Can a hunter draw a pronghorn licence for hunt area 73 as a Wyoming resident?

Yes. Residents enter a random draw for each hunt area separately. There is no general pronghorn licence in Wyoming and no region licence—every antelope hunt area requires a separate draw, and a resident draws once yearly for any areas they apply to. If the draw does not come through, there is no alternative licence to fall back on.

What preference points does a nonresident need for hunt area 73?

Nonresidents competing for this hunt area must draw against the nonresident preference-point pool. Three quarters of the nonresident licences go to applicants ranked by preference points (top-down), and a quarter go to a random draw that all nonresidents in the pool enter. Because this is a large and popular hunt area, preference point requirements are challenging; the specific cutoff shifts annually with the applicant pool.

How much of hunt area 73 can a hunter actually access?

About 61% of the hunt area is BLM or State Trust Land where hunters can generally count on entry, plus 11 walk-in areas on private ground. However, roads, trailheads, seasonal closures and private inholdings still limit where a hunter can actually get onto the ground. Access is rated good overall, though pressure concentrates near Casper and roads become unreliable in snow or mud.

When do pronghorn enter the rut in hunt area 73?

Pronghorn in this area enter the pre-rut phase around mid-August as they establish territories, reach peak rut in early September, and stay in post-rut and grouping phases through late October as herds gather for winter. The archery season (August 15 to September 14) spans the territorial phase and the height of the rut, while the regular season (September 15 to October 31) covers the tail end of the rut and the transition into fall grouping.

Wyoming Hunt Area 73 (North Natrona) pronghorn hunting

Licence

Limited quota — drawn

Open public land

61%

Elevation

4,800–9,100 ft

Terrain

Gentle

Hunt area 73 spans open rolling country dominated by sagebrush, grass and small forbs, punctuated by higher-elevation meadows where pronghorn shift into summer and fall. The terrain is gentle overall, with 90% of it graded gentle and a mean slope of 4.3 degrees, though pronghorn avoid the rougher timbered portions at higher elevations. Sagebrush is the dominant plant community across all elevation bands, ranging from 65% at lower elevations to 88% in the mid-range, with grass and meadow contributing substantially throughout. The hunt area is large, and pronghorn are mapped across much of it: 84% of the ground falls within yearlong range, while 34% is winter range and 9% is summer range.

Access is widespread. About 61% of the area—roughly 885 square miles—is BLM or State Trust Land where hunters can generally count on entry, and 11 walk-in areas on private ground offer additional opportunity. Roads and trailheads do exist, but seasonal conditions matter: winter snow and autumn moisture can make some routes treacherous, and a hunter should judge road conditions carefully before committing to backcountry tracks. Casper lies adjacent to the hunt area, making lodging, fuel and food immediately available, and primitive camping on BLM land is possible, though not on state ground.

The hunt area is popular and attracts substantial interest. Pressure varies sharply by location: access is easiest near Casper and on the opener, and hunters willing to drive further and hunt weekdays can find quieter country. The size of the area means serious hunters can spread out, and the hunt area's reputation has grown in recent seasons.

Licence and how this hunt area is drawn

Hunt Area 73 (North Natrona) 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 14Regular September 15 – October 31
Type 7 · Doe or fawn valid east of Bucknum Road (Natrona County Road 125) and south of Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad right-of-way
Regular August 15 – 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 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)

The Type 1 hunt (any antelope) spans archery (August 15 to September 14) and regular season (September 15 to October 31), reaching from the pre-rut phase when bucks establish territories into the primary rut and then into the post-rut recovery and fall grouping phases. August weather is warm, with highs near 84°F and no snow, favoring archery hunters who can stalk or glass open country; by late October highs have dropped to around 58°F and the first snow appears (averaging 1.2 inches for the month). Access is widespread across BLM, State Trust Land, and 11 walk-in areas, though pressure concentrates near Casper and on the season opener, and hunters seeking solitude can find quieter ground further out and on weekdays. This licence is valid anywhere within the hunt area and allows a hunter to take any antelope.

