District 322, Montana

The district encompasses open valley floor along the Ruby River (approximately 4,900-5,500 ft) rising through island mountain ranges — the Ruby Mountains to the west, the Blacktail Range to the southwest, and portions of the Gravelly and Snowcrest ranges to the east — with higher elevations reaching approximately 9,500 ft in the Ruby Mountains and exceeding 10,500 ft at Black Butte in the Gravellies. The Ruby Mountains feature precipitous, rocky terrain in the northern portion and more gently rolling slopes in the south. Valley floor is irrigated agricultural land along the Madison, Beaverhead, and Ruby Rivers. GoHunt lists unit elevation from approximately 5,500-9,000 ft and unit size at 527 square miles.

Primary road access: Montana Highway 287 (Twin Bridges to Virginia City), Route 41 (Twin Bridges to Dillon), and Interstate 15 form the outer corridor. The Ruby River Road runs south from Alder along the valley, with side roads into the Ruby Mountains including Hinch Creek Road and Garden Creek Road. Gravelly Range access begins via Varney Road off MT Hwy 287 south of Ennis, connecting to the Gravelly Range Road — a 30-mile Forest Service road climbing from approximately 6,670 ft to 9,600 ft. The Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest (Madison Ranger District, Dillon Ranger District) administers national forest lands within the Gravelly Range portion. The BLM Ruby Mountains WSA is roadless and managed by the BLM Dillon Field Office. The Madison-Wall Creek Wildlife Management Area lies along the Madison River near Ennis with seasonal closure December 1 through May 15. Block Management Program properties provide supplemental private-land access. Public land percentage is estimated at 26% (HuntScore, deer/elk sub-district).

Forested slopes in the Ruby Mountains carry Douglas fir, lodgepole pine, limber pine, and Engelmann spruce with rock outcrops, talus, aspen groves, and canyon meadows. Lower foothills transition to sagebrush-grassland and irrigated hay meadows. The Gravelly Range features open meadows above timber at higher elevations. Riparian corridors along the Ruby and Madison Rivers provide cottonwood and willow habitat critical for deer and elk winter forage.

Elk populate the mountain ranges and winter on valley floor habitat, with the Gravelly EMU (HDs 322, 323, 324, 325, 326, 327, and 330) estimated at approximately 9,084 animals as of 2024 and a management objective of 6,000-10,000; elk populations remained within management objective following the 2024 hunting season and preliminary summer 2025 surveys indicated strong calf production. A large proportion of elk distribute onto private lands not enrolled in Block Management during fall seasons. Mule deer are the primary deer species in the open valley and sagebrush terrain; populations were mostly within management objective as of spring 2025 with fawn production at or above the long-term average for three consecutive years. White-tailed deer occur along river bottoms and irrigated fields but have declined approximately 90% since spring 2020 in the Sheridan-area Ruby Valley due to CWD; district-wide CWD prevalence in whitetails is 39% (based on FWP sample of 532 animals). CWD has also been detected in elk within HD 322 at 2% prevalence. Pronghorn occupy the open sagebrush and grassland terrain with populations stable near long-term averages as of 2025. Black bear and mountain lion inhabit the timbered mountain ranges. Grizzly bears have been documented in the district. Gray wolves are present in southwest Montana.