About Montana
In Montana, you can find yourself gazing out into "Big Sky Country" where the views are endless. The skylines are unobstructed in every direction. The breathtaking sunsets complement the mountains and prairies. Of course, everything is big in Montana. There are vast prairies with big ranches for established herds of cattle and thriving big game that call these ranges home.
Farmland accounts for 58 million acres in the state producing the most wheat, dry peas, lentils and flax in America. A staggering 22 million acres of massive national and state forests offer open access to some of the country’s truly wild places where exploration, adventure, fishing and hunting are unmatched.
Over 100 towering, named mountain ranges in the western Rockies with countless ski resorts and streams and rivers rich with trout offer opportunities for every kind of outdoor recreation. With big forests and mountains there's also big adventure. The wilderness is loaded with big game to hunt. Bison is the largest big-game animal on the continent, and with the right tag, you can hunt them in Montana.
The Kootenai National Forest in the far northwestern section of Montana has numerous base camps and opportunities to have a Lewis-and-Clark adventure hunting black bear, bighorn sheep, mountain lion, elk and moose. If you scout and spot a giant whitetail or muley in the 3-million-acre Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest, it's possible you'll be the only human to ever lay eyes on that particular deer.
In the alpine, where you'll likely see your own breath, a fresh snowfall is invigorating on a hunt in the backcountry. When that hunt is offset with a warm cookstove, the smell of backwoods venison stew and the best cup of hot coffee you've ever had, a day hunting Montana's woods becomes complete and well worth it. Pull your sleeping bag up and drift off dreaming of adventures in a land where Native Americans and frontiersmen have traversed for hundreds of years. Unique excursions into Montana's wild is the stuff of legends.
Montana is sandwiched between two of the nation's most iconic national parks. With Glacier to the north and Yellowstone in the south, there are truly unending treasures to explore and discover. From west to east, Montana starts in the Rocky Mountains and the Continental Divide with its great waterfalls and deep gorges. Sloping eastward, two-thirds of the state is considered part of the Great Plains. This area, situated in the central and eastern regions, is dominated by grasses, valleys, highlands and forests.
The Treasure State also attracts mining companies who are mining the state's natural resources including gold, copper, zinc, platinum and silver. Montana’s diversity in outdoor recreation and industry continues to place it at the top for those searching for opportunities in a true outdoor paradise.
The abundance of gorgeous wilderness, precious metals, forever skies and endless potential make Montana a state that really is a treasure. As the fourth biggest state in land area, Montana is the third, least-densely populated state in the U.S. at less than seven people per square mile. As such, it's easy to find peace, seclusion and realized dreams in Montana.
State Profile
- Big Game
- Bison, Wolf, Antelope, Elk, Mule Deer, Moose, Whitetail Deer, Black Bear, Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep, Mountain Goat, Mountain Lion, Turkeys
- Small Game
- Upland Game, Crane, Coyotes, Bobcats, Fox, Pheasant, Dove, Grouse, Duck
- Hunting Regulations and Seasons
- https://fwp.mt.gov/hunting
- Total Public Land Acreage
- 44,103,065 Acres
- Average Annual Rainfall
- 10 inches leeward, 30 inches windward
- Farmland by Acre
- 58,000,000
- Woodlands by Acre
- 22,500,000
- Agricultural Commodities
- Wheat, Barley, Cattle