County guide · Montana · MT WPAs

Waterfowl Production Areas & Public Hunting Land in Phillips County, MT

Phillips County has 11 named Waterfowl Production Areas covering 8,207 acres of federally owned, walk-in public land. The largest is Beaver Creek WPA at 1,581 acres; the average tract is about 746 acres, and 1 are smaller than 80 acres.

WPAs here are managed by the Bowdoin Wetland Management District, which sets any district-specific rules (vehicle access, blinds, nontoxic shot, closed areas).

The county covers about 5,271 square miles and has roughly 4,217 residents. WPAs make up about 0.2% of its land area.

County mapAll 11 WPAsDownload KML
11named WPAs
8.2Kacres of WPA land
1,581largest WPA (ac)
5refuges & districts

Map of WPAs in Phillips County

Gold outlines are fee-title Waterfowl Production Areas — federally owned public land. Land outside them is almost always private. Switch to satellite to check water conditions and cover, and click any tract for coordinates.

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Waterfowl Production Area (public)County lineRefuge / station Tip: switch to Satellite or USGS Topo in the layer menu · click the map for GPS coordinates
Take every tract with you:KML (Google Earth / onX)GPX waypoints

All Waterfowl Production Areas in Phillips County

Largest WPAs (acres)
Beaver Creek WPA
1,581 ac
Korsbeck WPA
1,376 ac
Dyrdahl WPA
1,313 ac
McNeil Slough WPA
1,246 ac
Copple WPA
611 ac
Frank White WPA
485 ac
Webb WPA
479 ac
Pearce WPA
448 ac
Hewitt Lake WPA
324 ac
Hammond WPA
264 ac
South McNeil Slough WPA
79 ac
How big are the tracts? (number of WPAs by acres)
<4040–80: 1140–8080–160160–320: 11160–320320+: 99320+
WPAAcresNearest townGPSGo
Beaver Creek WPA
1,566 deeded ac		 1,581 15 mi E of Malta 48.40797, -107.54195 Map · Directions
Korsbeck WPA
1,041 deeded ac		 1,376 21 mi SW of Malta 48.21223, -108.27218 Map · Directions
Dyrdahl WPA
1,327 deeded ac		 1,313 38 mi N of Malta 48.90083, -107.95516 Map · Directions
McNeil Slough WPA
1,219 deeded ac		 1,246 19 mi NE of Malta 48.54828, -107.58171 Map · Directions
Copple WPA
600 deeded ac		 611 17 mi E of Malta 48.44867, -107.53513 Map · Directions
Frank White WPA 485 18 mi NE of Malta 48.54290, -107.59494 Map · Directions
Webb WPA 479 40 mi N of Malta 48.93875, -107.96683 Map · Directions
Pearce WPA
438 deeded ac		 448 13 mi NE of Malta 48.44544, -107.62522 Map · Directions
Hewitt Lake WPA 324 17 mi NE of Malta 48.53564, -107.59494 Map · Directions
Hammond WPA
246 deeded ac		 264 19 mi NE of Malta 48.56225, -107.59637 Map · Directions
South McNeil Slough WPA 79 17 mi NE of Malta 48.52301, -107.57858 Map · Directions

Acreage from USFWS realty GIS polygons. Coordinates are a point inside each tract — not necessarily a parking area. Look for designated parking and boundary signs on the ground.

Hunting WPAs in Phillips County: rules & tips

Typically allowed

  • Hunting waterfowl, upland birds, deer and other game in season under Montana regulations
  • Walk-in access from roads and designated parking areas
  • Fishing and trapping where state and district rules allow
  • Wildlife watching, photography and dog training outside restricted periods

Common restrictions

  • No camping, fires or overnight use on most tracts
  • Motor vehicles only on designated roads and parking areas
  • Blinds and portable stands usually removed at the end of each day
  • Nontoxic shot required for waterfowl; many districts require it for all shotgun hunting
  • Some tracts have closed areas, refuge-style rules or seasonal restrictions

Getting to Phillips County

Distances below are straight-line from the center of the county. Most WPAs are reached by county and township gravel roads — download the GPX file and load it into your phone or GPS before you lose cell coverage.

  • Malta, MT7.0 mi — county center is S of town
  • Glasgow, MT58 mi — county center is W of town
  • Jordan, MT80 mi — county center is NW of town
  • Havre, MT84 mi — county center is E of town

Shooting hours in Phillips County

Today at Phillips County

Legal light*–
Sunrise–
Sunset–

*½ hour before sunrise — the standard federal shooting-hour start for migratory game birds. Times in Denver local time.

Full season calculator →

2026–2027 season sun table

DateShooting lightSunriseSunsetDaylight
Tue, Sep 1, 20265:57 AM6:27 AM7:56 PM13h 28m
Tue, Sep 15, 20266:16 AM6:46 AM7:26 PM12h 40m
Thu, Oct 1, 20266:38 AM7:08 AM6:53 PM11h 44m
Thu, Oct 15, 20266:59 AM7:29 AM6:25 PM10h 56m
Sun, Nov 1, 20266:25 AM6:55 AM4:54 PM9h 59m
Sun, Nov 15, 20266:47 AM7:17 AM4:35 PM9h 17m
Tue, Dec 1, 20267:10 AM7:40 AM4:20 PM8h 40m
Tue, Dec 15, 20267:25 AM7:55 AM4:17 PM8h 22m
Fri, Jan 1, 20277:32 AM8:02 AM4:26 PM8h 24m
Fri, Jan 15, 20277:27 AM7:57 AM4:42 PM8h 45m
Mon, Feb 1, 20277:11 AM7:41 AM5:08 PM9h 27m

Computed for 48.260, -107.897 (MDT / DST-aware). Check state rules — big game hours vary.

7-day forecast for Phillips County

Loading National Weather Service forecast…

Forecast from the National Weather Service. Wind direction matters — plan your approach downwind of where game beds.

Refuges & districts with land in Phillips County

Bowdoin NWR

Phillips County, MT

1 open2 special1 closed
🦆🐦🕊️🐇

15.4K huntable acres

Bowdoin WMD

Phillips County, MT

1 open1 special1 closed
🦌🦆🦃🐦🕊️🐇🎣

8.3K huntable acres

Charles M. Russell NWR

Garfield County, MT

1 special2 closed
🦌🦆🦃🐦🕊️🐇🎣

931K huntable acres

Hewitt Lake NWR

Phillips County, MT

1 open
🦌🦆🐦🕊️🐇

720 huntable acres

UL Bend NWR

Phillips County, MT

1 special
🦌🦆🦃🐦🕊️🐇🎣

55.8K huntable acres

Refuge hunt units in Phillips County

UnitRefugeStatusAcres
PearceBowdoin NWROpen162
EastBowdoin NWRSpecial regs8,755
WestBowdoin NWRSpecial regs6,458
Administrative AreaBowdoin NWRClosed167
WPA OpenBowdoin WMDOpen6,806
WPA No RifleBowdoin WMDSpecial regs1,470
RefugeCharles M. Russell NWRSpecial regs931,398
Elk ViewingCharles M. Russell NWRClosed966
StationHewitt Lake NWROpen720
StationUL Bend NWRSpecial regs55,790

Neighboring counties with WPAs

Source: USFWS Realty Tracts (fee-title interest) and Esri county boundaries. Page updated October 28, 2026.