Can a hunter access hunt area 71 without a guide?

A resident does not need a guide on National Forest land, but a nonresident must be accompanied by a licensed guide or a resident guide in the Teton Wilderness portion of this hunt area, which covers the majority of the area. Both residents and nonresidents should be aware that National Forest access depends on road and trailhead availability and seasonal conditions.

Is hunt area 71 hunted on a general elk licence?

Yes. A Wyoming resident buys a general elk licence over the counter with no draw and no preference points. A nonresident must draw a Region W general licence, which is valid in the general-licence hunt areas of that region.

How much of hunt area 71 is actually open to hunting?

About 84% of the area—roughly 197 square miles—is National Forest open to hunting. The remaining 16% is National Park Service land closed to hunting. Access to that open ground depends on roads, trailheads, and seasonal closures, which all apply.

When do the archery and rifle seasons run on hunt area 71?

Archery runs September 1 through September 19, allowing any elk. The regular rifle season runs September 20 through October 31, allowing antlered elk with spikes excluded.

Does snowfall in October affect the hunt on this area?

Yes. Hunt area 71 receives an average of 6.7 inches of snowfall in October, which can force elk from higher elevations down to lower, more accessible country. As snow continues to accumulate into late fall, many elk migrate off the hunt area onto the National Elk Refuge and the Gros Ventre River.

Wyoming Hunt Area 71 (Pacific Creek) elk hunting

Licence

General licence area

Open public land

84%

Elevation

6,800–10,100 ft

Terrain

Steep

Elk region

Hunt area 71 is high, steep country that rises from 6,800 feet to just over 10,100 feet, with typical ground around 8,100 feet. The terrain is moderately rolling at lower elevations but grows steeper and more mountainous as elevation increases; roughly 39% of the area slopes gently, 49% moderately, and 12% steeply. Lower elevations hold mostly conifer mixed with sagebrush and some aspen, with riparian meadows in the drainages. Sagebrush becomes more dominant at mid and higher elevations, interspersed with lodgepole pine, spruce, fir, and whitebark pine. The country is bisected by large drainages with deep valleys and open meadows. The area sits largely within the Teton Wilderness, though elk hunting is also allowed in the John D. Rockefeller Memorial Parkway portion. The vast majority of hunting here is conducted on foot or horseback through the backcountry, as motorized roads are scarce. Grizzly bears are abundant and should be expected regularly.

Getting in depends on access to National Forest trailheads. Pacific Creek, Pilgrim Creek, and Sheffield Creek provide the main entry points. About 84% of the hunt area is National Forest open to hunting—roughly 197 square miles—while 16% is closed National Park Service land. The Teton Wilderness section requires a nonresident to be accompanied by a licensed guide or a resident guide. National Forest access itself is not assured; roads, trailheads, and seasonal closures all constrain where and when a hunter can reach the ground.

Elk scatter across the higher elevations throughout September and October. Significant October snowfall—averaging 6.7 inches for the month—can push elk down to lower elevations where they become more accessible. As snow deepens further into late October and November, many elk migrate off the hunt area onto the National Elk Refuge and into the Gros Ventre River country.

Licence and how this hunt area is drawn

Hunt Area 71 (Pacific Creek) 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 Gen — general licence · Any elk
Archery September 1 – September 19
Type Gen — general licence · Antlered elk, spikes excluded
Regular September 20 – October 31

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 Gen — Any elk (September)

The archery season from September 1 through September 19 opens as elk enter the rut onset and early primary rut, when bulls begin bugling and herds concentrate. September weather brings highs near 60 degrees and lows near 33, with virtually no snow—conditions that favor high-elevation hunting on foot or horseback through the backcountry. Elk scatter across the higher elevations during this period, accessible mainly via the Pacific Creek, Pilgrim Creek, and Sheffield Creek approach routes. Nonresidents pursuing any elk on this archery hunt must be accompanied by a licensed guide or a resident guide within the Teton Wilderness.

Type Gen — Antlered elk, spikes excluded (September–October)

Rifle hunting from September 20 through October 31 spans the primary rut into the late rut and post-rut recovery, when bull activity remains high in September but wanes through October. Temperatures cool through the season—highs fall from near 60 degrees in September to 47 degrees by October—while October snowfall averages 6.7 inches and can be substantial. Rising snow depths push elk off the highest ground toward lower elevations and eventually off the hunt area onto lower-elevation winter ranges. This hunt is restricted to antlered elk with spikes excluded and requires the same wilderness guide restrictions for nonresidents. The majority of hunting remains backcountry work on foot or horseback, though early-season hunters may find elk still scattered high.

Land and access

National Forest84%

Generally open to public hunting

National Park Service16%

Public land closed to hunting

About 84% of this hunt area is ground a hunter can generally count on — National Forest, roughly 197 square miles. Public ownership is not the same as easy entry: roads, trailheads, seasonal closures and private inholdings all still apply.

the Wyoming Game & Fish Department publishes 95% 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 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 Range100%

used in summer

Parturition Areas25%

spring birthing ground, months before any hunting season

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

Conifer57%

Sagebrush28%

Riparian9%

Grass and meadow5%

Other cover1%

Mid elevations

Sagebrush50%

Conifer44%

Grass and meadow4%

Riparian2%

Higher elevations

Sagebrush72%

Conifer23%

Grass and meadow5%

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	26°F	6°F	47.8 in
February	30°F	7°F	36 in
March	38°F	14°F	31.6 in
April	44°F	21°F	16.5 in
May	53°F	29°F	2.7 in
June	61°F	36°F	0 in
July	71°F	42°F	0 in
August	70°F	40°F	0 in
September	60°F	33°F	0 in
October	47°F	25°F	6.7 in
November	33°F	14°F	35.5 in
December	25°F	6°F	50.2 in

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

Common questions

Can a hunter access hunt area 71 without a guide?: A resident does not need a guide on National Forest land, but a nonresident must be accompanied by a licensed guide or a resident guide in the Teton Wilderness portion of this hunt area, which covers the majority of the area. Both residents and nonresidents should be aware that National Forest access depends on road and trailhead availability and seasonal conditions.
Is hunt area 71 hunted on a general elk licence?: Yes. A Wyoming resident buys a general elk licence over the counter with no draw and no preference points. A nonresident must draw a Region W general licence, which is valid in the general-licence hunt areas of that region.
How much of hunt area 71 is actually open to hunting?: About 84% of the area—roughly 197 square miles—is National Forest open to hunting. The remaining 16% is National Park Service land closed to hunting. Access to that open ground depends on roads, trailheads, and seasonal closures, which all apply.
When do the archery and rifle seasons run on hunt area 71?: Archery runs September 1 through September 19, allowing any elk. The regular rifle season runs September 20 through October 31, allowing antlered elk with spikes excluded.
Does snowfall in October affect the hunt on this area?: Yes. Hunt area 71 receives an average of 6.7 inches of snowfall in October, which can force elk from higher elevations down to lower, more accessible country. As snow continues to accumulate into late fall, many elk migrate off the hunt area onto the National Elk Refuge and the Gros Ventre River.

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