HUNTING INFO

Black Mountain Outfitters, Inc. is located just south of Livingston, Montana in beautiful Paradise Valley. Our nearest airport is the Bozeman Yellowstone Gallatin Field Airport in Belgrade, Montana.

Our backcountry early bugle season wilderness horseback camp is in Hunting District 316. None of our hunting districts or seasons require additional special permits. All areas are accessible with a general Montana hunting license.

We hunt two hunters per guide; a one-on-one hunt doubles the price of the hunt. Non-hunters riding along on the hunt are full price. We take 6-8 hunters per hunt.

Non-resident hunting licenses are available by drawing and may be applied for online at  http://fwp.mt.gov by the April 1 deadline of the year you plan to hunt. You may purchase a preference point online after the drawing any year you don’t hunt Montana for a maximum of three consecutive points. If you book with us, we will email you detailed instructions on how to apply when the license applications are available online in March.

Once we receive your non-refundable half-payment deposit to hold your hunt, we will email a confirmation and gear list. Your balance will be due before May 15 of the year of your hunt. If you think you may need to cancel, we recommend trip cancellation insurance to protect your adventure. Montana Outfitters and Guides Association suggests Global Rescue Travel Insurance. It is hard for us to find someone to fill your spot for last-minute cancellations in order to apply your payments to a future trip, though we may be able to do so with earlier cancellations. 

Your hunt price does not include your license, transportation to and from the airport to the trailhead or lodge, motels, meat processing, taxidermy, or gratuities. Game retrieval, packing, and field-caping are included in the price. There are no hidden trophy fees. Bring a gun you are familiar with and practice at different angles, distances, and rests. Your shooting ability and your rifle are the two things you can absolutely control on your trip to make it more successful. Get in shape and shoot that rifle every chance you get. Meals are home-style and hearty - you will not go hungry in our camp!

Screaming bulls rut throughout our early rifle season opening September 15th. Hunt the famous elk herd north of Yellowstone National Park. This is an all horseback hunt in wild country, and is an unforgettable adventure for any hunter. We hunt out of the same comfortable camp we use for summer trips, with large wall tents, comfortable cots, 4” foam pads, astroturf, and even a gravity flow hot water shower. This is a morning hunt: we allow the bulls to filter back into the meadows in the evenings. Any elk is legal, including cows and spikes, but we primarily kill mature five and six point bulls. If you want to hear elk screaming in the rut, come to the 980,000 acre Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness and ride up the mountain with Black Mountain Outfitters.

Hunt the shaggy white ghosts of the wilderness peaks from our elk camp in late September or early October, or combine it with your early rifle season bugle elk hunt. The lofty king of the mountain offers an unrivaled hunt from our comfortable horseback camp. Applications for this limited entry hunt are due by May 1st for a chance to touch a bit of heaven.

Listen to our home-raised Redbone hounds work a cold trail as their bone-chilling bawl echoes down the canyons. December and January find us following the footprints of the majestic Montana cougar through a winter wonderland laced with migrating elk and native deer and mountain sheep.

We hunt spring season fair chase spot-and-stalk on private ranches for the gorgeous color-phased black bear, ranging from shiny black fading to brown, or cinnamon shading to blonde.

• Montana Hunting License
• Lots of Outer Layers – light to heavy (wool and polar fleece are warm and quiet)
• Wool or Fleece Pants plus Jeans
• Two Pair Well Broke In Insulated Boots (so one can dry)
• Mittens and/or Gloves
• Long Underwear
• Camp Shoes Cap or Hat 400 Square Inches Orange (quiet, not nylon – not an orange hat)
• Small Backpack
• Quiet Rain Gear
• Binoculars
• Sleeping Bag Rated to 0 for Wilderness Hunts (we have bedding at the lodge)
• Bath Towel for the Wilderness Hunts (we have towels at the lodge)
• Camera and Charger or Batteries
• Personal Toiletries
• Any Prescription Medicine Necessary
• Prescription Glasses if you wear Contacts (just in case!)
• Rifle TWO boxes of shells
• Portable Charger for phone or any other device (as there's no electricity in the wilderness)

If you are hunting in the wilderness, pack all your gear in soft-sided duffel bags.

Two smaller duffels are better for the mules than one huge one!