Idaho › Hunting seasons › Units › Unit 49
Magic Valley Region · 10 controlled hunts
Hunting Unit 49 in Idaho
Everything IDFG prints for Unit 49: 10 hunt numbers, 11 general rows and 2021 to 2025 results across Blaine.
Photo: Sam Beebe (CC BY 2.0)
Unit 49 by county
Read on the Hunt Planner, Unit 49 runs to 499,166 acres; the GIS overlay puts 100% of that ground in Blaine County. The whole unit falls inside Blaine County and covers 30% of that county.
| County piece | Unit % | County % | Boundary text |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blaine County | 100% | 30% | Yes |
The IDFG Magic Valley Region runs Unit 49; its nearest desk for the unit is the Magic Valley Region Office in Jerome.
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 49 zones at a glance
- Buy the Pioneer A or B tag for general elk in Unit 49; the zone also holds 2 other units.
- Unit 49 counts toward the Southern Mountains wolf zone (10 units). Hunting and trapping dates differ for public and private land.
- No CWD zone or mandatory testing rule names Unit 49 for 2026.
- The 2026 brochure lists Unit 49 among the units removed from the Motorized Hunting Rule.
See the zone: Pioneer 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; Motorized Hunting Rule; checked November 12, 2026.
Unit 49 controlled hunts
IDFG's 2026 hunt areas put 10 drawn hunts inside Unit 49: 5 elk, 2 pronghorn, 1 deer, 1 moose and 1 mountain goat. Their tags add up to 374, some shared with other units. 7 of them stay inside this unit; the rest also cover neighbouring units.
Applications for deer, elk, pronghorn and fall bear run May 1 to June 5; a second period runs August 5 to 15, with results by August 25. The moose, sheep and goat lines are 2026 hunts from the 2025 & 2026 brochure.
White-tailed doe standing in light snow
Deer, antlered (1)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1039 | 49 | Any Weapon | Nov 10 to Nov 24, 2026 | Antlered | 10 | Only here | p. 23 | — |
Elk, antlered (2)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2028 | 49 | Any Weapon | Oct 1 to Oct 14, 2026 | Antlered | 20 | Only here | p. 51 | — |
| 2029 | 49 | Any Weapon | Oct 15 to Oct 31, 2026 | Antlered | 175 | Only here | p. 51 | — |
Elk, muzzleloader (1)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2138 | 49 | Muzzleloader | Nov 1 to Nov 14, 2026 | Antlerless or Antlered | 75 | Only here | p. 55 | Either sex |
Elk, outfitter allocated (1)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2196 | 49 | Any Weapon | Oct 15 to Oct 31, 2026 | Antlered | 9 | Only here | p. 59 | Antlered only |
Elk, youth only (1)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2159 | 49 | Any Weapon | Oct 10 to Oct 31, 2026 | Antlerless | 50 | Only here | p. 57 | — |
Pronghorn, archery (1)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4035 | 49-1 | Archery | Aug 15 to Sep 15, 2026 | Bucks Only | Unlimited | 49, 50 | p. 66 | Buck only, Motorized Hunting Rule Applies in Unit 50, See Pages 104 – 106 |
Pronghorn, either sex (1)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4013 | 49 | Any Weapon | Sep 25 to Oct 24, 2026 | Antlerless or Antlered | 25 | Only here | p. 65 | — |
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 (1)
| Hunt | Area | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Tags 2026 | Units | Brochure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6017 | 50 | Any Weapon | Aug 30 to Nov 12, 2026 | Either-sex | 6 | 49, 50 | 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.
General tags that work in Unit 49
Over-the-counter big game in Unit 49 means deer, elk, black bear, mountain lion and gray wolf, 11 lines in all. General any-weapon deer opens October 10, 2026 and the last such line closes October 31, 2026.
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 (3)
| Tag or type | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Area | Notes | Now |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A tag | Archery | Aug 30 to Sep 30, 2026 | Antlerless or Antlered | 36A, 49, 50 | — | |
| A tag | Muzzleloader | Nov 1 to Nov 9, 2026 | Antlerless | 36A, 49, 50 | — | |
| B tag | Any Weapon | Nov 10 to Nov 30, 2026 | Antlerless | 36A, 49, 50 | Motorized Hunting Rule Applies in Unit 50. |
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 | 47, 49, 70, 72 | Dogs prohibited: July 1 – Aug 29; Oct 1 – Nov 30; Apr 1 – June 30 |
Gray wolf (3)
| 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 | Apr 1 to Nov 14, 2026 | Per wolf tag (see brochure for tag limits) | 39 units | — | |
| Hunting, public land | Hunting | Nov 15, 2026 to Mar 31, 2027 | Per wolf tag (see brochure for tag limits) | 39 units | — |
On general elk tags, Unit 49 has 2 A and 1 B lines.
Pioneer A/B lines (5)
| Tag | Weapon | Dates | Bag | Zone tags | In Unit 49 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A tag | Any Weapon | Aug 1 to Aug 29, 2026 | Antlerless | — | No |
| A tag | Any Weapon | Aug 1 to Oct 31, 2026 | Antlerless | — | No |
| A tag | Archery | Aug 30 to Sep 30, 2026 | Antlerless or Antlered | — | Yes |
| A tag | Muzzleloader | Nov 1 to Nov 9, 2026 | Antlerless | — | Yes |
| B tag | Any Weapon | Nov 10 to Nov 30, 2026 | Antlerless | 500 | Yes |
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.