Type 7 — Doe or fawn valid east of Bucknum… (August–October)

The Type 7 hunt (doe or fawn valid east of Bucknum Road and south of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad right-of-way) runs the full regular season from August 15 to October 31, starting in the territorial phase and spanning the primary rut, post-rut and into fall grouping as herds coalesce. Early-season hunting in August is warm (highs ~84°F) with little to no snow, making for straightforward conditions, while October brings cooling (highs ~58°F) and light snowfall (averaging 1.2 inches). Access depends on location: the restricted portion may have different ownership or access characteristics than the open portions of the hunt area, so a hunter should verify which ground lies within the licence boundary. This licence is restricted to does and fawns, not bucks, and is valid only within the specified area east of Bucknum Road and south of the BNSF railroad right-of-way.

Land and access

BLM48%

Generally open to public hunting

private land34%

Private

State Trust Land13%

Generally open to public hunting

unclassified ownership5%

Ownership unclassified

About 61% of this hunt area is ground a hunter can generally count on — BLM and State Trust Land, roughly 885 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 11 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 Range84%

the only layer that means year-round use

Winter Range34%

used in winter

Summer Range9%

used in summer

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 pronghorn are mapped, not where inside the area they are, and not when they move.

Habitat and cover

Lower elevations

Sagebrush65%

Grass and meadow30%

Other cover6%

Mid elevations

Sagebrush88%

Grass and meadow11%

Higher elevations

Sagebrush73%

Grass and meadow24%

Conifer2%

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	14°F	4.5 in
February	37°F	15°F	5.6 in
March	47°F	23°F	3.7 in
April	54°F	29°F	2.3 in
May	64°F	38°F	0 in
June	76°F	47°F	0 in
July	85°F	54°F	0 in
August	84°F	52°F	0 in
September	73°F	43°F	0 in
October	58°F	32°F	1.2 in
November	44°F	22°F	3.2 in
December	34°F	14°F	5.5 in

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

Common questions

Can a hunter draw a pronghorn licence for hunt area 73 as a Wyoming resident?: Yes. Residents enter a random draw for each hunt area separately. There is no general pronghorn licence in Wyoming and no region licence—every antelope hunt area requires a separate draw, and a resident draws once yearly for any areas they apply to. If the draw does not come through, there is no alternative licence to fall back on.
What preference points does a nonresident need for hunt area 73?: Nonresidents competing for this hunt area must draw against the nonresident preference-point pool. Three quarters of the nonresident licences go to applicants ranked by preference points (top-down), and a quarter go to a random draw that all nonresidents in the pool enter. Because this is a large and popular hunt area, preference point requirements are challenging; the specific cutoff shifts annually with the applicant pool.
How much of hunt area 73 can a hunter actually access?: About 61% of the hunt area is BLM or State Trust Land where hunters can generally count on entry, plus 11 walk-in areas on private ground. However, roads, trailheads, seasonal closures and private inholdings still limit where a hunter can actually get onto the ground. Access is rated good overall, though pressure concentrates near Casper and roads become unreliable in snow or mud.
What antelope seasons are available in hunt area 73?: Two seasons are published: a Type 1 hunt (any antelope) with archery August 15 to September 14 and regular season September 15 to October 31, and a Type 7 hunt (doe or fawn only) valid east of Bucknum Road and south of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad right-of-way, running August 15 to October 31. Type 1 is the general hunt; Type 7 is restricted to does and fawns in a specific portion of the area.
When do pronghorn enter the rut in hunt area 73?: Pronghorn in this area enter the pre-rut phase around mid-August as they establish territories, reach peak rut in early September, and stay in post-rut and grouping phases through late October as herds gather for winter. The archery season (August 15 to September 14) spans the territorial phase and the height of the rut, while the regular season (September 15 to October 31) covers the tail end of the rut and the transition into fall grouping.

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