Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek/East Elk Hunting, Utah
Utah hunt unit · 3,053 sq mi
Premium — 10–19 points
The easiest of the main limited-entry hunts here (Archery) for a Utah resident, by the bonus points that drew reliably. The other main hunts take more. 6 limited-entry hunts, plus a multiseason permit; 3 of them during the September rut.
What hunting Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek/East is like
The Bitter Creek/East portion of the Book Cliffs is big, mixed country, running from around 4,200 feet up to 9,500 feet, with substantial steep ground mixed in among gentler slopes. At lower elevations the cover is overwhelmingly sagebrush with small pockets of grass and meadow, riparian and conifer; move up to mid elevations and it shifts to a sagebrush-conifer mix, and higher still conifer becomes dominant with sagebrush and a bit of aspen holding on. That range of elevation and cover gives elk room to use different parts of the unit as the fall progresses, and it gives hunters a lot of ground to cover on foot or by vehicle depending on where they end up.
Roughly 69 percent of the unit, about 2,114 square miles, is generally open to public hunting through a mix of BLM, State Trust Land and Wildlife Management Areas — trust land parcels are covered by a standing state access agreement, though individual parcels can still be leased or restricted. About 27 percent of the unit is tribal land that is closed to state-licensed hunting and requires the tribe's own permission, so it is worth knowing where that boundary falls before planning a route. Only about 4.1 percent is private. Permit holders should note that CWMUs on the unit are off limits regardless of tag type.
Winter Range covers about half the unit and Crucial Winter Range makes up about a quarter, with Summer Range, Crucial Summer Range and Yearlong Range each covering smaller shares — elk here use different parts of the unit seasonally rather than staying in one place year-round, though only the Yearlong Range share actually reflects animals present all year. The general-season archery, any-legal-weapon and muzzleloader hunts fall on a spike-only ruling, so rifle and muzzleloader hunters can only take a spike bull, and archers are limited to a spike bull or an antlerless elk. Anyone after a branch-antlered bull needs the separate, drawn limited-entry permit, which runs on a much longer set of season windows across the fall.
Limited-entry bull elk (2026)
Limited entry is Utah's drawn bull hunt, managed for older bulls, with far fewer permits than the general season. It is drawn with bonus points: half the permits go to the applicants holding the most points, and the other half are drawn at random with one extra entry for every point held — so applicants below the reliable level do draw. A Utah resident may apply for only one limited-entry species a year.
| Season | Dates | Legal elk | Rut phase |
|---|---|---|---|
| Archery | August 15 – September 15 | Bull | Late Summer / Velvet, Pre-Rut Transition, Rut Onset, Primary Rut |
| Early Rifle (any legal weapon) | September 16 – September 20 | Bull | Primary Rut |
| Muzzleloader | September 21 – October 2 | Bull | Primary Rut, Late Rut / Early Post-Rut |
| Mid-season Rifle (any legal weapon) | October 3 – October 15 | Bull | Late Rut / Early Post-Rut |
| Late Rifle (any legal weapon) | November 7 – November 15 | Bull | Migration Transition |
| Late Archery | November 28 – December 13 | Bull | Migration Transition, Winter |
| Multiseason Usable in this unit's limited-entry archery, early rifle, muzzleloader, mid-season rifle and late rifle hunts; the dates span all of them. Not valid in the late archery hunt. | August 15 – November 15 | Bull | — |
This band describes the easiest of the unit's main limited-entry bull hunts (Archery) for a Utah resident in the 2026 draw: the lowest bonus-point level that drew reliably. Half of Utah's limited-entry permits go to the applicants with the most bonus points and half are drawn at random, with an extra entry for each point, so applicants below this level can draw. Other weapons and seasons, and nonresidents, can take substantially more points. The band says nothing about the general-season over-the-counter hunt, which needs no points.
Archery · August 15 – September 15
The limited-entry archery hunt opens in mid-August and runs into mid-September, covering everything from the Late Summer/Velvet phase through the Pre-Rut Transition, Rut Onset and into the Primary Rut. Early in that window bulls are just stripping velvet and still holding close to summer range, making water sources worth sitting and open country worth glassing for a spot-and-stalk approach. As the weeks pass and the rut phases progress, bull behavior and location can shift, so it pays to keep covering ground rather than sticking to one early-season pattern. This is a bull-only tag, and with the season spanning the entire onset of the rut it offers archers a long window to work with.
Early Rifle (any legal weapon) · September 16 – September 20
Falling entirely within the Primary Rut, the short early rifle season in mid-to-late September lands right in the thick of rutting activity. Any legal weapon may be used, and any bull is legal, which combined with peak rut timing makes this a season where locating active bulls should be the priority over covering large amounts of ground. Given the brief five-day window, hunters benefit from knowing the country before the season opens rather than scouting once it starts.
