Unit 670

The Milk River forms the southern boundary and is the unit's primary drainage feature, visible from most high points. Notable buttes include Haystack Butte, Round Butte, and Tea Kettle Butte, which serve as excellent glassing vantage points and navigation markers. Nelson Reservoir and Thirtymile Reservoir provide visible water features and camping locations.

The Dahl and Opheim Hills offer modest elevation gains for surveying surrounding prairie. Pikes Peak and Windy Ridge provide additional high-point reference features. These landforms break the monotony and give hunters natural vantage points to spot pronghorn across the vast grasslands.

Terrain ranges from just over 2,000 feet in the Milk River bottoms to roughly 3,300 feet on the highest ridges and buttes—a gentle, rolling landscape typical of the northern Great Plains. Vegetation is predominantly shortgrass prairie and sagebrush steppe with scattered low-growing shrubs. Cottonwood draws line the creek bottoms and coulee systems; small irrigated agricultural areas break up the native prairie.

The sparse forest badge reflects the open country character—trees appear mainly along riparian corridors and in isolated pockets rather than continuous timber. This is wide-open, exposed country with excellent visibility.

Over 2,800 miles of roads crisscross the unit, primarily secondary ranch and county roads rather than improved highways. US Highway 2 provides backbone access, with turnoffs leading into the prairie. Fair accessibility means the unit sees moderate hunting pressure, though much land is private requiring permission.

Major towns like Harlem and Dodson offer services. The combination of decent road access and open terrain means most hunters won't wander far from vehicles; hunters willing to glass and hike from roads into the prairie find less competition. Early season typically draws more pressure; late season sees less activity.

Unit 670 encompasses the rolling prairie of northern Blaine, Phillips, and Valley counties between the Canadian border and the Milk River valley. The unit stretches from the Harlem-Turner Road westward to the Fort Peck Reservation boundary, roughly 50 miles east-west and 30 miles north-south. US Highway 2 bisects the unit horizontally, providing the primary travel corridor.

The Fort Belknap and Fort Peck Indian reservations border significant portions, creating a patchwork of public and private ownership. The landscape sits in the rain shadow of the Rocky Mountains, resulting in semi-arid shortgrass prairie typical of Montana's hi-line region.

Water is limited but exists in patches. The Milk River runs through the southern portion, reliable but often brushy and difficult to access. Nelson Reservoir and Thirtymile Reservoir provide reliable stock water and hunting camp locations.

Scattered springs including Snieder Spring, Sleeping Buffalo Hot Springs, and several others support wildlife but require scouting. Creeks like Savoy Creek, Wayne Creek, and Black Creek flow intermittently through coulees. During dry periods, water sources concentrate game around the reservoirs and springs, shaping hunting strategy significantly.

Pronghorn can travel far from water, but in summer and fall, knowing water locations is critical.

Unit 670 is pronghorn country. The open prairie, sagebrush flats, and scattered buttes provide ideal habitat for consistent populations. Early season hunting benefits from morning and evening glassing from high points, spotting animals feeding on exposed prairie.

The rolling terrain and coulee systems offer stalking opportunities for careful hunters. Mid-season hunting shifts focus to watered areas—reservoirs and springs become congregating points. The sparse water forces pronghorn into predictable patterns.

Late season drives animals into thicker cover along creek bottoms. The key throughout is using the wide visibility and open terrain to locate animals at distance, then working closer carefully. This is not a surprise-encounter hunt; it rewards patient glassing and deliberate stalking.