Deer hunt area boundary change – Hunt Areas 94 & 131
In 2019, deer hunters should be aware of a new boundary between Hunt Area 94 and Hunt Area 131. This new boundary was created to reduce the instances of hunting in a wrong area or during a closed season that seemed to be occurring along the old boundary, especially in the Oregon Buttes and Continental Peak areas. With hunt area 131 opening on October 1 each year, and hunt area 94 opening on October 15, it seemed hunters were pursuing deer that use both sides of the old boundary. Since area 131 has a lower density of mule deer and a shorter season, it seemed prudent to move the boundary north to reduce the pressure on those few deer that live along the old boundary.
The new boundary follows the Sweetwater River downstream from Wyoming Highway 28 to the Phelps/Dodge Bridge on the Three Forks-Atlantic City Road (B.L.M. Road # 2317) and then follows that road southeast to the Bison Basin Road (Fremont County Road # 281 and B.L.M. Road # 3221).
Changes to the youth only general deer seasons
Several years ago, Lander region deer managers created an additional opportunity for youth deer hunters, by adding two weeks to the Lander area general seasons in Hunt Area 92, 94, and 160, and adding a few days at the end of the season in Hunt Areas 96 & 97 near Jeffrey City. This was a very popular opportunity that gave youth hunters (ages 12-17) the chance to have more than one weekend to hunt in these areas.
In the last couple of years, these have become some of the few deer hunt areas in the state with special youth-only dates. As a result, we were seeing increases in out-of-area hunters coming from all corners of Wyoming, causing concerns about hunter crowding from local hunters and complaints from some landowners. Mule deer numbers and buck/doe ratios have also declined in the Lander and Green Mountain areas. Given all these circumstances, allowing youths two extra weeks to hunt in these areas where other hunters were having trouble finding buck mule deer is difficult to justify.
For 2019, the youth general license holders will still have three extra days to hunt deer in Hunt Areas 92, 94, and 160 (October 12-14) with the traditional general deer season in those areas being October 15 – 22. Areas 96 and 97 near Jeffrey City will have a shorter general season (October 15 – 20), with no extra youth-only dates.
Walk-In Areas for hunting
As is the case every year, hunters are encouraged to closely check for updates to walk-in areas in each hunt area. New walk-in areas were added in 2019 around Fremont County, and a few were removed at the request of the landowner. Please check the Game & Fish website at https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Public-Access/Walk-In-Hunting/Fremont-County to review the walk-in hunting areas for Fremont County for 2019, and be sure to check the lists and rules for each walk-in area, since many walk-in areas have different species allowances at the request of those landowners. It’s important to remember these changes will not show up on your OnX Hunt App or GPS chip unless the 2019 version/update is purchased. https://www.onxmaps.com/.
