District 284, Montana

The district sits at the convergence of the Continental Divide and Blackfoot Valley, with town-area elevations of approximately 4,540–4,575 feet rising to roughly 5,200 feet at the surrounding forested ridges and benches. Stemple Pass (6,384 ft) lies about 12 miles southeast and is outside district boundaries. The valley floor is relatively flat where it parallels the Blackfoot River and its tributary the Landers Fork, transitioning to timbered foothills and moderate slopes on the periphery. Much of the public-land terrain within the district has slopes equal to or less than a moderate grade.

The district is largely surrounded and penetrated by private land (~70–85% private by most estimates, with only ~15–16% public land). Public land within the district consists primarily of Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest parcels and some Montana DNRC State land. U.S. Highway 200 bisects the district and provides the main corridor through Lincoln. The official boundary runs from State Route 200 at the Sections 28/29 line (T14N, R9W), along Beaver Creek Road to the Great Falls–Ovando powerline, east to the Landers Fork, south along the Blackfoot River, and back via Stemple Pass-Poorman Creek Road and Herrin Lakes/Dalton Mtn/Sauerkraut Roads. Access to Forest Service lands is via Stemple Pass-Poorman Creek Road (County Road 601), heading southeast from Lincoln, and the Beaver Creek Road heading northeast. Private land dominates the valley floor; hunters must secure landowner permission or rely on the limited public parcels scattered through the unit. The Lincoln Ranger District office (1569 Highway 200, Lincoln, MT; 406-362-7000) administers the national forest within and adjacent to the district. Section 24, T14N, R9W (the core Lincoln townsite) is closed entirely to big-game hunting per FWP black bear regulations (Lincoln Closed Area).

Vegetation reflects the upper Blackfoot Valley transition zone: lodgepole pine and mixed conifer timber cover the upland benches and hillsides, with riparian corridors of cottonwood, willow, and alder along the Blackfoot River and Landers Fork. Intervening private land includes agricultural meadows, irrigated hay fields, and residential/hobby ranchlands. Edges between timbered National Forest land and open private-land fields create the primary wildlife habitat structure in this district. The Scapegoat Wilderness immediately north supports more expansive spruce-fir and subalpine cover above the district boundary.

White-tailed deer are the primary big-game species in this valley-bottom, agricultural-edge habitat; bucks including mature individuals have been documented in recent years. Elk are present but in modest numbers given the district's small size and predominantly private land; bulls including smaller-class animals are occasionally harvested. Black bears use the timbered hillsides and riparian areas, with the broader Lincoln area well within Region 2 black-bear range. Mountain lions are present in the surrounding foothills and forested terrain. Moose occur sporadically in the riparian corridors of the Blackfoot drainage. Grizzly bears are documented in the broader Lincoln ecosystem (the Scapegoat/Bob Marshall complex is one of the grizzly bear recovery areas), though grizzlies are not legally huntable. Wolves have colonized the region. The district's agricultural interface and edge cover make it particularly attractive to white-tailed deer.

1. HD 284 is an archery-only district for deer and elk — confirmed by official FWP 2026-2027 legal descriptions PDF (name: 'Lincoln Archery District'). No rifle general season or muzzleloader deer/elk season applies within district boundaries. 2. Public land percentage (~16%) is from GoHunt/HuntScore and reflects heavy private-land composition of this valley-bottom unit. 3. Lincoln Closed Area (Section 24, T14N, R9W) confirmed closed to all big-game hunting per 2026 FWP black bear regulations. 4. Bear archery season Sept 5-14 and general season Sept 15-Nov 29 confirmed from FWP 2026 black bear regulations PDF. 5. Mountain lion season corrected from draft: archery Sept 5-Oct 18; fall Oct 24-Nov 29; winter Dec 1-May 25 (no separate muzzleloader period — the 'Dec 12-20' date in the draft was incorrect, applying only to deer/elk muzzleloader statewide). 6. Grizzly bears are present in the surrounding ecosystem but are federally protected and not legally huntable. 7. Moose omitted from species list — huntable status within HD 284 uncertain (limited special permit statewide). 8. Harvest statistics not publicly reported at district level for this small archery-only unit.