If so, is there a password or secret handshake we need to know at the border?

Couple of deranged buddies and I are going to take a leisurely drive to your part of the world the first week of October, in search of things with feathers to shoot at.  Before you jump to any conclusions, I'm not here asking for directions to anyone's secret grouse honey hole or the like  ...hell, I'm not even sure what part of the state we are headed to.  

Plan is drive up the last weekend of Sept, spend M - F hunting something (again, I'm not in charge of the planning part), then head home the next Saturday.  I believe we have the first day booked with a guide, then plan on roaming the state with maps and a GPS. The plan is to spend at least some of the nights camping (there better be a shower or two over the course of the week or the dogs may abandoned us) and eat wherever the locals point us to.

My buddies are more the upland bird types, and  are happy following the dogs around until thier feet get tired...I'm a little more flexible on what I'm willing to hunt, so I'm trying to figure out extracurricular actives for when the blisters curtail the walking.

There seems to be a LOT of info on big game hunting in MT and plenty of info on upland game birds, but it gets sketchy past that. That leaves me wondering about about some stuff that I have not had great luck wit on the Internet.

Do you have prairie dogs and are they legal to shoot in Oct?  With any luck, we might limit out on whatever we're hunting and need something else to blast in the afternoons. If they are legal to shoot, how does that work and what general parts of the state are they found in?  Is is strictly pay-to-play or do you find colonies on public lands?  If its pay-to-play, what are typical fees for non-guided hunts?

Sounds like it will be morning dove season while we are there.  Is there decent dove hunting in your fair state in early October? If so, the same questions as above apply...how do we find places and what does it cost?

What else is there to do in your fine state in early October (for a group of Texans that have been too close to the dogs and too far from the showers)?  Again, we are there M-F, so we'll miss weekend type stuff.  Any must-see kind of attractions, you gotta eat there places, or world class sporting clays courses.  

Finally, is there anything we need draw a skull and crossbones through on the map and steer clear of?

Thanks in advance

Read up on Montana's block management program.  State collects conservation dollars from all hunters and uses it to purchase hunting/access rights on ranches and farms so the public can get to the game.  You can get the book sent to you from FWP and can contact the landowners where you want to go.

In my experience, the best grouse hunting tends to be in heavily forested and mountainous country, which could have some snow in early October.  Pheasant doesn't open until Oct. 12 so you will miss that if you come up the first week of the month.  That's a real shame because pheasant hunting in Montana is a lot of fun.

As for prairie dogs, it's a mixed bag.  You can find them on BLM land in central and eastern Montana.  But it's a lot of messing around to do so.  When I've gone in the past, it's after me or a friend stumbled across a bunch while out hiking or shooting or mountain biking, etc.  Since you won't have time to scout the dogs, I would call some of those ranchers in the block management book and see if there's someone who has a colony that needs to be wiped out.  You may get lucky.

Can't really give you advice on where to eat without knowing where you're going.  Re-post when you have a tentative schedule and I'm sure we can give some pointers.

Long story short, I'd try to come up after Oct. 12 to do upland game bird hunting.

Don't forget to check out all the awesome breweries. This state has world class breweries IMO

My buddy is in charge of where we are headed. He claims he will have that firmed up in a couple of day. Will post when i get the info.

dup post

I would have to say southeastern MT is where the prairie dogs can be found by the miles long prairie dog towns we have down here. I'm in the Colstrip area. I have no idea what the season is on them down here, and honestly don't give a shit. They aren't furbearers, and don't do much for farmland. They sure are fun to watch explode with a 22-250 and winchester white box 45gr. HPs.

Thanks Mudstud.  
We've ended up booking the first couple of days with an outfitter in the north central part of state.  Then we're going to start working our way down to the south eastern part of state over the next couple of days, hunting public access land as we go. I figure by Thursday afternoon or Friday, we will have walked enough miles that sitting around for a few hours blasting dogs would be a good exit on the way back to Texas.

There is no season/limit on P-dogs.  If they're up, put em down.  Hope you guys have a great time.