Can a hunter take any elk in hunt area 69 on a general licence?

Yes, a general elk licence allows any elk. Wyoming residents buy a general licence over the counter with no draw or preference points involved. Nonresidents must draw a Region W general licence, which is valid across the general-licence hunt areas of that region. The area's Type 9 and Type Gen seasons both allow any elk under their respective legal frameworks.

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

Preference points help a nonresident's odds in the Region general-licence draw, though three quarters of the licences go to the preference-point pool (awarded highest points first) and one quarter to a random draw that all applicants enter. The resident draw for any hunt is random with no preference-point system, so a Wyoming resident applies with no points advantage whatsoever.

What designations cover hunt area 69 and how do they affect access?

The area is dominated by the Fitzpatrick Wilderness Area. A nonresident hunting designated wilderness must be accompanied by a licensed guide or a resident guide—a nonresident planning to hunt this area alone cannot legally take elk in the wilderness sections. The area also overlaps with mule deer hunt area 128 and pronghorn hunt area 84.

How much of hunt area 69 can a hunter actually get onto to find and hunt elk?

Nearly 98 percent of the area is public land, but the wilderness where most elk are found typically requires packing in with stock or substantial hiking from trailheads like Glacier Trail or Simpson Lake to hunt effectively. Day hunting from road access is possible but often limits opportunity, especially as the season progresses into October and November.

Which seasons run when on hunt area 69?

Type 9 (any elk, archery only) runs September 1–30. Type Gen (any elk, general licence) runs archery September 15–30 and regular October 1–31. Type 6 (cow or calf only) runs archery September 15–30 and regular October 1–November 30.

Wyoming Hunt Area 69 (Whiskey Mountain) elk hunting

Licence

General licence area

Open public land

98%

Elevation

6,400–13,800 ft

Terrain

Rugged

Elk region

Hunt area 69 is high, steep, and heavily forested mountain terrain with significant variation in cover type from lower sagebrush slopes through conifer stands to high alpine meadows and tundra. Most ground sits around 10,500 feet, with peaks rising to nearly 14,000 feet and occasional low-ground approaches below 6,500 feet. The terrain averages 20 degrees of slope—graded rugged, with nearly half the area sloped at moderate grades but steep and rugged ground making up 30 percent of it. Lower elevations are dominated by sagebrush with substantial conifer; mid-elevations balance sagebrush and conifer with increasing meadow; higher ground turns to open grass and meadow with scattered brush. The landscape is cut through by the Fitzpatrick Wilderness Area, which occupies much of the unit and creates a hard split in how the hunt actually works: the wilderness is where most elk are found, but it demands physical fitness and often pack stock to reach and hunt effectively. Day hunting from trailheads is possible but the country's altitude and roughness mean elk taken outside wilderness are often the exception. A nonresident who hunts designated wilderness must be accompanied by a licensed guide or a resident guide.

About 98 percent of the area is public ground—National Forest, BLM, State Wildlife Areas, and State Trust Land—totaling roughly 327 square miles. Two percent is private land. Public ownership does not guarantee straightforward access; roads, trailheads, seasonal closures, and private inholdings all create practical barriers. The main approaches into the wilderness and most productive country are the Glacier Trail along Torrey Creek and the trail to Simpson Lake at the end of Shoshone Forest Road 531. Dispersed camping is allowed on BLM and Forest Service lands; camping on State Wildlife Area lands is restricted to designated sites. Access to National Forest through Wind River Reservation is not legal. Outside the wilderness the terrain is more open to ridge and foothill hunting, though conifer patches and scattered meadows break it into sections that require foot work to cover effectively.

Seasons on this area span September through November with three distinct hunts. Early-season archery focuses on bulls moving into the rut; mid-season general and cow hunts shift toward the rut's peak and into its decline. Late-season cow hunting extends through early November as elk begin moving with weather and changing range. Snow accumulation moves from light early-season precipitation to substantial snowfall by October and November, which changes both hunting conditions and elk distribution across the hunt area.

Licence and how this hunt area is drawn

Hunt Area 69 (Whiskey Mountain) 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 30Regular October 1 – October 31
Type 6 · Cow or calf
Archery September 15 – September 30Regular October 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 hunters targeting any elk in September encounter bulls in rut onset and peak rut phases, moving to rutting grounds and responding to bugling and calling with good intensity. Early September highs hover near 55 degrees with lows in the mid-30s, and snowfall averages just over 2 inches for the month—conditions mild enough for foot travel, though higher elevations can see early snow. Access to the wilderness where most elk concentrate requires packing in or hiking long distances from Glacier Trail or Simpson Lake, as day hunting produces limited opportunity. This hunt allows any elk under archery rules and is valid throughout the hunt area.

