Unit 37

Key landmarks for orientation include Black Mountain and Big Mountain, visible prominently from many vantage points and useful for route-finding. The Bighorn Mountain divide forms the western spine—navigating from established passes like Woodchuck Pass or Government Gap provides logical corridors into different drainage systems. Lake Mirage, Stull Lakes, and several other alpine lakes mark high-country terrain and offer water reference points.

Major drainages including Bonanza Creek, Red Canyon Creek, and Sawmill Creek carve the landscape and serve as travel routes. Weston Point's cliffs provide visual landmarks on lower terrain.

The unit spans from sagebrush and grassland valley floors near 3,600 feet up to rocky alpine above 13,000 feet on the high peaks. Mid-elevation terrain dominates—rolling slopes covered in mixed conifer forest with clearings and park areas. Ponderosa and Douglas fir predominate on lower slopes; higher elevations transition to spruce-fir with increasing rockiness.

The numerous named parks (Highland Park, Long Park, Big Goose Park, and others) are natural meadows interspersed through the forest, creating feed and travel corridors for elk. This vertical relief creates distinct seasonal habitat tiers.

Nearly 1,000 miles of roads cross the unit, primarily Forest Service routes that penetrate deep into the mountains. Major staging areas exist near Sheridan, Story, and Banner, with good trailhead and camping access via Black Mountain Road, Woodchuck Pass Road, and other USFS roads. This road density supports significant hunter access and likely concentrates pressure on accessible drainages and parks.

However, the unit's complexity (7.9/10 terrain difficulty) means many accessible areas have less pressure if hunters are willing to move into steeper, more confusing terrain. Early season and limited-access areas away from obvious entry points may offer solitude.

Unit 37 encompasses the northern Bighorn Mountains between Sheridan and Story, Wyoming. The boundary follows Interstate 90 and Highway 14 along the north and east, then traces creek drainages and ridgelines south and west through the mountain core. The western boundary runs along the main Bighorn divide via Forest Service roads.

The unit sits at a crossroads—low valley country and ranch lands to the north and east, high mountain terrain and wilderness to the south and west. Sheridan is the closest town for resupply and services.

Water is limited and scattered—critical for hunt planning. Reliable streams include South Fork Little Tongue River, Bonanza Creek, Sawmill Creek, and Red Canyon Creek in their respective drainages, though flow varies seasonally. Multiple small alpine and high-country lakes (Lake Mirage, Stull Lakes, Rinehart Lakes, Spear Lake) provide water in upper terrain but dry up or become inaccessible late season.

Several named springs (Bard Spring, Red Grade Spring) mark key locations, but their reliability depends on snow melt and seasonal precipitation. Lower elevation reservoirs and ditches exist, but high-country hunters should plan water access carefully.

Elk are the primary game. Lower parks and open slopes at 6,000–8,000 feet provide late summer and early fall feeding areas; hunt here during archery and early rifle seasons. Higher timber and alpine parks (above 9,000 feet) hold elk in summer; early season glassing of parks from ridges can locate bulls.

Rut hunting in September focuses on timbered draws and saddles where bulls funnel during the rut—drainage systems like Red Canyon and Elk Draw are logical hubs. Late season pushes elk downslope toward ranch country and lower cover. Water becomes increasingly important late season; position camps near reliable springs and streams.

The complexity and elevation relief demand map study and familiarity with drainage systems before hunting.