Can a hunter on a general Wyoming deer licence hunt area 122?

Yes. Hunt area 122 is a general-licence area, and Wyoming residents may buy a general deer licence over the counter with no draw or preference points required. Nonresidents must draw a Region X general-licence tag to hunt the general-licence hunt areas within that region.

Which deer species are legal in hunt area 122's various seasons?

Hunts on this area are split: Type Gen permits both mule deer and white-tailed deer but under different rules, with mule deer (antlered only) and white-tailed deer (any) both legal off private land. Type 3, Type 8, and all does-or-fawn hunts permit white-tailed deer only; mule deer are not legal on those hunts regardless of antlers. Type 7 permits either species.

Does hunt area 122 have walk-in areas a hunter can access without a permission slip?

Yes. Eight walk-in areas are enrolled here, including Park County Walk In Areas 1 and 3 and Big Horn County Walk In Area 2, all of which allow entry during posted open periods without requiring permission or an application.

When does the November regular season run in hunt area 122?

The regular-season dates vary by hunt type. Type Gen runs November 1–10. Type 3, Type 7, and Type 8 begin November 1 but extend to different closing dates, from November 10 through December 15 depending on the hunt.

How much public land can a hunter depend on in hunt area 122?

About 58% of the area—approximately 572 square miles—is dependably accessible public ground (BLM and State Trust Land). However, public access still depends on specific roads, trailheads, and seasonal conditions; access is not guaranteed everywhere within that percentage.

Wyoming Hunt Area 122 (Shoshone River) deer hunting

Licence

General licence area

Open public land

58%

Elevation

3,600–6,500 ft

Terrain

Gentle

Deer region

Hunt area 122 is a mix of sagebrush flats, irrigated farmland, and riparian corridors following the Shoshone River and its creeks across 992 square miles. Ground rolls gently—mean slope is 4.1 degrees, with sagebrush covering about two-thirds of it and meadow and grassland filling much of the rest. Elevation spans from 3,600 to 6,500 feet, with typical ground near 4,300 feet. The country is walkable foot hunting, but the deer distribution is uneven: riparian areas and larger blocks of public land hold some animals, yet most of the deer here live on private farmland.

Getting onto huntable ground requires navigation. About 58% of the area—roughly 572 square miles—is BLM or State Trust Land a hunter can count on accessing, though roads, trailheads, and seasonal closures all still apply. Private land comprises 29% and holds the bulk of the deer. Access to buck hunting on private ground is difficult to arrange, but several landowners open doe hunting along the Shoshone River corridor. Eight walk-in areas provide entry to private land without requiring permission, and the Yellowtail Hunter Management Area is available to those with a printed permission slip from WGFD. The rut phases shift through the hunt season, from late-summer velvet transition in September through the peak rut in mid-November and into winter consolidation by December.

Licence and how this hunt area is drawn

Hunt Area 122 (Shoshone River) 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 X, 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 · Any deer on private land; antlered mule deer or any white-tailed deer off private land
Legal: mule deer and white-tailed deer, under different rules
Archery September 1 – September 30Regular November 1 – November 10
Type 3 · Any white-tailed deer
Legal: white-tailed deer only
Archery September 1 – September 30Regular November 1 – December 15
Type 7 · Doe or fawn valid on private land
Archery September 1 – September 30Regular October 15 – November 30
Type 8 · Doe or fawn white-tailed deer
Legal: white-tailed deer only
Archery September 1 – September 30Regular November 1 – December 15

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 — Any deer on private land; antlered mule deer or any white-tailed deer off private land · mule deer & whitetail (September–November)

The Type Gen season spans archery September 1–30 and regular hunting November 1–10. September archery finds deer in early fall transition as velvet sheds; temperatures run warm (highs near 75°F) with minimal snow, making midday hunting difficult and early morning and evening best. November regular season overlaps the staging phase as deer move through migration corridors and begin pre-rut activity; cold settles in (highs dropping to 45°F, occasional snow around 1 inch) and hunters should expect longer daylight activity. The hunt permits antlered mule deer or any white-tailed deer off private land; any deer are legal on private ground. Both archery and rifle hunters will find riparian areas along the Shoshone River the most dependable public-land option, though most buck deer in this area occupy private farmland.

