Can a hunter obtain a general elk licence to hunt area 68 as a resident?

A Wyoming resident buys a general elk licence over the counter with no draw involved and no preference points required; the licence is valid statewide, including hunt area 68. A nonresident cannot buy a general licence and must instead draw a Region W general licence, which allows hunting across the general-licence areas of that region.

Does a nonresident need preference points to draw a Region W general licence for this hunt area?

Nonresidents do need preference points to compete for a Region W general licence—three quarters of the licences go to the preference-point draw, awarded by points, and a quarter go to a separate random draw. Wyoming residents, by contrast, have no preference-point system for elk at all; their draw is purely random.

Can a nonresident hunt alone in the designated wilderness within hunt area 68?

No. Wyoming law requires a nonresident to be accompanied by a licensed guide or a resident guide when hunting in designated wilderness. A nonresident planning to hunt the wilderness portions of hunt area 68 must arrange an accompanying guide in advance.

How much of hunt area 68 is accessible public land?

About 88 percent of the hunt area is public ground—National Forest, BLM, State Wildlife Areas and State Trust Land—though accessibility depends on specific roads, trailheads and seasonal closures. Private land makes up the remaining 12 percent and may block or complicate access to some otherwise public portions.

When do the archery and rifle seasons run in hunt area 68?

Archery for any elk runs September 1–30 (Type 9), with additional archery seasons September 15–30 for any elk or for cow/calf on a general licence. Rifle seasons for antlered elk run October 1–10 (any antlers) and October 11–31 (spikes excluded), with a November 1–30 cow season also available.

Wyoming Hunt Area 68 (Warm Springs) elk hunting

Licence

General licence area

Open public land

88%

Elevation

6,800–11,800 ft

Terrain

Moderate

Elk region

Hunt area 68 is dominated by conifer forest cut through by tributary drainages feeding into the Wind River, with large open parks spread across the western edge. Terrain is moderate overall, running from 6,800 to 11,800 feet with typical ground around 9,000 feet; about half the slopes are gentle and the rest moderate or steeper. The country transitions through sagebrush and grassland at lower elevations to denser conifers with scattered aspen higher up. Most of the hunt area sees elk use across summer and fall, though elk distribution shifts year to year—animals move between this area and adjacent hunt areas through the season, and where one draws this hunt but finds pressure or scarce sign, checking nearby options may pay off.

Public land makes up 88 percent of the area, though ownership alone does not ensure easy entry; roads, trailheads, seasonal closures and private inholdings all shape what ground a hunter can actually reach. The accessible public acreage includes National Forest, BLM, and State Wildlife Areas. Dispersed camping is permitted on BLM and Forest Service lands. Hunt area 68 contains designated wilderness; Wyoming law requires a nonresident to be accompanied by a licensed guide or a resident guide when hunting in designated wilderness. Deer and antelope seasons overlap here, and the streams and lakes support good fishing opportunity.

The archery and early-October hunts catch elk in the rut or just past it, when animals are vocal and moving. Mid-October through early November transitions from post-rut recovery into the season when elk begin shifting to winter range, and the weather cools considerably—October snowfall averages around 6 inches monthly, and November sees roughly 15 inches, turning the high country white and pushing behavior. The late-November cow hunt overlaps the migration window, when some animals are on the move to lower ground.

Licence and how this hunt area is drawn

Hunt Area 68 (Warm Springs) 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 elk 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, elk region W, which is valid across the general-licence hunt areas of that region and nowhere else.

Wyoming residents have no preference points for elk — the resident elk 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 9 · Any elk, archery only
Regular September 1 – September 30
Type Gen — general licence · Any elk
Archery September 15 – September 30
Type Gen — general licence · Antlered elk
Regular October 1 – October 10
Type Gen — general licence · Antlered elk, spikes excluded
Regular October 11 – October 31
Type 6 · Cow or calf
Archery September 15 – September 30Regular November 1 – November 30

The wording of each hunt is the Wyoming Game & Fish Department’s and is legally exact — a “cow or calf” hunt is not a elk 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 9 — Any elk, archery only (September)

Archery hunting for any elk across September 1–30 begins as bulls enter and move through the rut, making them vocal and responsive; early September finds them still in velvet and pre-rut, and by late September bulls are in full rut and more predictable. September weather is mild, with highs near 59 degrees and minimal snowfall, keeping the high country accessible and requiring hunters to cover ground to find concentrations. Access to the hunt area hinges on trailheads and dispersed camping on public land, which remain open through the season.

Type Gen — Any elk (September)

The general-licence archery season for any elk (September 15–30) overlaps the peak rut, when bulls are vocal, bugling through the drainages and parks and traveling between feed and bed. Temperatures remain mild through this window, with September highs still near 59 degrees, so higher ground stays huntable and elk may range broadly. Hunters working public-land access points and following sound should encounter active bulls during this period.

