Can a hunter drawn for hunt area 24 use a general or region pronghorn licence to hunt it?

No. Hunt area 24 is a limited-quota hunt area drawn individually for both residents and nonresidents. There is no general pronghorn licence sold over the counter in Wyoming, and no region pronghorn licence exists for any of the state's antelope hunts. A hunter must draw a licence specific to this hunt area to hunt here.

Do Wyoming residents need preference points to draw hunt area 24?

No. Wyoming residents do not have pronghorn preference points at all. The resident pronghorn draw for this hunt area is random. Nonresidents, by contrast, do use preference points—three quarters of nonresident licences go to the top-point draw and a quarter to a random draw—but residents' odds depend on the number of applicants in the random pool, not on points.

How much public land can a hunter actually get onto in hunt area 24?

About 159 square miles of the 852-square-mile hunt area is dependably accessible public ground—roughly 19%. That includes BLM, State Trust Land, and National Forest. Much of the public land shown on maps is not accessible due to lack of road or trailhead access, seasonal closures, and private inholdings. Campbell County Walk In Area 6 and Area 3 are available during their open periods and require no permission slip.

Which licence types are valid on public land in hunt area 24?

Type 1 (any antelope) and Type 6 (doe or fawn) licences are valid on all public and private land in the hunt area. Type 2 (any antelope valid on private land) and Type 7 (doe or fawn valid on private land) are restricted to private land only. Hunters planning to hunt public lands must draw either a Type 1 or Type 6 licence.

When do the archery and regular seasons for hunt area 24 run?

All four licence types share the same season dates: archery runs August 15 through September 30, and regular season runs October 1 through October 20. Archery hunters will experience the pre-rut and early rut phases, while regular-season hunters arrive during late rut and early fall grouping. The first week of the season draws the heaviest pressure.

Wyoming Hunt Area 24 (Thunder Basin) pronghorn hunting

Licence

Limited quota — drawn

Open public land

19%

Elevation

4,100–5,200 ft

Terrain

Gentle

Hunt area 24 stretches across 852 square miles of the Thunder Basin country between 4,100 and 5,200 feet, with typical ground around 4,600 feet. The terrain is predominantly gentle, averaging 3.5 degrees of slope, and breaks naturally into sagebrush and grassland openings dotted with scattered buttes and badlands. Sagebrush covers about half the area, grass and meadow roughly a third, with conifers making up barely 1% of the ground. This is walking country, though pronghorn densities vary sharply: the open plains hold steady populations, while the more rugged patches where terrain breaks offer sparse hunting.

Getting onto productive ground here is the real challenge. Public land—BLM, State Trust, and National Forest—makes up about 159 square miles, or roughly 19% of the hunt area. Much of what appears public on a map proves inaccessible in practice: inholdings, seasonal closures, lack of trailhead access, and the reality that remote sections simply do not connect to a road. The two walk-in areas, Campbell County Walk In Area 6 and Campbell County Walk In Area 3, are open during their posted seasons and require no permission. Private land dominates the remainder, much of it leased to outfitters or closed to new hunters even for a trespass fee. Access to private ground is genuinely difficult to arrange. The limited accessible public land draws heavy pressure, especially during the first week of the season; hunters who come later will encounter far fewer competitors but will also work harder to find unpressured animals.

Hunt area 24 offers four licence types to manage where hunters concentrate. Type 1 and Type 6 licences are valid across the entire area, including all public land, and are the draw option for anyone planning to hunt public ground. Type 2 and Type 7 licences are restricted to private land only and are for hunters with secured private access. This structure reflects the reality of the place: very limited public access, significant private-land pressure, and the need to sort hunters accordingly.

Licence and how this hunt area is drawn

Hunt Area 24 (Thunder Basin) is limited quota. A licence for it must be drawn for this hunt area specifically, by resident and nonresident alike. Wyoming issues no general pronghorn licence and no region pronghorn licence, so there is no over-the-counter option and no regional fallback: every pronghorn hunt area in the state is drawn on its own.

Wyoming residents have no preference points for pronghorn — the resident pronghorn 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 1 · Any antelope
Archery August 15 – September 30Regular October 1 – October 20
Type 2 · Any antelope valid on private land
Archery August 15 – September 30Regular October 1 – October 20
Type 6 · Doe or fawn
Archery August 15 – September 30Regular October 1 – October 20
Type 7 · Doe or fawn valid on private land
Archery August 15 – September 30Regular October 1 – October 20

The wording of each hunt is the Wyoming Game & Fish Department’s and is legally exact — a “cow or calf” hunt is not a pronghorn 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 1 — Any antelope (August–October)

Archery hunting on a Type 1 licence spans August 15 through September 30, a period when pronghorn are still in pre-rut movement and then entering the primary rut as September progresses. Temperatures drop from summer highs around 85 degrees Fahrenheit in August to the low 70s by month's end, with virtually no precipitation in either month. Bowhunters have access to the full hunt area, both public and private, though finding private-land permission is difficult. This licence allows the taking of any antelope. Regular season with a Type 1 licence runs October 1 through October 20, overlapping late rut and the shift toward fall grouping as pronghorn begin congregating into larger groups. October weather cools sharply, with highs dropping to the upper 50s and the first snow of the season—averaging less than an inch—possible by month's end. Public-land pressure peaks in the first week; hunters arriving later encounter less competition but likely fewer unpressured animals.