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

Type 3 white-tailed deer hunting runs archery September 1–30 and regular November 1–December 15. The archery phase coincides with velvet shed as temperatures stay mild (highs ~75°F) and deer remain somewhat predictable in their patterns. The extended regular season carries hunters through the primary rut (November 11–25) and into late rut and winter consolidation through mid-December, with temperatures falling steadily from 45°F in November to 34°F by December and snowfall increasing from 1 inch to 1.5 inches monthly. This hunt is white-tailed deer only, making it a choice for hunters targeting that species. Access follows the same public and private patterns as Type Gen, with riparian corridors offering the most reliable public hunting ground.

Type 7 — Doe or fawn valid on private land (September–November)

Type 7 doe-or-fawn hunting is valid on private land only and runs archery September 1–30 and regular October 15–November 30. September archery takes place during velvet shed with warm temperatures (highs ~75°F), while the regular season stretches through early fall migration, nocturnal buck activity, and staging for the rut, cooling from 59°F in October to 45°F in November. This hunt permits either mule deer or white-tailed deer does and fawns. Because it is restricted to private land, hunters must arrange access with willing landowners or use the eight enrolled walk-in areas to reach private ground legally.

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

Type 8 white-tailed doe-or-fawn hunting combines archery September 1–30 and regular November 1–December 15. The archery phase occurs during velvet shed in warm September weather (highs ~75°F), while the regular season extends through staging, the primary rut (November 11–25), and winter consolidation, with temperatures declining from 45°F to 34°F and snowfall accumulating through December. White-tailed deer only are legal. Like all doe-or-fawn hunts, this tag is valid on private land, requiring either landowner permission or use of walk-in areas to access the private ground where most white-tailed does and fawns are found in this area.

Land and access

BLM54%

Generally open to public hunting

private land29%

Private

unclassified ownership12%

Ownership unclassified

State Trust Land4%

Generally open to public hunting

About 58% of this hunt area is ground a hunter can generally count on — BLM and State Trust Land, roughly 572 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.

the Wyoming Game & Fish Department publishes 64% public land for this hunt area. That counts public ownership; the figure above counts ground a hunter can depend on getting onto. They answer different questions, so both are shown rather than blended.

This hunt area has 8 enrolled walk-in areas. It also holds 1 Hunter Management Area. Both are private ground enrolled for public access, not public land. A Hunter Management Area requires a printed permission slip from the Wyoming Game & Fish Department before hunting it. 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 Range88%

the only layer that means year-round use

Winter Range2%

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

Sagebrush68%

Other cover17%

Grass and meadow12%

Riparian2%

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	33°F	9°F	1.8 in
February	38°F	13°F	1.7 in
March	51°F	23°F	0.6 in
April	59°F	31°F	0.2 in
May	68°F	42°F	0 in
June	79°F	50°F	0 in
July	88°F	56°F	0 in
August	86°F	53°F	0 in
September	75°F	44°F	0 in
October	59°F	32°F	0.2 in
November	45°F	21°F	1 in
December	34°F	11°F	1.5 in

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

Common questions

Can a hunter on a general Wyoming deer licence hunt area 122?: Yes. Hunt area 122 is a general-licence area, and Wyoming residents may buy a general deer licence over the counter with no draw or preference points required. Nonresidents must draw a Region X general-licence tag to hunt the general-licence hunt areas within that region.
Which deer species are legal in hunt area 122's various seasons?: Hunts on this area are split: Type Gen permits both mule deer and white-tailed deer but under different rules, with mule deer (antlered only) and white-tailed deer (any) both legal off private land. Type 3, Type 8, and all does-or-fawn hunts permit white-tailed deer only; mule deer are not legal on those hunts regardless of antlers. Type 7 permits either species.
Does hunt area 122 have walk-in areas a hunter can access without a permission slip?: Yes. Eight walk-in areas are enrolled here, including Park County Walk In Areas 1 and 3 and Big Horn County Walk In Area 2, all of which allow entry during posted open periods without requiring permission or an application.
When does the November regular season run in hunt area 122?: The regular-season dates vary by hunt type. Type Gen runs November 1–10. Type 3, Type 7, and Type 8 begin November 1 but extend to different closing dates, from November 10 through December 15 depending on the hunt.
How much public land can a hunter depend on in hunt area 122?: About 58% of the area—approximately 572 square miles—is dependably accessible public ground (BLM and State Trust Land). However, public access still depends on specific roads, trailheads, and seasonal conditions; access is not guaranteed everywhere within that percentage.

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