Unit 49 harvest, 2021 to 2025
Deer on general tags, 2025: 722 from Unit 49, against 628 the year before.
The 2025 general elk total for the unit is 168, with 789 hunters afield.
2025 also brought 17 black bear and 1 mountain lion from Unit 49.
IDFG reports this harvest by unit and by hunt, never by county.
General deer and elk, 2025
| Kind and method | Taken | Hunters | Success | Days | Antlered | Antlerless |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deer, Any Weapon | 700 | 2,083 | 34% | 8,543 | 697 | 3 |
| Deer, Archery | 22 | 232 | 9% | 1,797 | 9 | 13 |
| Deer, Muzzleloader | 0 | 7 | 0% | 36 | — | — |
| Deer, All Weapons Combined | 722 | 2,322 | 31% | 10,375 | 707 | 16 |
| Elk, Any Weapon | 72 | 174 | 41% | 861 | — | 72 |
| Elk, Archery | 93 | 509 | 18% | 3,736 | 71 | 22 |
| Elk, Muzzleloader | 2 | 107 | 2% | 309 | — | 2 |
| Elk, All Weapons Combined | 168 | 789 | 21% | 4,907 | 71 | 96 |
Year by year
| Year | Deer (all weapons) | Elk (all weapons) | Black bear | Mountain lion | Gray wolf | Spring turkey |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 700 | 222 | 9 | 6 | 1 | — |
| 2022 | 676 | 384 | 17 | 7 | 2 | — |
| 2023 | 341 | 78 | 11 | 8 | 1 | — |
| 2024 | 628 | 101 | 25 | 5 | — | — |
| 2025 | 722 | 168 | 17 | 1 | — | — |
Results for the drawn hunts (10)
| Hunt | Species | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | Hunters 2025 | Success 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1039 | Deer | 9 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 88% |
| 2028 | Elk | 58 | 57 | 62 | 84 | 10 | 16 | 62% |
| 2029 | Elk | 16 | 10 | 28 | 32 | 85 | 171 | 50% |
| 2138 | Elk | 17 | 10 | 15 | 11 | 18 | 65 | 28% |
| 2196 | Elk | 9 | 7 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 9 | 56% |
| 2159 | Elk | 17 | 23 | 75 | 101 | 10 | 45 | 22% |
| 4035 | Pronghorn | 47 | 63 | 8 | 22 | 22 | 174 | 13% |
| 4013 | Pronghorn | 61 | 65 | 14 | 19 | 19 | 25 | 76% |
| 3053 | Moose | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 100% |
| 6017 | Mountain goat | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 100% |
White-tailed buck emerging from the tree line at the edge of a field
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.
Land records in Unit 49
Unit 49 overlaps 24 mapped land records, from WMAs (0) and Access Yes! ground (13) to national forest units (4) and BLM ground (4). Cards stop at 15, starting with the most local.
Leave Craters of the Moon National Monument out of any plan: these closed places lie in the unit's counties.
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.
Around Unit 49
Town pages for Unit 49: 2 inside the unit, 2 within 10 miles, beginning with Hailey.
- HaileyIn unit · Blaine County
- Sun ValleyIn unit · Blaine County
- KetchumWithin 10 mi · Blaine County
- CareyWithin 10 mi · Blaine County
A green grassy hill above the Silver Creek valley
Sharing a county with Unit 49, closest centres first:
| Unit | Shared counties | Elk zone | Deer 2025 | Hunts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit 48 | Blaine | Smoky-Bennett | 686 | 14 |
| 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 53 | Blaine | Big Desert | 115 | 3 |
| Unit 68 | Blaine | Big Desert | 148 | 7 |
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.
Unit 49 shooting light by date
IDFG allows big game, wolf and upland game animals from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset; for Unit 49 that window is worked out below with the NOAA solar formula on Mountain Time.
| Date | Season point | Sunrise | Sunset | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 49 in brief
Must deer shot in Unit 49 go in for a CWD sample?
No, the 2026 sampling list leaves it out.
Are there WMAs in Unit 49?
None in our records.
Which towns sit within the boundary of Unit 49?
Hailey and Sun Valley.
Where is the nearest IDFG office to Unit 49?
Jerome, 324 South 417 East – Suite 1.
What counties fall inside Unit 49 on the IDFG map?
Blaine County; Blaine County holds 100% of the unit by the GIS overlay.
Is Unit 49 an A tag or a B tag unit?
Both tags exist for the Pioneer Zone; 2 A and 1 B lines reach this unit.
What can I draw for Unit 49?
5 elk, 2 pronghorn, 1 deer, 1 moose and 1 mountain goat hunts.
Which deer tags work in Unit 49?
Regular tag.
How many deer came out of Unit 49 in 2025?
722 on general tags, all weapons combined.
Where are bear rules for Unit 49?
In the general bear tables of Big Game 2026 Seasons and Rules.
Are wolf seasons set by zone in Unit 49?
No. IDFG sets them by unit and land type; zones are for analysis.
Answers drawn from the IDFG sources cited on this page; checked November 12, 2026.
Other photos on this page: YellowstoneNPS (Public domain); USFWS Mountain Prairie (Public domain); Sam Beebe (CC BY 2.0).