Wyoming Hunt Area 143 (South Piney) deer hunting
Hunt area 143 spreads across 979 square miles of the Wyoming Range and its foothills, spanning elevations from 6,500 to 11,400 feet. The terrain is predominantly gentle — 76% of the ground slopes gently, 22% moderately, and 2% steeply. The highest ridgelines are rock and alpine, dropping through dense coniferous forest, then aspen stands and rolling sagebrush benchland toward the agricultural valleys. North-facing slopes support spruce-fir mix; south and southwest exposures hold mountain shrub, aspen and diverse herbaceous growth. Lower elevations are dominated by sagebrush with scattered riparian draws; mid elevations blend sagebrush with conifer; higher basins shift toward conifer and alpine meadow.
Roughly three-quarters of the area — about 737 square miles — is public land (BLM, National Forest and State Trust Land) that a hunter can generally count on; private land makes up the rest. Access to Forest Service lands is available via the Cottonwood Creek, Middle and South Piney Creek, LaBarge Creek and Wyoming Range roads, though roads, trailheads, seasonal closures and private inholdings all require attention to specific routes before a hunt. Mule deer are most abundant in the higher-elevation basins and draws of the western Wyoming Range, with concentrations around the crest from North Piney Creek south to Cheese Pass and near South Fork South Cottonwood Creek. High-country hunting around Roaring Fork Lakes and the tributaries of Lunch Creek and North Piney Creek offers another destination. Lower sagebrush draws and riparian corridors hold deer as well. July and August scouting to locate access points and deer concentrations is standard practice here.
The two seasons differ sharply in their legal game and timing. The longer Type 3 hunt (September into November) targets white-tailed deer only under two archery and regular windows. Type Gen, a general-licence hunt running September through early October, permits both mule deer — antlered, with a four-point minimum on either antler — and any white-tailed deer, but the shorter season and overlap with the early archery phase create a different hunt character.
Licence and how this hunt area is drawn
Hunt Area 143 (South Piney) 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 G, 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 3 · Any white-tailed deerLegal: white-tailed deer onlyArchery September 1 – September 30Regular October 1 – November 30
- Type Gen — general licence · Antlered mule deer four (4) points or more on either antler or any white-tailed deerLegal: mule deer and white-tailed deer, under different rulesArchery September 1 – September 14Regular September 15 – October 2
Where a hunt above sets an antler requirement on mule deer and then allows any white-tailed deer, that point requirement is a mule deer rule only. And “any white-tailed deer” means any— buck, doe or fawn. WGFD writes “antlered” where it means a buck and “antlerless” or “doe or fawn” where it means a female, so an unqualified “any” sets no restriction on sex or age.
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 3 — Any white-tailed deer · whitetail only (September–November)
The Type 3 season targets white-tailed deer across two windows: an archery phase running through September, then a regular hunt from October into November. September archery comes during the velvet-shed and early fall transition, when bucks are shedding antler velvet and beginning to move; temperatures range from highs around 67 degrees Fahrenheit to lows near 35, with minimal snow. The regular hunt spans late September into November and covers the fall migration, pre-rut staging, the primary rut and into winter consolidation; weather cooling from highs in the low 50s in October to the high 30s in November, with snowfall increasing from 1.4 inches in October to 8.2 inches in November. White-tailed deer distribution shifts through this period, with hunting in sagebrush draws, riparian corridors and the lower reaches becoming productive as temperatures drop and bucks pursue does.
Type Gen — Antlered mule deer four (4) points… · mule deer & whitetail (September–October)
Type Gen, the general-licence mule deer and white-tailed deer hunt, compresses into archery and regular windows from early September through early October. The archery phase overlaps the velvet-shed transition; the regular hunt (September 15–October 2) occurs during the early fall transition and early migration, when bucks are leaving summer range and beginning nocturnal movement. September temperatures average highs near 67 degrees Fahrenheit and lows near 35, with October cooling to highs around 53 and lows near 25; snowfall is minimal in September (about 0.2 inches) and 1.4 inches in October. Mule deer are concentrated in the higher-elevation basins and draws of the western Wyoming Range, where Forest Service road access reaches the most productive country. A mule deer must carry four points or more on either antler, but any white-tailed deer — buck, doe or fawn — is legal.
Land and access
About 75% of this hunt area is ground a hunter can generally count on — BLM, National Forest and State Trust Land, roughly 737 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.
Where deer are mapped
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
Lower elevations
Mid elevations
Higher elevations
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 | 29°F | 4°F | 13.1 in |
| February | 31°F | 5°F | 12 in |
| March | 41°F | 15°F | 7.2 in |
| April | 50°F | 23°F | 3.5 in |
| May | 60°F | 31°F | 0.4 in |
| June | 70°F | 38°F | 0 in |
| July | 79°F | 44°F | 0 in |
| August | 77°F | 42°F | 0 in |
| September | 67°F | 35°F | 0.2 in |
| October | 53°F | 25°F | 1.4 in |
| November | 39°F | 14°F | 8.2 in |
| December | 28°F | 4°F | 13 in |
Snowfall is the monthly total, not depth lying on the ground.
Common questions
- Can a hunter on a general deer licence hunt this area without drawing?
- Wyoming residents can buy a general deer licence over the counter with no draw and no preference points involved. Nonresidents cannot buy a general licence; they must draw a Region G general licence to hunt here and other general-licence areas in that region. A nonresident applicant competes in a draw where three-quarters of the licences go to preference-point holders and a quarter to random selection.
- Which deer species can a hunter legally take in Type Gen on area 143?
- Type Gen permits both mule deer and white-tailed deer, but under different rules. A mule deer must be antlered with four or more points on either antler; any white-tailed deer is legal, including bucks with fewer than four points, does and fawns.
- What animal does a hunter take in the Type 3 season on area 143?
- Type 3 is a white-tailed deer hunt only. Mule deer are not legal in this season whatever their antlers.
- When does the Type Gen season run on this area?
- Type Gen runs archery September 1–September 14, then regular September 15–October 2. The Type 3 white-tailed deer hunt is archery September 1–September 30 and regular October 1–November 30.
- How much of hunt area 143 is public land a hunter can count on?
- Approximately 75% of the area — about 737 square miles — is BLM, National Forest or State Trust Land where a hunter can generally rely on access. Roads, trailheads, seasonal closures and private inholdings still require advance planning and scouting to confirm specific hunting routes.
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.