Can a Wyoming resident hunt hunt area 11 on a general deer licence?

Yes. Wyoming residents buy a general deer licence over the counter with no draw and no preference points involved. A resident may hold only one general deer licence per year, and a nonresident cannot buy one; a nonresident must draw a Region B general licence to hunt any general-licence hunt area in that region.

Which deer species can a hunter legally take on Type Gen in September and October?

Type Gen permits antlered mule deer or any white-tailed deer during its archery window (September 1–30) and its regular season (October 1–15). An antler or point requirement applies to the mule deer only; white-tailed deer may be any sex or age. The remaining Type Gen hunt (October 16–November 30) permits any white-tailed deer only.

How much of hunt area 11 is public ground a hunter can reliably access?

About 24% of the area—roughly 191 square miles—is BLM, State Trust Land, or National Forest where hunters can generally count on access. Private land covers 75%. However, public ownership does not mean easy entry: roads and trailheads are still gated or seasonal, private inholdings are common, and accessible parcels are typically small. WGFD rates access to this area as poor.

Does hunt area 11 require a nonresident to hire a guide?

No. This hunt area contains no designated wilderness and carries no guide requirement for nonresidents.

What is the rut timing during the October and November seasons on this area?

October hunting (October 1–15 for Type Gen, October 1–31 for Type 3 and Type 8) coincides with early fall migration and the nocturnal buck phase. October 16 onward enters the early pre-rut phase, and by November the primary rut and late rut dominate. The November firearms seasons span the peak rut period and into the late-season consolidation phase.

Wyoming Hunt Area 11 (Mule Creek) deer hunting

Licence

General licence area

Open public land

24%

Elevation

3,600–4,700 ft

Terrain

Gentle

Deer region

Hunt area 11 is gently rolling mixed-grass and sagebrush prairie cut by draws, rising from 3,600 to 4,700 feet with most ground around 4,000 feet. Grass and meadow cover 89% of it, sagebrush another 8%, with riparian cottonwood in scattered drainages. The country slopes gently — 96% of it lies on slopes under 9 degrees — and footwork is straightforward across open ground. Both mule deer and white-tailed deer inhabit the area: mule deer range widely across the prairie and sagebrush flats with variable densities; white-tailed deer concentrate in cottonwood-lined draws and riparian areas and are far more limited in distribution. The vast majority of both species reside on private land. Public land here means scattered parcels on Thunder Basin National Grasslands and BLM holdings, most under a square mile and separated by private inholdings and road tangles, which makes navigation and legal passage a constant concern.

Getting onto public ground calls for either walk-in access or careful scouting of landownership. The walk-in areas (Niobrara County Walk In Area 20 and Converse County Walk In Area 14) are open during their seasons and require no permission, but they represent small islands in a private landscape. Most accessible public land sees hunter crowding during the rifle seasons. WGFD's access rating for this area is poor. Hunters planning to pursue either species should secure private-land permission before the season; mule deer success on public land tends to be low, while white-tailed deer hunting opportunity is almost entirely private-land dependent. Mule deer buck ratios are typically moderate to high, and limited harvest does come off public ground for those who find it, but the practical reality is that harvest here happens overwhelmingly on private land.

Licence and how this hunt area is drawn

Hunt Area 11 (Mule Creek) is a general-licence hunt area, and how a hunter gets a licence for it depends on where they live.

A Wyoming resident buys a general deer licence over the counter — unlimited statewide, on sale from mid-July. No draw, no application, no preference points.
A nonresident cannot buy one. They must draw a Region general licence — for this hunt area, deer region B, which is valid across the general-licence hunt areas of that region and nowhere else.

A hunter may hold only ONE general deer licence in a year, so a general licence is a single choice rather than something to stack.

Wyoming residents have no preference points for deer — the resident deer draw is random, and no resident point cutoff exists for any hunt area in the state. For nonresidents points matter a great deal: Wyoming awards 75% of each nonresident pool through the preference-point draw, top-down by points, and the remaining 25% at random. Nonresidents also choose between the Regular and Special pools — the same hunts at two price points, competing separately.

Seasons (2026)

Type Gen — general licence · Antlered mule deer or any white-tailed deer
Legal: mule deer and white-tailed deer, under different rules
Archery September 1 – September 30Regular October 1 – October 15
Type Gen — general licence · Any white-tailed deer
Legal: white-tailed deer only
Regular October 16 – November 30
Type 3 · Any white-tailed deer
Legal: white-tailed deer only
Archery September 1 – September 30Regular October 1 – November 30
Type 8 · Doe or fawn white-tailed deer
Legal: white-tailed deer only
Archery September 1 – September 30Regular October 1 – November 30

The wording of each hunt is the Wyoming Game & Fish Department’s and is legally exact — a “doe or fawn” hunt is not a deer hunt in general, and a hunt limited to part of the area is not valid across it. Confirm every hunt in the current regulations before applying.

Hunting each season

Type Gen — Antlered mule deer or any… · mule deer & whitetail (September–October)

Archery hunters pursuing antlered mule deer or any white-tailed deer from September 1–30 hunt as velvet sheds and bucks transition to early fall movement. Temperatures run warm (highs around 79°F) with cool mornings (lows near 46°F), and snow is not a factor. Hunters can access the walk-in areas without permission, but most productive mule deer country lies on private land; those without access there should expect low returns on public ground. Early-season white-tailed deer concentrate in riparian cover and are largely inaccessible except on private land.