Type 2 — Any antelope valid on private land (August–October)

Archery hunting on a Type 2 licence spans August 15 through September 30 and is restricted to private land only—hunters with a Type 2 permit cannot legally hunt public ground in this area. During this period, pronghorn move through pre-rut and enter the primary rut, with temperatures starting near 85 degrees in August and declining to the low 70s by September's close. This licence allows the taking of any antelope. Regular season with a Type 2 licence runs October 1 through October 20, also valid on private land only, and covers late rut and early fall grouping. October conditions include temperatures dropping into the upper 50s and the possibility of light snow. Securing private-land access in hunt area 24 is substantially more difficult than accessing public ground; many ranches are leased to outfitters or do not accept new hunters.

Type 6 — Doe or fawn (August–October)

Archery hunting on a Type 6 licence spans August 15 through September 30, giving hunters access to the entire hunt area during pre-rut and early rut phases. August temperatures run near 85 degrees Fahrenheit, cooling to the low 70s by month's end, with essentially no precipitation. This licence is valid on all public and private land and is restricted to the taking of doe or fawn. Regular season with a Type 6 licence runs October 1 through October 20, spanning late rut and fall grouping as animals begin aggregating. October weather cools significantly, with highs in the upper 50s and a small risk of snow. The first week of the season draws the heaviest pressure on limited accessible public lands; later arrivals will face less congestion.

Type 7 — Doe or fawn valid on private land (August–October)

Archery hunting on a Type 7 licence runs August 15 through September 30 on private land only—this licence does not authorize hunting public ground. During this period, pronghorn are in pre-rut movement and entering primary rut, with August highs near 85 degrees cooling to low 70s by month's end and minimal precipitation. This licence permits the taking of doe or fawn only. Regular season with a Type 7 licence runs October 1 through October 20, also restricted to private land, during late rut and fall grouping. October conditions cool into the upper 50s with the possibility of light snow. Private-land access in hunt area 24 is challenging; many properties are closed to new hunters or leased to outfitters.

Land and access

private land81%

Private

State Trust Land7%

Generally open to public hunting

BLM7%

Generally open to public hunting

National Forest4%

Generally open to public hunting

About 19% of this hunt area is ground a hunter can generally count on — State Trust Land, BLM and National Forest, roughly 159 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.

the Wyoming Game & Fish Department publishes 25% 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 has 2 enrolled walk-in areas. That is private ground enrolled for public access, not public land. 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 pronghorn are mapped

Yearlong Range69%

the only layer that means year-round use

Winter Range25%

used in winter

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

Habitat and cover

Across the unit

Sagebrush53%

Grass and meadow37%

Other cover9%

Conifer1%

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	35°F	12°F	2.9 in
February	37°F	14°F	3.7 in
March	47°F	22°F	2.7 in
April	55°F	30°F	1.9 in
May	65°F	39°F	0 in
June	77°F	48°F	0 in
July	86°F	55°F	0 in
August	85°F	54°F	0 in
September	74°F	44°F	0 in
October	58°F	32°F	0.8 in
November	45°F	21°F	2.5 in
December	35°F	13°F	3.5 in

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

Common questions

Can a hunter drawn for hunt area 24 use a general or region pronghorn licence to hunt it?: No. Hunt area 24 is a limited-quota hunt area drawn individually for both residents and nonresidents. There is no general pronghorn licence sold over the counter in Wyoming, and no region pronghorn licence exists for any of the state's antelope hunts. A hunter must draw a licence specific to this hunt area to hunt here.
Do Wyoming residents need preference points to draw hunt area 24?: No. Wyoming residents do not have pronghorn preference points at all. The resident pronghorn draw for this hunt area is random. Nonresidents, by contrast, do use preference points—three quarters of nonresident licences go to the top-point draw and a quarter to a random draw—but residents' odds depend on the number of applicants in the random pool, not on points.
How much public land can a hunter actually get onto in hunt area 24?: About 159 square miles of the 852-square-mile hunt area is dependably accessible public ground—roughly 19%. That includes BLM, State Trust Land, and National Forest. Much of the public land shown on maps is not accessible due to lack of road or trailhead access, seasonal closures, and private inholdings. Campbell County Walk In Area 6 and Area 3 are available during their open periods and require no permission slip.
Which licence types are valid on public land in hunt area 24?: Type 1 (any antelope) and Type 6 (doe or fawn) licences are valid on all public and private land in the hunt area. Type 2 (any antelope valid on private land) and Type 7 (doe or fawn valid on private land) are restricted to private land only. Hunters planning to hunt public lands must draw either a Type 1 or Type 6 licence.
When do the archery and regular seasons for hunt area 24 run?: All four licence types share the same season dates: archery runs August 15 through September 30, and regular season runs October 1 through October 20. Archery hunters will experience the pre-rut and early rut phases, while regular-season hunters arrive during late rut and early fall grouping. The first week of the season draws the heaviest pressure.

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 pronghorn hunt areas