The application period for fall 2022 deer, elk, pronghorn, fall black bear and fall turkey controlled hunts ends June 5. Hunters are reminded the last day is on a Sunday, and Fish and Game offices are closed Saturdays and Sundays, June 4-5. Anyone needing assistance from Fish and Game staff to fill out an application needs to visit a regional office by the end of business hours on Friday, June 3.
Hunters with a valid 2022 Idaho hunting license may apply for controlled hunts at any license vendor, Fish and Game office or with a credit card online at license.gooutdoorsidaho.com or by calling 1-800-554-8685. There is an additional fee for online and phone orders.
Controlled hunts are a chance at some of Idaho’s best buck and bull hunts, antlerless hunts, extra hunting opportunity or tags set aside for youth hunters. Hunters can research which controlled hunt is right for you in the 2022 Big Game Seasons and Rules booklet or by checking out Idaho Fish and Game’s Hunt Planner here.
Successful controlled hunt applicants will be notified by July 10.
Here are some things that hunters should know for the 2022 controlled hunt application period:
- Some controlled hunts were eliminated for 2022 due to disease outbreak: The Fish and Game Commission removed several extra antlerless doe hunts in the Clearwater Region for 2022 due to loss of white-tailed deer from epizootic hemorrhagic disease.
- Chronic wasting disease was detected in Idaho for the first time in 2021: A total of six mule deer, white-tailed deer and elk tested positive in Unit 14. Fish and Game has mandated CWD testing for all deer and elk taken in Units 14 and 15 for 2022 and plans to increase testing in adjacent units.
- There's a five-day wait to buy capped Elk Zone tags: Residents who apply for a controlled elk hunt cannot buy a capped Elk Zone tag until five days after they go on sale, regardless of whether they draw a controlled hunt elk tag. Some controlled hunts are exempt from the waiting period, including extra elk hunts, depredation hunts, Landowner Appreciation Program hunts, or Super Hunts. See 2022 Big Game Seasons and Rules brochure for details.
- One-year wait for successful pronghorn applicants: Any person who drew a controlled pronghorn hunt in 2021 (including either sex or doe and fawn) is ineligible to apply in 2022 for any controlled pronghorn hunt. (See Page 108 of the big game rules booklet for exceptions.)
- Pronghorn archery hunts: Unlimited archery controlled hunts for pronghorn are first-choice only hunts. Fish and Game made the change in response to steadily increasing numbers of archery pronghorn hunters over the past 10 years and an effort to reduce hunter numbers in these controlled hunts.