Type Gen — Any white-tailed deer · whitetail only (October–November)

The October 1–15 regular season for antlered mule deer and any white-tailed deer opens as bucks shift to nocturnal patterns in response to early fall migration. Temperatures cool noticeably (highs dropping to the low 60s, lows around 33°F), and October snow remains minimal. Public lands see crowding, particularly where accessible parcels gather hunters, and mule deer success on public ground remains limited; the rut has not yet arrived. White-tailed deer are still concentrated in riparian zones and remain predominantly a private-land hunt.

Type 3 — Any white-tailed deer · whitetail only (September–November)

Type 3 permits any white-tailed deer from September 1–30 (archery) and October 1–November 30 (regular season combined). The archery phase hunts during velvet shed with warm early-season conditions; the rifle season spans early fall migration through the primary rut and into late-season consolidation as temperatures decline from the low 60s in early October to the mid-40s by November, with November snowfall averaging about 1.1 inches. White-tailed deer inhabit cottonwood riparian areas, and this hunt is functionally limited to private land; public land white-tailed opportunity is minimal. Hunters should plan accordingly and secure private access.

Type 8 — Doe or fawn white-tailed deer · whitetail only (September–November)

Type 8 doe or fawn white-tailed deer hunting runs archery from September 1–30 and rifle October 1–November 30, spanning velvet shed through the full rut into late consolidation. Early archery hunts warm conditions; rifle hunting cools through fall as temperatures drop from the low 60s in October to the high 40s by November, with increasing November snowfall around 1.1 inches. This hunt targets white-tailed deer in riparian cover and is almost exclusively a private-land opportunity; public land holds minimal white-tailed deer populations. Securing private permission is essential before planning this hunt.

Land and access

private land75%

Private

BLM15%

Generally open to public hunting

State Trust Land7%

Generally open to public hunting

National Forest3%

Generally open to public hunting

About 24% of this hunt area is ground a hunter can generally count on — BLM, State Trust Land and National Forest, roughly 191 square miles. Public ownership is not the same as easy entry: roads, trailheads, seasonal closures and private inholdings all still apply.

State trust land counts toward the open figure above. Wyoming extends hunting on legally accessiblestate trust land to the public unless a parcel is specifically closed — the catch is the access itself, since crossing private ground to reach it still needs the landowner’s permission. Camping, fires and off-road vehicles are not allowed on it.

This hunt area has 2 enrolled walk-in areas. That is private ground enrolled for public access, not public land. A Walk-In Area needs no permission slip — a hunter may walk in during the open period, subject to its posted rules. Enrollment is renegotiated every year, so check current status before counting on either.

Where deer are mapped

Yearlong Range95%

the only layer that means year-round use

Winter Range42%

used in winter

Each figure is the share of the hunt area that layer covers. It says where deer are mapped, not where inside the area they are, and not when they move.

Habitat and cover

Across the unit

Grass and meadow89%

Sagebrush8%

Riparian2%

Other cover1%

Shares are of each elevation band, not of the whole hunt area — they describe what grows up there, not how much of the area sits at that elevation.

Weather through the season

Month	Avg high	Avg low	Snowfall
January	37°F	12°F	1.7 in
February	40°F	14°F	2.5 in
March	51°F	24°F	1.3 in
April	60°F	31°F	1.5 in
May	69°F	41°F	0 in
June	81°F	51°F	0 in
July	90°F	58°F	0 in
August	89°F	56°F	0 in
September	79°F	46°F	0 in
October	62°F	33°F	0.5 in
November	48°F	21°F	1.1 in
December	37°F	13°F	2.2 in

Snowfall is the monthly total, not depth lying on the ground.

Common questions

Can a Wyoming resident hunt hunt area 11 on a general deer licence?: Yes. Wyoming residents buy a general deer licence over the counter with no draw and no preference points involved. A resident may hold only one general deer licence per year, and a nonresident cannot buy one; a nonresident must draw a Region B general licence to hunt any general-licence hunt area in that region.
Which deer species can a hunter legally take on Type Gen in September and October?: Type Gen permits antlered mule deer or any white-tailed deer during its archery window (September 1–30) and its regular season (October 1–15). An antler or point requirement applies to the mule deer only; white-tailed deer may be any sex or age. The remaining Type Gen hunt (October 16–November 30) permits any white-tailed deer only.
How much of hunt area 11 is public ground a hunter can reliably access?: About 24% of the area—roughly 191 square miles—is BLM, State Trust Land, or National Forest where hunters can generally count on access. Private land covers 75%. However, public ownership does not mean easy entry: roads and trailheads are still gated or seasonal, private inholdings are common, and accessible parcels are typically small. WGFD rates access to this area as poor.
Does hunt area 11 require a nonresident to hire a guide?: No. This hunt area contains no designated wilderness and carries no guide requirement for nonresidents.
What is the rut timing during the October and November seasons on this area?: October hunting (October 1–15 for Type Gen, October 1–31 for Type 3 and Type 8) coincides with early fall migration and the nocturnal buck phase. October 16 onward enters the early pre-rut phase, and by November the primary rut and late rut dominate. The November firearms seasons span the peak rut period and into the late-season consolidation phase.

Sources

Wyoming Game & Fish — Hunting & Trapping — licence types, general and limited-quota hunts, and season structure
WGFD Hunt Planner — hunt-area boundaries, season dates and the unit descriptions
WGFD — Draw results and odds — how the resident random draw and the nonresident preference-point draw work
WGFD — Regulations — the legal limitations on each hunt, and the statewide licence rules
USGS National Land Cover Database (NLCD 2021) and 3DEP elevation — land cover and terrain by elevation band

Seasons, licence types and boundaries change. Confirm every detail with the Wyoming Game & Fish Department before applying or hunting.

All Wyoming deer hunt areas