District 215, Montana

Elevation ranges from approximately 4,500 feet in the Clark Fork and Warm Springs Creek valley floors to over 8,000 feet along the Continental Divide ridge (peaks including near MacDonald Pass and the divide south toward Butte). Terrain transitions from broad agricultural valleys and riparian corridors on the western floor to rolling foothills and then steep, heavily forested mountain slopes in the eastern two-thirds. The General Eisenhower area in the northeast near Elliston has forested rolling hills at 6,000-plus feet. A corridor of high basins above 8,000 feet lines the Continental Divide.

Primary vehicle corridors: Interstate 90 (west boundary, Garrison to Butte), US Highway 12 (north boundary, Garrison east through Elliston to MacDonald Pass), and Interstate 15 (southeastern boundary). Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest (Deer Lodge Ranger District) manages the eastern third; a well-developed Forest Service road network including FS Road 495 provides motorized access to most areas. The Spotted Dog WMA (~38,000 acres in Powell County north-northwest of Deer Lodge) is accessed from Deer Lodge via Jake Creek Road and from Avon via Trout Creek Road; the through-road is open year-round but unmaintained in winter and subject to seasonal closure. Spotted Dog WMA is closed to public entry Dec. 2 through May 15. The western third of the district is largely private ranch and agricultural land; Block Management Areas and FWP-designated public access parcels provide additional access. Nearest services: Deer Lodge (west), Elliston (northeast), Garrison (north junction), Butte (south).

Valley floors support sagebrush flats, native grassland meadows, and riparian corridors of cottonwood and willow along Warm Springs Creek and Clark Fork. Foothills and lower slopes carry open ponderosa pine and mountain shrub. Mid- and upper-elevation slopes are dominated by dense lodgepole pine and mixed stands of spruce-fir. Aspen patches and open grassy parks are scattered across steep slopes. Agricultural hay fields and croplands occupy private valley parcels west of Deer Lodge city.

Elk are the primary big-game draw; the 2024 FWP aerial count placed 1,451 elk in the district (average 1,706; population objective 1,360-2,040; status: At objective; EMU: Deer Lodge). Bulls summer in high basins above 8,000 feet along the Continental Divide, descending to ridges and drainages above Clark Fork as snowpack deepens. White-tailed deer concentrate in riparian drainages and agricultural lands of the Clark Fork valley. Mule deer range from valley cropland and foothills during early season to Continental Divide terrain; bucks may hold at higher elevation into the rut. Pronghorn are present in limited numbers, primarily on private sagebrush flats. Black bears occur throughout the forested portions. Mountain lions are present and managed under LMU 210-05 (winter male quota 3, female subquota 2). Gray wolves are confirmed in the district. A small number of grizzly bears have been reported (not a huntable species). Upland birds (mountain grouse) are also present.