Unit 75

Key landmarks for navigation and orientation include Sherman Peak and Soda Peak on higher terrain, providing reference points for glassing ridgelines. The Fife and Alexander Reservoirs serve as obvious water anchors, while Soda Springs itself is unmissable as a central landmark. Major canyon systems—Williams Canyon, Nelson Canyon, Water Canyon—run as natural travel corridors and drainage focuses for water availability.

Georgetown Summit marks a logical high point for scanning country. The various springs dotted throughout (Burnt Spring, Willow Flat Spring, Camp Spring, Cold Spring) become critical waypoints in a landscape where water scarcity requires deliberate route planning.

The unit spans mid-elevation terrain from roughly 4,900 feet in valley floors to nearly 9,700 feet on ridgetops, with the median around 6,200 feet reflecting a preponderance of rolling foothills country. Lower elevations feature sagebrush basins and open valleys suitable for early-season movement, while ridges and higher slopes support moderate conifer stands—ponderosa, Douglas-fir, and scattered spruce. The habitat transitions create natural movement corridors for moose, with willows and riparian growth concentrated along drainage bottoms and springs.

Moonlight Meadow and the various basin features provide open country interspersed with timber, creating diverse terrain patterns across the unit.

Nearly 800 miles of roads provide extensive access throughout the unit, with major state highways (34, 30, 89) and numerous county roads offering multiple entry points. Road density supports fair accessibility without overwhelming crowding potential. Soda Springs functions as the primary hunter hub, with county roads branching toward Bancroft, Ovid, and surrounding areas.

The connected road network means hunters can stage from multiple locations and access different unit sections relatively easily. Private land interspersed through valleys may restrict some movement, but overall terrain complexity and moderate size suggest pressure can be distributed across the rolling country, particularly if hunters push beyond obvious road-accessible basins.

Unit 75 encompasses portions of Bear Lake, Caribou, and Franklin Counties in southeastern Idaho, bounded by Highway 34 and the Blackfoot River on the north, U.S. 30 and 89 corridor to the east, and Government Dam and Chesterfield Dam roads to the south. The unit forms an irregular polygon spanning roughly 40 miles northwest to southeast, with Soda Springs sitting centrally as the largest population center. Multiple state highways and county roads thread through the unit, establishing clear access corridors.

Montpelier lies just outside the northern boundary, while Bancroft and Ovid anchor the eastern reaches.

Water sources are scattered but meaningful. The Blackfoot River and Reservoir anchor the northern boundary, while Chesterfield Dam and associated reservoir system provide southern water access. Year-round creeks include Mill Fork, Eightmile Creek, Nelson Creek, Ninemile Creek, Pearl Creek, and several forks of the Williams drainage—these should hold moose during fall rut.

Numerous named springs throughout the unit (Burnt, Willow Flat, Main Canyon, Camp, Corner, Humberg, Sago, Boundary, Cold, Sink) offer drinking water but may be seasonal. The canal systems (Bench A, Bench B, Last Chance) indicate irrigation infrastructure that may affect water timing. Strategic water locations become critical for locating moose in this moderate-water-availability country.

Unit 75 offers moose hunting across rolling, mixed-habitat country where terrain and water management dictate success. Moose in this elevation range favor willow-choked drainages during rut season—focus on creek bottoms and spring-fed areas like Nelson Canyon, Williams Canyon, and the various named springs. Early season (September) may find moose in higher parks and open basins near timber; as rut approaches, push toward water sources.

The moderate forest cover provides both movement corridors and cover, unlike open country. Elk and mule deer likely share habitat in the upper basins and timbered ridges. Glass ridgetops for movement patterns, then work drainages and seeps for waterhole activity.

Road access is fair, but best success typically comes from hiking away from obvious access points into the rolling terrain between major highways.