Idaho Unit 52A: 2026 general elk and deer seasons
Unit 52A is in Idaho's Big Desert elk zone and covers about 1,735 square miles, from about 4,100 to 5,700 feet. Towns in the unit: Carey, Minidoka and Dietrich. Nearest towns outside it: Shoshone (on the line), Richfield (on the line) and Arco (2 mi).
General elk seasons in Unit 52A
Unit 52A is in the Big Desert Zone (units 52A, 53, 68, 68A). An Idaho general elk tag is bought for one zone and is either an A tag or a B tag. These are the any-weapon seasons that tag holders can hunt here.
| Tag | Season | Days | What may be taken | Capped tags (zone) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Big Desert B | Nov 1 to Dec 31 | 61 | Antlerless elk | 350 |
A capped zone sells a set number of tags, first come, first served, for residents, nonresidents and outfitters together (brochure page 49, Note 2). Elk table: brochure page 46.
Other general elk seasons on these tags
The same zone tags also carry these seasons, which are for archery, muzzleloader or short-range weapons only, or open only on or near private land:
- A tag. Archery only: any elk, Units 52A and 68 only: Aug 30 - Sep 30
General deer seasons in Unit 52A
The regular deer tag is good for mule deer or white-tailed deer unless the season says otherwise. These are its general any-weapon seasons in Unit 52A.
| Season | Days | What may be taken |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 10 to Oct 31 | 22 | Antlered, mule deer or white-tailed deer |
Antlerless deer: Oct 10 - Oct 31 (youth hunt only).
Deer table: brochure page 13. The white-tailed deer tag, archery, muzzleloader and controlled deer hunts are separate and not listed here.
Rules that apply in Unit 52A
- Motorized Hunting Rule. Unit 52A is a restricted unit from August 30 to November 14: while hunting, motor vehicles may be used only on established roads open to motorized traffic and passable by a full-sized car (brochure pages 104 to 105).
- Hunting hours. Half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset (page 95).
- Scouting technology. From August 30 to December 31 Idaho law forbids thermal imaging, night vision, drones, and transmitting trail cameras on public land for hunting or scouting big game (House Bill 939 of 2026; brochure page 96).
- Private land. Idaho requires written or other lawful permission to enter private land (pages 7 and 97).
Public land in Unit 52A
Measured inside IDFG's unit boundary from the BLM's national surface management data. Idaho endowment (state) land and wildlife management areas are not counted, so the land open to the public is often a little more than this. Elevation: USGS 3DEP, the 1st to 99th percentile inside the unit. Towns: OpenStreetMap.
Nonresidents: since the 2026 season, Idaho's nonresident general deer and elk tags are issued by a random draw. The application period for 2027 tags is December 5 to 15, 2026 (IDFG).
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Unit 68 All general elk units All general deer units Idaho seasons and tags
Seasons: Idaho Department of Fish and Game, Idaho Big Game 2026 Seasons and Rules (July 2026 to June 2027), with its corrections page of July 2026, which changes no deer or elk season. IDFG can change a season during the year: check idfg.idaho.gov/rules/big-game before you go.