Muzzleloader · September 21 – October 2
The muzzleloader season spans the tail end of the Primary Rut into the Late Rut/Early Post-Rut phase, covering the back half of September into the start of October. Bulls are still influenced by rutting activity for part of this window before behavior begins transitioning as the rut winds down, so tactics that worked in peak rut may need adjusting toward the season's close. Any bull is legal here, and the longer season length compared to the early rifle hunt gives more flexibility to adapt as elk activity shifts.
Mid-season Rifle (any legal weapon) · October 3 – October 15
Running through the first half of October, the mid-season rifle hunt falls in the Late Rut/Early Post-Rut phase, after the most intense rutting activity has passed. Bulls at this point are past peak rut behavior, which can mean less predictable movement than during the Primary Rut hunts. Any bull is legal on this any-legal-weapon tag, and hunters should be prepared to work harder to locate animals than during the rut-timed seasons.
Late Rifle (any legal weapon) · November 7 – November 15
The late rifle hunt runs in November and falls within the Migration Transition phase, meaning elk are shifting between summer and winter range during this window. November brings colder conditions, with highs around 48°F and lows near 26°F along with light snowfall of about 1.6 inches for the month, which can help push movement and make tracking more practical. Any bull is legal under any legal weapon, and hunters should be ready to follow elk as they relocate rather than expecting them to hold in one place.
Late Archery · November 28 – December 13
Running from late November into mid-December, the late archery hunt spans both the Migration Transition phase and the Winter phase, putting it at the point where elk are settling into winter patterns. Conditions mirror the cold end of fall, with November highs near 48°F, lows around 26°F, and modest snowfall of about 1.6 inches, and December typically continues that cooling trend. Any bull is legal, and hunting this late season likely means keying on where elk have concentrated as they move toward winter range rather than searching summer haunts.
General-season spike elk — over the counter (2026)
This is a general-season spike-only unit. General-season bull elk permits in Utah are sold over the counter — no application, no draw and no points. There is no general-season elk point bank at all. Spike permits go on sale July 16; a rifle or muzzleloader hunter may take only a bull whose antlers do not branch. The general archery permit goes on sale July 7 and is not capped. It is hunter's choice: on this spike-only unit an archer may take a spike bull or an antlerless elk. A branch-antlered bull here needs a separate limited-entry permit.
| Season | Dates | Legal elk |
|---|---|---|
| Archery On a spike-only unit the general archery permit allows a spike bull or an antlerless elk — not a branch-antlered bull. | August 15 – September 4 | Spike bull or an antlerless elk |
| Any Legal Weapon | October 3 – October 15 | Spike bull only |
| Muzzleloader | October 28 – November 5 | Spike bull only |
Archery · August 15 – September 4
General-season archery opens in mid-August and runs to early September, covering the Late Summer/Velvet, Pre-Rut Transition and Rut Onset phases. In the opening stretch, bulls are shedding velvet and still holding near summer range, so sitting water sources or glassing for a stalk can pay off. This is a spike-only tag for rifle-style takes but archers hunting the general season may take either a spike bull or an antlerless elk — no branch-antlered bulls are legal here without the limited-entry permit.
Any Legal Weapon · October 3 – October 15
The general any-legal-weapon season runs the first half of October, squarely in the Late Rut/Early Post-Rut phase as rutting activity winds down. Only a spike bull is legal on this tag, so identifying antler configuration before shooting matters more than during a bull-of-choice hunt. With rut behavior fading, expect elk activity to be less predictable than earlier in the fall.
Muzzleloader · October 28 – November 5
General-season muzzleloader runs from late October into early November, spanning the Post-Rut Recovery phase and into the Migration Transition phase. By this point elk are past the rut and beginning to shift toward winter range, and November's colder temperatures — highs near 48°F, lows around 26°F — along with light snowfall can help trigger that movement. Only a spike bull is legal, so still hunters need to confirm antler points before taking a shot, and tracking fresh movement toward transition routes can be productive as the season closes.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 4,200–9,500 ft, typically around 6,300 ft
- Slope breakdown
- 45% gentle · 27% moderate · 23% steep · 6% rugged
- Ground you can count on
- ~2,114 sq mi
Habitat & cover
What grows here, by elevation. Each band adds to 100% on its own — these are shares of that band, not of the unit.
Lower elevations
- Sagebrush85%
- Other cover5%
- Grass and meadow5%
- Conifer4%
- Riparian1%
Mid elevations
- Sagebrush65%
- Conifer33%
- Other cover2%
Higher elevations
- Conifer56%
- Sagebrush38%
- Aspen5%
- Other cover1%
Cover classes from the USGS National Land Cover Database. “Other cover” is the remainder — bare ground, water, agriculture and developed land — left unnamed rather than guessed at.
