Reservations
Booking a Reservation
To make a reservation for a hunt or for more information please call Dave Hein (406) 670-4366 or Abe Hein (406) 794-2204, or email Dave at heinline@bowhuntelk.com.
ALL BULL ELK BOW HUNTS ARE FILLED THROUGH 2028. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO RESERVE A BOW HUNT PLEASE CONTACT US ASAP.
Booking of hunt dates is done on the basis of when the $500.00 deposit was received. Please make checks payable to: "Elk Creek Family Outfitters". All deposits are fully refundable for any reason up to the day of the hunt.
Obtaining An Archery Elk Hunting License
We highly recommend that all hunters read the new 2025 regulations from Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks using the following link before applying for licenses this year:
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parts Hunting Regulations
- Hunters must apply online or in person, MFWP will no longer accept mail-in applications.
- The application period is March 1st - April 1st.
- The drawing results are projected to be available online by April 15th allowing hunters more time to begin making plans for the upcoming season!
- Hunters may have their licenses electronically on their mobile device.
- Tags must still be printed out and attached to the animal.
- Hunting regulations will not be available online until March 1st. Printed regulations might not be available this year until the end March.
Please apply as a party of two for a non-resident "Elk Combination-General" license with the Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks (MFWP).
At the same time that you apply for the “Elk Combination-General” license also apply for an elk permit and make sure to apply for permit number 411-21 as your first and only choice. A $10.00 bow and arrow license or archery stamp must also be purchased at the time of license application.
Please contact MFWP to verify application cost and licensing procedures at (406) 444-2950.
The 2025 MFWP deadline for license application is April 1st.
The results of the license drawings are projected to be available online at the MFWP website by the April 15th.
Increasing Your Odds of Drawing a License or Permit
Bonus Points:
In Montana every hunter who applies for a license or permit gets one chance in the drawing. Bonus points let you add to those chances. Think of bonus points as extra raffle tickets. If you apply for a license or permit without any bonus points, you get one “raffle ticket.” The number of “raffle tickets” you have in the drawing goes up with the number of bonus points you have.
A unique feature about Montana’s system is that we square bonus points prior to drawing. So, the more bonus points you have, the number of “raffle tickets” you have in the drawing goes up exponentially. For instance, if you have 10 bonus points, you get 101 “raffle tickets” for the drawing – 100 for your squared bonus points and 1 for your current application: (10 x 10) + 1.
Bonus points accumulate until you are successful in the drawing.
What is a bonus point?
A bonus point is an extra chance for a hunter to draw a license or permit in a Montana drawing. These bonus points can be accumulated at the rate of one per year by hunters who are unsuccessful in a drawing. They are accumulated by hunters per available license or permit . For instance, a hunter can have three bonus points for antelope, five for moose, one for antlerless elk, and fifteen for a deer A permit.
How do you get one?
• Bonus points can be purchased in one of two ways:
° At the time of application. If you don’t purchase one at the time of application, it can’t be purchased later.
° In years that you don’t apply for a license, a bonus point can be purchased separately between July 1 and Sept. 30.
• You can only purchase one bonus point per species opportunity per year.
How do you lose your bonus points?
• The only way to lose your bonus points is to either be successful in your first-choice license or permit drawing or be convicted of a wildlife crime and have your hunting privileges revoked.
• You don’t lose bonus points for successfully drawing your second or third choice permit.
• You can choose not to participate in the bonus point system on any given year. Your bonus points won’t be used in the drawing, and if you’re successful in drawing a license or permit, you won’t lose your bonus points.
How do bonus points work?
• The use of bonus points is directed by state statute.
• When a hunter enters a drawing, they can use their accumulated bonus points plus that year’s application.
• The bonus points are squared for the drawing.
• EXAMPLE: Larry
° Larry has five bonus points for the 2024 deer A permit drawing.
° Larry’s number of chances in the drawing: 5 squared +1=26.
• Each of Larry’s chances are combined with all the other applicants in the drawing. Think of these chances as raffle tickets. Each ticket is assigned a number. The lower the number the better. During the drawing, permits are assigned to numbers in order starting with the lowest number first.
Preference Points:
Preference points prioritize a nonresident combination license applicant with more preference points over an applicant who holds fewer preference points.
• 75% of nonresident combination licenses are awarded to applicants in the order of which applicants have purchased the greatest number of preference points. The other 25% are awarded to applicants who have not purchased any preference points via random drawing.
• Depending on how many applicants purchase preference points, the draw odds for applicants with zero preference points may be higher or lower than the draw odds for applicants who have purchased preference points. It is your responsibility as an applicant to review drawing statistics from prior years and make the best decision for your particular situation.
• All accumulated preference points, including any purchased at the time of application, will be used in the current year’s drawing whether you purchase a preference point or not.
• Accumulated preference points will be used during the current drawing whether you purchase an additional preference point or not. Any accumulated preference points are lost if the applicant does not apply for a nonresident combination license in consecutive years, or if you are successful at obtaining a combination license.
• If you apply for a combination license and an elk permit, you will have the opportunity to select the 80% refund option. If you select that option and are successful in the combination license drawing but unsuccessful in the elk permit drawing, you will receive an 80% refund of your license fee. Additionally, the number of preference points you hold will be reset to 0.
• Outfitter clients are eligible to purchase second preference point for an additional $100 at the time of application. Licenses issued using this point are only valid for hunting with an outfitter.
• No one may hold more than 3 preference points.
• Those who do not apply for a combination license may purchase one preference point for $100 over the counter from July 1 through December 31.
• Preference points for party applications are the average of their individual preference points rounded to the third decimal point.”
Parties
Up to 5 applicants may apply as a party. FWP shall use an average of the number of preference points accumulated by those applicants to determine the party's preference points. FWP shall consider any fraction that result from the calculation of an average when determining that priority.
For more information please contact:
Elk Creek Family Outfitters
c/o Dave & Abe Hein
1021 Toole Circle
Billings, Montana 59105
(406) 670-4366
(406) 794-2204
* Prices are for 2024 only. We may review and adjust our pricing for 2025 hunts.
*Please contact MFWP to verify application cost and licensing procedures at (406) 444-2950.