Unit 35, Idaho

The unit is entirely mountainous with steep, rocky slopes. Elevation ranges from approximately 4,100 feet along the South Fork of the Payette River canyon bottom to about 10,500 feet on the highest peaks in the Sawtooth Range. Most productive hunting terrain sits between 5,000 and 8,000 feet. Ridgelines, deep drainages, and high alpine basins are characteristic.

State Highway 21 (Ponderosa Pine Scenic Byway / Banks-Lowman Road) is the primary corridor, running along the South Fork Payette River through the unit from Banks in the west toward Lowman and then Stanley to the east. Forest Road 520 (Bull Trout Lake Road) provides northern access. Forest Road 524 (Grandjean Road, about 6 miles of improved gravel) branches north off Highway 21 near Lowman and terminates at the Grandjean Campground and Trailhead, the principal jumping-off point for the Sawtooth Wilderness. Additional motorcycle and ATV routes originate from the Wapiti Creek and Kirkham Ridge trailheads. Four-wheel-drive vehicles are recommended on mountain roads; ATVs are permitted on most dirt roads and designated trails. The Sawtooth Wilderness (61,099 acres, 25.37% of the unit) prohibits all motorized vehicles and bicycles — hunters access it on foot or with stock. The unit is managed 99.25% by USFS (Boise, Sawtooth, and Salmon-Challis National Forests); private land is 0.44%. No Access Yes! properties are currently listed.

Lower south- and west-facing slopes support grasses, sagebrush, and scattered ponderosa pine. Mid-elevation zones carry mixed conifer including lodgepole pine, Douglas-fir, and spruce, with aspen pockets, mountain maple, willow-choked creek bottoms, and mahogany on drier ridges. High terrain opens into alpine meadows, talus, and subalpine basins. Land cover is approximately 96% forested, 4% rangeland. Recent fire history has produced burn scars in Units 33-35 with standing dead timber and new forb-and-grass regeneration; hunters should check Forest Service websites for road hazards and dead-fall.

Rocky Mountain elk are present unit-wide; bulls occupy high-elevation basins (around 7,000 ft) in summer and shift to lower drainages as winter approaches. The unit falls within the Sawtooth Elk Zone (Units 33-36). Overwintering bull numbers have shown a slight decline per 2023 survey; cow numbers increased. Much of the huntable elk population migrates into the zone seasonally. Mule deer are the most commonly targeted big game; populations in Units 33-35 have recovered steadily since a hard winter in 2016-17, with the most recent winter survey recording the highest antlered deer and fawn-to-doe ratios since that recovery began. Burn scars have improved visibility and forb availability. Black bears are present throughout forested drainages. Mountain lions are present and may be taken under a general tag. Gray wolves are established in the region. Mountain goats occupy high rocky terrain in Hunt Area 36-1 (Sawtooth NRA overlap zone covering portions of Units 35 and 36). White-tailed deer are listed on the IDFG unit page but are incidental in this overwhelmingly mule deer unit.