Land & access
About 69% of Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek/East is public land a hunter can generally count on — BLM, State Trust Land and Wildlife Management Areas. Another 27% is public land closed to state-licensed hunting — tribal land.
- BLM55%
- State Trust Land13%
- Wildlife Management Areas<1%
- tribal land27%
- Unclassified ownership<1%
- Private4%
Most Utah State Trust Land is open to hunting under a standing state access agreement. Individual parcels can be leased or restricted, so check the parcel before planning around it.
Tribal land requires the tribe's own permission and licence — a state elk permit is not valid there.
Where elk live in the unit
Utah's statewide elk habitat mapping, by layer: how much of Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek/East each one covers. The layers overlap, so they do not add to 100%, and a layer that is small or missing here says nothing on its own about where elk are.
- Winter Range51%used in winter
- Crucial Winter Range26%the part of Winter Range considered essential to the herd — inside Winter Range, not added to it
- Summer Range15%used in summer
- Crucial Summer Range15%the part of Summer Range considered essential to the herd — inside Summer Range, not added to it
- Yearlong Range13%the only layer that means year-round use
Fall weather
- September — highs around 77°F, lows around 49°F
- October — highs around 63°F, lows around 37°F, about 0.2 in of snowfall
- November — highs around 48°F, lows around 26°F, about 1.6 in of snowfall
Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek/East elk hunting FAQ
Do I need bonus points to hunt elk on the Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek/East unit?
Points are never required just to apply — anyone can put in for the limited-entry bull elk draw regardless of point total. Half of the permits go to applicants with the most bonus points, but the other half are drawn at random with one extra entry per point, so an applicant at any point level can draw, just not reliably. General-season spike elk permits need no points at all since they are bought over the counter, not drawn.
What's the difference between the general season and the limited-entry hunt here?
The general season is an over-the-counter spike-only hunt: rifle and muzzleloader hunters can only take a spike bull, while general archery hunters may take a spike bull or an antlerless elk. Limited entry is a separate drawn permit for any bull, run on its own set of season windows across the fall, and it requires applying through the bonus-point draw rather than just buying a tag.
Can a general-season archer take any bull on this unit?
No. This is a spike-only unit, so the general archery permit is hunter's choice between a spike bull and an antlerless elk, not any bull. A branch-antlered bull can only be taken with the separate limited-entry bull permit.
Which seasons on this unit fall during the September rut?
The general-season archery hunt and the limited-entry archery, early rifle and muzzleloader hunts all fall within the September rut window. The general-season any-legal-weapon and muzzleloader hunts, along with the limited-entry mid-season rifle, late rifle and late archery hunts, fall outside that rut window.
How much of this unit is actually open to hunt?
About 69 percent of the unit, roughly 2,114 square miles, is generally open to public hunting across BLM, State Trust Land and Wildlife Management Areas. Trust land is covered by a standing state access agreement, though some individual parcels can still be leased or restricted. Roughly 27 percent is tribal land that is closed to state-licensed hunting and requires separate tribal permission.
How difficult is it to draw the limited-entry bull tag here?
The easiest of the main limited-entry bull hunts, the archery season, falls in the Premium band at 10 to 19 bonus points for a Utah resident in the most recent draw — that's the point level that drew reliably, not a guarantee. The other limited-entry hunts on this unit, including the rifle and muzzleloader seasons, take substantially more points than the archery hunt. Applicants below that level can still draw through the random half of the process, just not consistently.
Data sources & methodology
- Utah Division of Wildlife Resources — Big game hunting — general-season, limited-entry and antlerless elk permits
- Utah DWR — What hunters should know for the 2026 deer and elk hunts — 2026 general-season elk dates, including the split any-bull rifle hunt
- Utah DWR — Big Game Application Guidebook — how bonus points and the limited-entry draw work
- Utah DWR — Hunt Planner — unit boundaries, and the DWR's unit and biologist notes the written guide draws on
- Utah DWR — Elk (elk habitat mapping) — elk seasonal range
- Utah Trust Lands Administration — Trust Lands & You — the hunter access agreement that opens most state trust land
- USGS / MRLC — National Land Cover Database — habitat and cover classes by elevation band
- USGS PAD-US — Protected Areas Database of the United States — land ownership and access
- Daymet daily climate, 1991–2020 (Oak Ridge National Laboratory) — fall weather
- National Interagency Fire Center — wildfire perimeters — recent fires, their size and where they burned
Limited-entry draw difficulty is a qualitative band, not published odds — the note under the limited-entry seasons states exactly which hunt it describes. Land shares are separate, non-overlapping categories. Confirm current dates and rules in the Utah Big Game Field Regulations guidebook before you hunt. Unit data last updated September 28, 2026.