Can a hunter draw hunt area 86 as a resident of Wyoming without preference points?

Yes. Wyoming residents draw pronghorn tags in a random draw with no preference points required or available. Both residents and nonresidents must apply for hunt area 86 specifically; there is no general pronghorn license or region license in Wyoming that would cover it.

What preference points do nonresidents need to draw hunt area 86?

Wyoming's nonresident pronghorn draw awards three quarters of the tags by preference points, with the highest-point applicants drawn first, and one quarter by random draw. Preference-point requirements vary by year and cannot be predicted, and nonresidents without points may still draw in the random quarter. A nonresident should plan to apply in a specific hunt area rather than expect preference points to guarantee entry.

Can a nonresident hunt the designated wilderness in hunt area 86 alone?

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 use the wilderness must arrange a guide before the hunt.

How much of hunt area 86 can a hunter actually access to pronghorn?

The vast majority of pronghorn occupy private flood-irrigated grasslands and sagebrush foothills in the Bondurant Basin floor, where access is difficult and permission must be obtained in advance. Scattered pronghorn occur on public land along Monument Ridge and in Muddy Creek drainage on National Forest System land in the southern portion, but these receive far less hunting pressure because fewer animals use them during autumn.

When does the Type 1 archery season run versus the regular season in hunt area 86?

Archery runs August 15 through September 9, and the regular season runs September 10 through October 31. Both are part of the same any-antelope hunt and are listed as Type 1 in the regulations.

Wyoming Hunt Area 86 (Hoback) pronghorn hunting

Licence

Limited quota — drawn

Open public land

94%

Elevation

5,900–11,700 ft

Terrain

Steep

Hunt area 86 sits in the Bondurant Basin between the Gros Ventre Range to the north and east and the Hoback Rim and northern Wyoming Range to the south and west. The Upper Hoback River drains the high country from the southwest, fed by Fisherman, Jack, and Dell Creeks. Terrain across the area ranges from rock and alpine at the highest elevations down through dense conifer forest to aspen groves, then to rolling sagebrush foothills that descend to flood-irrigated private grasslands in the Basin floor. The land slopes steeply on average, with about 40% gentle ground, 48% moderate, and scattered steep and rugged terrain above. Pronghorn during the hunting season concentrate on the private flood-irrigated grasslands and adjacent sagebrush foothills in the Basin's lower reaches, with scattered animals along Monument Ridge's east slope and in the Muddy Creek area of Noble Basin on public ground. Public land—mostly National Forest and BLM—comprises about 94% of the area's 567 square miles, but public access does not guarantee easy hunting, as roads, trailheads, seasonal closures, and private inholdings all constrain movement. A designated wilderness area exists within the hunt area.

Pronghorn in hunt area 86 present a persistent access challenge. Most animals are found on private grasslands and sagebrush foothills where permission is difficult to obtain, and a hunter considering this area should evaluate the likelihood of private-land access before drawing. The scattered pronghorn on public land occupy the eastern flank of Monument Ridge and the Muddy Creek drainage in the southern portion, but these populations attract far less hunting pressure than the Basin floor because fewer antelope use them during autumn. Hunters able to access private ground in the lower Basin find better opportunity; those limited to public land will cover longer ground for fewer encounters. The area's other game—mule deer, elk, and moose—concentrate on the upper National Forest lands where elk and moose seasons typically run concurrently with pronghorn, and grouse and predator species add secondary opportunity.

Licence and how this hunt area is drawn

Hunt Area 86 (Hoback) 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 9Regular September 10 – 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)

Hunting pronghorn in hunt area 86 spans two distinct phases of the rut, with archery occurring as territories form and bucks begin to chase, then regular season carrying through the peak and into the recovery period. The archery window from mid-August into early September finds cooling weather—highs from the mid-70s to low 60s—with minimal precipitation; bucks are establishing territories and beginning to gather does, and the higher elevations remain accessible on public land, though pronghorn remain concentrated in the lower private grasslands and sagebrush foothills. The regular season from mid-September into October sees temperatures drop from the low 60s toward the low 50s, with October bringing about two inches of monthly snowfall; hunters encounter bucks in the tail end of the rut and transiting into fall grouping, and early-season snow can push animals and affect high-country access. Access to hunt area 86 remains constrained throughout: most pronghorn lie on private land in the Basin, requiring permission obtained before the season, while public-land pronghorn are scattered along Monument Ridge and in Muddy Creek drainage to the south and can be pursued on National Forest and BLM ground with standard trailhead entry. The legal animal for Type 1 is any antelope.

Land and access

National Forest94%

Generally open to public hunting

private land6%

Private

About 94% of this hunt area is ground a hunter can generally count on — National Forest and BLM, roughly 535 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 75% 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 pronghorn are mapped

Summer Range10%

used in summer

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

Sagebrush45%

Conifer32%

Grass and meadow12%

Riparian7%

Other cover2%

Mid elevations

Conifer51%

Sagebrush30%

Grass and meadow17%

Riparian1%

Aspen1%

Higher elevations

Sagebrush42%

Conifer39%

Grass and meadow18%

Other cover2%

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	28°F	6°F	19.6 in
February	31°F	6°F	16.6 in
March	39°F	14°F	11.8 in
April	47°F	22°F	5.2 in
May	56°F	30°F	0.4 in
June	66°F	36°F	0 in
July	75°F	42°F	0 in
August	74°F	40°F	0 in
September	64°F	34°F	0 in
October	50°F	25°F	1.8 in
November	36°F	14°F	12.8 in
December	27°F	6°F	20.9 in

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

Common questions

Can a hunter draw hunt area 86 as a resident of Wyoming without preference points?: Yes. Wyoming residents draw pronghorn tags in a random draw with no preference points required or available. Both residents and nonresidents must apply for hunt area 86 specifically; there is no general pronghorn license or region license in Wyoming that would cover it.
What preference points do nonresidents need to draw hunt area 86?: Wyoming's nonresident pronghorn draw awards three quarters of the tags by preference points, with the highest-point applicants drawn first, and one quarter by random draw. Preference-point requirements vary by year and cannot be predicted, and nonresidents without points may still draw in the random quarter. A nonresident should plan to apply in a specific hunt area rather than expect preference points to guarantee entry.
Can a nonresident hunt the designated wilderness in hunt area 86 alone?: 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 use the wilderness must arrange a guide before the hunt.
How much of hunt area 86 can a hunter actually access to pronghorn?: The vast majority of pronghorn occupy private flood-irrigated grasslands and sagebrush foothills in the Bondurant Basin floor, where access is difficult and permission must be obtained in advance. Scattered pronghorn occur on public land along Monument Ridge and in Muddy Creek drainage on National Forest System land in the southern portion, but these receive far less hunting pressure because fewer animals use them during autumn.
When does the Type 1 archery season run versus the regular season in hunt area 86?: Archery runs August 15 through September 9, and the regular season runs September 10 through October 31. Both are part of the same any-antelope hunt and are listed as Type 1 in the regulations.

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