Type Gen — Any elk (September–October)

The archery portion of this hunt (mid-September) finds elk deep in the primary rut with bulls highly responsive to calling, while the regular season (October) covers the transition from late rut into post-rut recovery when elk are scattered and often moving. Archery weather stays relatively mild with September lows in the mid-30s and highs at 55 degrees; October cools substantially with highs around 43 degrees, lows near 25, and snowfall averaging 9.5 inches—enough to drive elk movement and complicate travel on higher ground. Access through mid-September remains practical from trailheads, but October's snow and the need to reach wilderness elk often requires packing in with stock or accepting limited opportunity from day-hunt approaches. This hunt allows any elk and is valid throughout the area on a general licence.

Type 6 — Cow or calf (September–November)

Archery cow hunting (mid-September) occurs during the primary rut when bulls dominate elk behavior and cows are moving; the regular season extends from October through November across late rut, post-rut recovery, and early migration transition as bulls drop from active rutting and herds shift with changing conditions and snow. Early-season archery occurs in mild September weather with highs near 55 degrees, but October's snowfall (9.5 inches average) and November's heavy snow (11.6 inches average) progressively cool the hunt with October highs around 43 degrees and November highs near 33 degrees—conditions that shift elk location and create challenging travel across high terrain. Access from trailheads remains feasible early in the regular season but becomes increasingly difficult as snow accumulates, and much of the huntable cow elk concentration lies in the wilderness, requiring pack stock or extended hiking. This hunt is legal for cow or calf only and is valid throughout the area.

Land and access

National Forest89%

Generally open to public hunting

State Wildlife Areas5%

Generally open to public hunting

BLM4%

Generally open to public hunting

private land2%

Private

About 98% of this hunt area is ground a hunter can generally count on — National Forest, State Wildlife Areas, BLM and State Trust Land, roughly 327 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 Range77%

used in summer

Winter Range23%

used in winter

Yearlong Range16%

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

Sagebrush53%

Conifer35%

Grass and meadow7%

Other cover4%

Riparian1%

Mid elevations

Sagebrush37%

Conifer34%

Grass and meadow21%

Other cover7%

Aspen1%

Higher elevations

Grass and meadow63%

Other cover20%

Sagebrush17%

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	9°F	9.8 in
February	29°F	8°F	12.5 in
March	36°F	13°F	14.8 in
April	40°F	18°F	19.6 in
May	47°F	27°F	9.3 in
June	56°F	35°F	0.6 in
July	66°F	43°F	0 in
August	64°F	42°F	0 in
September	55°F	35°F	2.1 in
October	43°F	25°F	9.5 in
November	33°F	15°F	11.6 in
December	27°F	8°F	11.9 in

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

Common questions

Can a hunter take any elk in hunt area 69 on a general licence?: Yes, a general elk licence allows any elk. Wyoming residents buy a general licence over the counter with no draw or preference points involved. Nonresidents must draw a Region W general licence, which is valid across the general-licence hunt areas of that region. The area's Type 9 and Type Gen seasons both allow any elk under their respective legal frameworks.
Does a nonresident need preference points to draw a Region general licence for this area?: Preference points help a nonresident's odds in the Region general-licence draw, though three quarters of the licences go to the preference-point pool (awarded highest points first) and one quarter to a random draw that all applicants enter. The resident draw for any hunt is random with no preference-point system, so a Wyoming resident applies with no points advantage whatsoever.
What designations cover hunt area 69 and how do they affect access?: The area is dominated by the Fitzpatrick Wilderness Area. A nonresident hunting designated wilderness must be accompanied by a licensed guide or a resident guide—a nonresident planning to hunt this area alone cannot legally take elk in the wilderness sections. The area also overlaps with mule deer hunt area 128 and pronghorn hunt area 84.
How much of hunt area 69 can a hunter actually get onto to find and hunt elk?: Nearly 98 percent of the area is public land, but the wilderness where most elk are found typically requires packing in with stock or substantial hiking from trailheads like Glacier Trail or Simpson Lake to hunt effectively. Day hunting from road access is possible but often limits opportunity, especially as the season progresses into October and November.
Which seasons run when on hunt area 69?: Type 9 (any elk, archery only) runs September 1–30. Type Gen (any elk, general licence) runs archery September 15–30 and regular October 1–31. Type 6 (cow or calf only) runs archery September 15–30 and regular October 1–November 30.

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