Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks has overhauled hunting access at Missouri Headwaters State Park near Three Forks, replacing an informal permission-based system with a structured weekly lottery that limits daily hunter numbers and establishes new safety buffers throughout the park.
How the New System Works
Beginning August 26, hunters can submit requests online each Wednesday during business hours, listing up to three preferred hunting days for the following week. At 4 p.m. each Wednesday, FWP will randomize all submissions and select six hunters per day. The lottery runs weekly through January 6, with the final authorized hunting period closing January 11.
Hunters who wish to access the park outside the lottery window are still required to obtain permission directly from the park office. Allowed equipment includes handguns, shotguns, archery gear, and muzzleloaders. Hunting is restricted to upland game birds, waterfowl, and deer.
A 200-foot safety buffer has been established around all campsites, parking areas, and trails — a provision designed to reduce risk as the park handles growing recreational traffic alongside hunting activity.
Safety Behind the Change
FWP officials cite both safety concerns and a sharp increase in overall park visitation as the driving forces behind the change. Alice Southworth, the park’s recreation manager, described conditions last year as “a little crazy” with the volume of hunters present alongside other recreational users. Morgan Jacobsen, Region 3 Information and Education Program Manager, told KTVH that safety is the central purpose of the new procedure.
The lottery framework is not new to FWP as a whole — the agency already uses similar systems at other managed areas around the state. Missouri Headwaters is the latest addition to that approach as visitation pressure mounts at popular parks that serve both hunters and the general public.
What Hunters Need to Know
The weekly application window opens on Wednesdays during business hours, with selections made at 4 p.m. the same day. Hunters should plan to submit requests well in advance of their preferred dates, as only six spots are available per day across the entire park. The system is administered through the FWP website.
Missouri Headwaters State Park, located at the confluence of the Jefferson, Madison, and Gallatin rivers, draws significant visitor traffic from hikers, campers, and paddlers — populations whose use of shared trails and facilities created the friction that prompted the policy shift.
The new rules take effect with the first lottery on August 26 and remain in place through the close of the hunting period in January.
