How has the Big Grass Fire affected mule deer and elk?

idfg-rcurtis

Friday, October 9, 2026 - 10:59 AM MDT

The Big Grass Fire started from a lightning strike on July 23, 2026 and burned 578,637 acres in Idaho and Oregon. The fire affected an enormous area, and recovery will take time and effort to restore valuable wildlife habitat. While these efforts are ongoing, hunters can explore alternative places to hunt deer and elk in the affected units. Remember to always be fire-wise when recreating on this drought-stricken landscape, be mindful of private lands when hunting these units, and remember to keep motorized travel on established roads.

Before heading out on your hunt, please check the status on current BLM closures in Southwest Idaho.

Mule Deer

The Big Grass Fire impacted mule deer summer, transition, and winter ranges in both Idaho and Oregon. The level of impact varies by location, fire severity, and how much shrub cover remains. In some areas of the Big Grass Fire, sagebrush and bitterbrush survival was low, but other areas were less severe and unburned islands remain. The shrub component of habitat takes time to come back after a fire. Habitat rehabilitation efforts will focus on suppressing annual invasive grasses and helping jump-start shrub recovery with seeding and seedling planting in severely burned areas.

Alternative Areas to Hunt

General season deer hunters can expect deer to primarily be on summer range due to how warm October has been. Mule deer in the northern and eastern parts of Owyhee County were largely unaffected by the fire. Places in the Silver City Range, Mud Flat Road, and Bruneau may be better alternatives this year. The unburned areas of South Mountain and Combination Ridge are also still open and accessible to hunters.

Areas to target for controlled hunt tagholders in November can vary by weather, as early storms can start shifting deer toward winter ranges on the Oregon border, Owyhee Front, and Bruneau areas.

Elk

The Big Grass Fire affected winter, transition, and summer range for the South Mountain/Juniper Mountain elk herd. Summer range was also affected for the Combination Ridge herd, although a lot of their summer habitat remains unburned. Some of the elk in this herd winter in Jacks Creek and will be affected by the Duncan Fire. Elk are very mobile, show less loyalty to sites than mule deer do, and will likely find resources elsewhere.

The Big Grass Fire will be hard on elk for a year or two, but elk benefit from the grasslands created by fires and will likely see their habitat improve in the coming years. Habitat rehabilitation efforts for elk will focus on suppressing annual invasive grasses to allow perennial bunchgrasses to establish, seeding grasses, and potentially erosion control on wet meadows.

Alternative Areas to Hunt

Elk will likely still be on summer range at the start of the season, although they may be displaced into harder-to-access areas after the opener of the general deer season. The unburned areas of South Mountain and Combination Ridge are still open and accessible. The Silver City Range is a good alternative to try this year. Some mid-sized herds of elk roam north of Silver City in the Reynolds Creek/Succor Creek/Cow Creek areas. Triangle/south Silver City Range holds good numbers of elk as well.

Depending on weather, we usually see elk migrate to winter range during the season. In November, areas like Toy Mountain, Antelope Ridge, Antelope Flat, Jacks Creek, and the Owyhee River start seeing an influx of elk and provide late-season opportunity.

Unit 42 bull hunters, remember to check the BLM’s closure website after Oct. 15 to see if Juniper Mountain is open or not.