 1, 2026 | General elk opener | 6:25 a.m. MT | 9:01 p.m. MT | 5:55 a.m. MT to 9:31 p.m. MT |
| Aug 30, 2026 | Archery deer opener | 6:57 a.m. MT | 8:18 p.m. MT | 6:27 a.m. MT to 8:48 p.m. MT |
| Sep 15, 2026 | Chukar opener | 7:15 a.m. MT | 7:49 p.m. MT | 6:45 a.m. MT to 8:19 p.m. MT |
| Oct 10, 2026 | General deer opener | 7:43 a.m. MT | 7:04 p.m. MT | 7:13 a.m. MT to 7:34 p.m. MT |
| Oct 19, 2026 | Duck opener | 7:54 a.m. MT | 6:49 p.m. MT | 7:24 a.m. MT to 7:19 p.m. MT |
| Dec 21, 2026 | Shortest day | 8:06 a.m. MT | 5:03 p.m. MT | 7:36 a.m. MT to 5:33 p.m. MT |
Hours rule from the Idaho Big Game 2026 Seasons and Rules (wolf and upland game animals: same rule, wolf, upland); time zone from 49 CFR 71.9; sunrise and sunset worked out for this location with the NOAA solar formula (Mountain Time); migratory bird hours: IDFG migratory bird table; checked November 12, 2026. Legal hours for every county.
Unit 48 answered
Does the CWD Management Zone cover Unit 48?
No; the zone is Units 14, 18 and part of Unit 1.
How many wolves were taken in Unit 48 in 2025?
2.
Which towns sit within the boundary of Unit 48?
Ketchum.
Is any national forest in Unit 48?
Yes, 3 Forest Service records.
In which part of the state does Unit 48 sit?
Magic Valley country: the IDFG Magic Valley Region, across Blaine County.
Which region handles Unit 48?
IDFG Magic Valley Region.
How many 2026 tags do hunts in Unit 48 carry?
692 across 14 hunts, some shared with other units.
What elk zone is Unit 48 in?
The Smoky-Bennett Zone, shared with Units 43, 44, 45 and 52.
Does IDFG publish harvest for Unit 48?
Yes, by unit and by hunt on the Hunt Planner, 2021 to 2025 here.
Can I hunt deer in Unit 48 without a draw?
Yes, on the regular tag.
Does fall bear open early in Unit 48?
The fall line opens August 30, 2026.
Answers drawn from the IDFG sources cited on this page; checked November 12, 2026.
Other photos on this page: NPS Photo (Public domain); Tony Hisgett (CC BY 2.0); Argyleist (CC BY 2.0).