Unit 128

The Beaver Rim and Cedar Rim provide reliable glassing platforms and navigation anchors across the open country. Chimney Rock stands as a distinctive pillar landmark visible for miles. The Granite Mountains mass dominates the southwestern terrain while the Gas Hills command the east side of the unit.

Beaver Divide forms a clear ridge system running north-south. Named draws and valleys—Signor Draw, Walker Draw, Bobcat Draw—serve as primary travel corridors and elk funnels. Campbell Ridge and Cyclone Ridge help break the landscape into manageable segments for glassing and movement planning.

The unit spans from mid-elevation valley floors near 4,800 feet up to low mountain summits around 8,000 feet, with most hunting occurring between 6,000 and 7,500 feet. Open sagebrush plains dominate the lower basins and flats—Agate Flats, Alkali Flats, and Government Meadows are typical of the low country. Scattered juniper and ponderosa pines appear on ridges and the north-facing slopes of the low ranges.

The Granite Mountains, Gas Hills, and Coalbank Hills form the primary mountain terrain, steep-sided but modest in elevation. Riparian corridors in creeks like Cottonwood and Sage Hen support willow and cottonwood. This is sparse-forest country—wide open sagebrush with timber islands rather than continuous forest.

Over 500 miles of roads traverse the unit, primarily county and ranch roads rather than major highways. The Gas Hills Road (Natrona County Road 212) and Dry Creek Road (County Road 321) form the main spines. Access is limited by rough road conditions and significant private land ownership scattered throughout.

Most hunters concentrate along accessible county roads and near known reservoirs. The moderate road density combined with large, open basins means pressure can be light away from roadsides—hunters willing to walk 5-10 miles from vehicle access discover genuinely isolated country. Winter road conditions can be severe.

The unit occupies roughly 1,500 square miles of south-central Wyoming between U.S. Highway 20-26 on the north and U.S. Highway 287 on the west. Its eastern boundary follows the Wind River Reservation line while the southern edge runs along Wyoming Highway 220. This is ranching and industrial country—the Gas Hills oil field sits within the unit's eastern portion, and private ranches checker the landscape. The terrain forms a natural hunting zone between major highways, accessible from the town of Waltman but remote enough to avoid heavy pressure in many areas.

Water is the limiting factor in Unit 128. Reliable springs include Horsethief Springs, Findlay Springs, Barlow Springs, and Elkhorn Springs, though their seasonal reliability varies. Small reservoirs—Homestead Flat, Leitch, Fraser, and Mahoney—provide water where natural springs fail. Tin Cup Creek, Cottonwood Creek, and Sage Hen Creek flow seasonally depending on snowmelt; late summer hunting may find them dry.

The Dry Lakes and scattered soda lakes offer unreliable water. Successful hunting hinges on locating active water sources before the hunt—springs become critical elk attractants during dry periods.

Unit 128 offers elk hunting across elevation bands from sagebrush flats to sparse timber slopes. Early season (September) finds elk in the high basins and ridgelines before thermal pressure moves them upslope; focus on areas above 6,500 feet where ponderosa and juniper provide cover and browse. Rut hunting (October) concentrates elk movement through rim country and ridge systems—Beaver Rim and Cedar Rim become hunting highways.

Late season shifts elk to lower elevations and willows near reliable water, particularly around Findlay Springs and major drainages. The open terrain demands long-range glassing from rim vantage points, then stalk-and-go hunting through sagebrush. Locate water first—springs and reservoirs are the foundation of any successful strategy in this arid country.