Can a nonresident hunter draw a general licence for hunt area 168?

No. Nonresidents must draw a Region general licence for deer region K, which is then valid across all general-licence hunt areas in that region, including hunt area 168, but not in limited-quota areas. Residents buy a general deer licence over the counter.

Which deer species does hunt area 168 actually permit?

The Type Gen hunt here permits both antlered mule deer and any white-tailed deer, with different rules for each species. The Type 3 hunt permits any white-tailed deer only; mule deer are not legal on this hunt. White-tailed deer are very rare in this area during the deer seasons.

What is the main obstacle to access in hunt area 168?

The hunt area is nearly all checkerboard land with private sections blocking public BLM ground. Most public land here is landlocked and cannot be reached without crossing private property and obtaining permission from the landowner. Hunters should use the hunt planner map to find open walk-in areas and Hunter Management Areas.

When does the regular-season hunt on any white-tailed deer run in hunt area 168?

The Type 3 hunt for any white-tailed deer runs during regular season from October 1 through November 30. An archery season for the same licence runs from September 1 through September 30.

What happens to the roads in hunt area 168 during wet weather?

Most roads in the area become nearly impassable when muddy or wet. Many of them are private roads, not public rights-of-way, and require landowner permission to travel even before weather becomes a problem.

Wyoming Hunt Area 168 (Medicine Butte) deer hunting

Licence

General licence area

Open public land

44%

Elevation

6,500–8,600 ft

Terrain

Gentle

Deer region

Hunt area 168 is dominated by sagebrush flats, rolling hills and open plains at elevations between 6,500 and 8,600 feet, with typical terrain around 6,900 feet. Juniper is widespread across the landscape, and scattered aspen and serviceberry occupy some higher hills and ridges. The country slopes gently overall—88% of it is gentle terrain—making much of it walkable, though the ground becomes difficult to cross when wet. Limited irrigated private lands run along the Bear River in the west. Mule deer occupy the higher juniper, aspen and mountain shrub country throughout the area, and white-tailed deer are rare to absent here during the autumn seasons.

The hunt area is almost entirely checkerboard land—alternating sections of private and public ground. About 44% of the area is BLM or State Trust Land that a hunter can generally rely on, but much of that public ground is landlocked by private land and unreachable without permission from the property owner. Several access options are available through private landowners enrolled in agreement programs: Uinta County Walk-In Area 11 is open to walk-in hunting during its posted seasons, and the Bear River Divide Hunter Management Area requires a printed permission slip before hunting. Many roads in this country are private roads built by industry, not public rights-of-way, and traveling them requires landowner permission. Roads throughout the area become nearly impassable when muddy or wet.

Licence and how this hunt area is drawn

Hunt Area 168 (Medicine Butte) 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 K, 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 deer
Legal: white-tailed deer only
Archery September 1 – September 30Regular October 1 – November 30
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 10

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)

Early September archery for any white-tailed deer occurs as bucks are shedding velvet and beginning to establish movement patterns, when temperatures reach into the low 70s with cool mornings around 37 degrees. White-tailed deer are very rare here during the deer seasons, making this a hunt for mule deer practicality despite the white-tailed-only licence—though a mule deer is not legal on this Type 3 hunt. The regular season for any white-tailed deer runs from October through late November, starting with the early-fall migration when bucks begin moving as temperatures fall from 57 degrees in early October toward the low 40s by month's end, and continuing through the pre-rut and primary rut phases into early December as snowfall builds from 1.3 inches in October to 5.5 inches in November. Public land is often accessible on foot during this period, though muddy roads and weather limit vehicle travel, and hunters must verify access through the walk-in area and Hunter Management Area programs.

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

The Type Gen hunt for antlered mule deer or any white-tailed deer spans early September through mid-October, opening with the early-velvet-shed period when thermals are mild and bucks are beginning their seasonal movement before cooling into the early-fall migration phase by mid-month. Archery hunters in September hunt in warm conditions, with highs near 70 degrees and little precipitation, while the regular season from October 1 through October 10 coincides with the onset of cool temperatures around 50 degrees and modest snowfall around 1.3 inches. This hunt is open to both mule deer and white-tailed deer under different rules—mule deer must be antlered, while any white-tailed deer is legal—though white-tailed deer are extremely rare in this area. Access depends on walk-in areas and Hunter Management Areas; most BLM ground is landlocked by private land and unreachable without permission.

Land and access

private land56%

Private

BLM39%

Generally open to public hunting

State Trust Land5%

Generally open to public hunting

About 44% of this hunt area is ground a hunter can generally count on — BLM and State Trust Land, roughly 198 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 1 enrolled walk-in area. 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

Winter Range76%

used in winter

Yearlong Range53%

the only layer that means year-round use

Crucial Winter Range23%

the part of Winter Range considered essential to the herd — inside Winter Range, not added to it

Summer Range18%

used in summer

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

Sagebrush90%

Other cover5%

Grass and meadow4%

Riparian1%

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	32°F	9°F	6 in
February	34°F	10°F	5.8 in
March	43°F	19°F	3.2 in
April	52°F	25°F	2.3 in
May	62°F	33°F	0.1 in
June	72°F	40°F	0 in
July	81°F	47°F	0 in
August	79°F	45°F	0 in
September	70°F	37°F	0.2 in
October	57°F	28°F	1.3 in
November	42°F	18°F	5.5 in
December	32°F	9°F	5.2 in

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

Common questions

Can a nonresident hunter draw a general licence for hunt area 168?: No. Nonresidents must draw a Region general licence for deer region K, which is then valid across all general-licence hunt areas in that region, including hunt area 168, but not in limited-quota areas. Residents buy a general deer licence over the counter.
Which deer species does hunt area 168 actually permit?: The Type Gen hunt here permits both antlered mule deer and any white-tailed deer, with different rules for each species. The Type 3 hunt permits any white-tailed deer only; mule deer are not legal on this hunt. White-tailed deer are very rare in this area during the deer seasons.
What is the main obstacle to access in hunt area 168?: The hunt area is nearly all checkerboard land with private sections blocking public BLM ground. Most public land here is landlocked and cannot be reached without crossing private property and obtaining permission from the landowner. Hunters should use the hunt planner map to find open walk-in areas and Hunter Management Areas.
When does the regular-season hunt on any white-tailed deer run in hunt area 168?: The Type 3 hunt for any white-tailed deer runs during regular season from October 1 through November 30. An archery season for the same licence runs from September 1 through September 30.
What happens to the roads in hunt area 168 during wet weather?: Most roads in the area become nearly impassable when muddy or wet. Many of them are private roads, not public rights-of-way, and require landowner permission to travel even before weather becomes a problem.

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