Registration is unlimited and open April 1-19; details are available now
MISSOULA — In a continued effort to improve safety on opening day at Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks’ Blackfoot-Clearwater Wildlife Management Area (WMA), antler hunters wanting to enter by vehicle at noon on May 15 should register and will use the WMA’s east entrance.
The WMA, located southeast of the town of Seeley Lake, is a popular destination that draws hundreds of antler hunters annually on opening day. Instead of staging vehicles along Hwy 83, which historically created congestion and safety concerns along the busy highway, those planning to access the WMA by vehicle should register online beginning April 1 at noon through April 19 at midnight.
To register and for more information, visit fwp.mt.gov and look for a link on the main page. Entry is not limited, and the registration list will be randomized to assign numbers, so there is not a rush to register during this timeframe. Entry order will be emailed to registrants the week of April 28.
All vehicle entry between noon and 2 p.m. on May 15 will be through the east entrance to the WMA, located off Woodworth Rd. and away from the busier Hwy 83. Those that miss the April 19 deadline and arrive on opening day without registering will line up at the east entrance behind all registered vehicles.
Beginning at 2 p.m., the west entrance of the WMA will also open to vehicles with no registration required. Walk-in and horse access is available from designated parking areas on the west side of the WMA, off Hwy 83, beginning at noon, also with no registration required.
Last year, those entering the WMA on opening day followed a similar process. Prior to 2024, several hundred vehicles, as well as some campers and horse trailers, staged along Hwy 83, some for several weeks in advance, to access the WMA on opening day. This was a human safety issue for those parked along the highway and for adjacent traffic, and one that FWP, the Montana Highway Patrol, and Montana Department of Transportation sought to address with this new approach.
For more information and to register beginning April 1, please visit fwp.mt.gov/conservation/wildlife-management-areas/blackfoot-clearwater-antler-hunting.