Type Gen — Antlered elk (October)

Early October rifle hunting for antlered elk (October 1–10) catches the tail of the rut and transition into post-rut recovery, when bulls are tiring and moving less predictably but may still respond to calls. October weather begins to turn; highs drop into the mid-40s and the area starts to see snow accumulation of around 6 inches monthly, which can drive elk to lower elevations and create patches of tracking snow. Dispersed camping on public land and public-road access remain the primary entry points.

Type Gen — Antlered elk, spikes excluded (October)

The late-season rifle hunt for antlered elk excluding spikes (October 11–31) spans post-rut recovery and the transition into migration timing, when bull movement becomes less rut-driven and more tied to cover, feed and weather. Temperatures continue falling—November highs average only 33 degrees—and snowfall accelerates to around 15 inches monthly, pushing elk off high ground. Some animals begin moving between hunt areas as snow covers high-elevation feed; hunters should expect more dispersed, elevation-driven distribution and may need to adjust strategy as November cold sets in.

Type 6 — Cow or calf (September–November)

Archery for cow or calf (September 15–30) and rifle for the same (November 1–30) are split by two very different windows. The September archery hunt overlaps the primary rut, when cows are active and herded by bulls across open parks and through timbered drainages, and mild September weather keeps high elevations accessible. The November rifle hunt comes as animals migrate toward winter range and temperatures plummet to lows near 13 degrees; heavy snow averaging 15 inches monthly may move cows and calves downslope, and hunters may find better success at lower elevations or near established migration corridors than on the high ridges.

Land and access

National Forest81%

Generally open to public hunting

private land12%

Private

BLM4%

Generally open to public hunting

State Wildlife Areas2%

Generally open to public hunting

About 88% of this hunt area is ground a hunter can generally count on — National Forest, BLM, State Wildlife Areas and State Trust Land, roughly 188 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 includes designated wilderness. Wyoming law requires a nonresident to be accompanied by a licensed guide or a resident guide in designated wilderness.

Where elk are mapped

Summer Range80%

used in summer

Winter Range20%

used in winter

Yearlong Range7%

the only layer that means year-round use

Crucial Winter Range7%

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

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

Habitat and cover

Lower elevations

Sagebrush44%

Conifer35%

Grass and meadow13%

Riparian4%

Other cover4%

Mid elevations

Conifer62%

Sagebrush25%

Grass and meadow10%

Riparian2%

Higher elevations

Conifer56%

Sagebrush28%

Grass and meadow12%

Other cover2%

Aspen2%

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	27°F	7°F	15.3 in
February	30°F	6°F	16.5 in
March	37°F	13°F	16.7 in
April	43°F	19°F	13.6 in
May	52°F	28°F	3.4 in
June	60°F	34°F	0 in
July	70°F	41°F	0 in
August	68°F	39°F	0 in
September	59°F	33°F	0.5 in
October	46°F	24°F	5.9 in
November	33°F	13°F	15.2 in
December	26°F	6°F	18.5 in

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

Common questions

Can a hunter obtain a general elk licence to hunt area 68 as a resident?: A Wyoming resident buys a general elk licence over the counter with no draw involved and no preference points required; the licence is valid statewide, including hunt area 68. A nonresident cannot buy a general licence and must instead draw a Region W general licence, which allows hunting across the general-licence areas of that region.
Does a nonresident need preference points to draw a Region W general licence for this hunt area?: Nonresidents do need preference points to compete for a Region W general licence—three quarters of the licences go to the preference-point draw, awarded by points, and a quarter go to a separate random draw. Wyoming residents, by contrast, have no preference-point system for elk at all; their draw is purely random.
Can a nonresident hunt alone in the designated wilderness within hunt area 68?: No. Wyoming law requires a nonresident to be accompanied by a licensed guide or a resident guide when hunting in designated wilderness. A nonresident planning to hunt the wilderness portions of hunt area 68 must arrange an accompanying guide in advance.
How much of hunt area 68 is accessible public land?: About 88 percent of the hunt area is public ground—National Forest, BLM, State Wildlife Areas and State Trust Land—though accessibility depends on specific roads, trailheads and seasonal closures. Private land makes up the remaining 12 percent and may block or complicate access to some otherwise public portions.
When do the archery and rifle seasons run in hunt area 68?: Archery for any elk runs September 1–30 (Type 9), with additional archery seasons September 15–30 for any elk or for cow/calf on a general licence. Rifle seasons for antlered elk run October 1–10 (any antlers) and October 11–31 (spikes excluded), with a November 1–30 cow season also available.

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 elk hunt areas