Unit 87

Steamboat Peak and Eagle Peak serve as primary navigation anchors on the unit's northern and southern boundaries respectively. The Sawtooth ridge system offers commanding vantage points for glassing lower basins. Raspberry Ridge provides secondary glassing terrain.

Jack Creek Basin and Hoback Basin are major topographic features where elk concentrate seasonally. The Elbow represents a distinctive terrain bend useful for route planning. Tin Can Park opens as a natural park meadow in mid-elevation country.

Fisherman Creek Lake provides a reliable water landmark on the western side.

Terrain spans mid-elevation country from 6,500 feet in the valley bottoms to above 11,000 feet on the higher ridges. Lower elevations feature open sagebrush basins and scattered aspen stands—good early-season elk country. Mid-elevation zones mix ponderosa and lodgepole forest with parkland openings.

Upper slopes transition to denser subalpine timber with patches of meadow. The rolling profile creates natural movement corridors between winter range in lower valleys and summer high country. Moderate forest density means glassing opportunities exist alongside timbered security.

Nearly 100 miles of roads penetrate the unit, but fair access rating reflects their scattered distribution rather than dense coverage. Dell Creek Road and Riling Draw Road form the primary access spines. Highway 191 provides quick entry from the south, making lower elevations subject to early-season pressure.

Higher basins and ridge systems see less traffic due to rougher roads and steeper terrain. Bondurant serves as the nearest town for logistics. The moderate size combined with high terrain complexity means pressure concentrates on accessible drainages—willing hunters can find solitude by pushing into rougher country.

Unit 87 anchors along the Hoback Rim between U.S. Highway 191 and the Dell Creek drainage system. The western boundary follows Highway 191 southbound to the divide separating the Hoback and Green Rivers, while northern limits run along the Gros Ventre/Hoback divide near Steamboat Peak. Eastern reaches extend across the rolling country around the Riling Draw Road.

The unit wraps around the town of Bondurant on its northern edge. Hodges Peak and Eagle Peak define southern terminus points along the river divide.

Water sources scatter unevenly across the unit, requiring strategic planning. Jack Creek, Dell Creek, and Slide Creek run as primary drainages, though flow is seasonal in lower reaches. Fisherman Creek holds water more reliably through the unit's middle elevations.

Secondary creeks including Porcupine, Muddy, Mill, Jenny, House, Rock, and Wertz drainages offer water access but shouldn't be counted on late season. Jack Creek Spring and other unnamed seeps exist on higher elevations. The limited water badge reflects inconsistent availability—success depends on scouting perennial sources before the hunt.

Unit 87 is pure elk country with rolling terrain that funnels animals between seasonal ranges. Early season finds elk scattered across mid-elevation parklands and aspen—glass the open basins (Jack Creek, Hoback, Coyote) from ridges like The Sawtooth. As pressure increases, elk move to higher timber and steeper terrain.

Rut hunting concentrates in bottleneck drainages like Dell and Jack Creeks where bulls move between basins. Late season pushes animals lower into sagebrush and aspen again. The high terrain complexity (7.7/10) rewards patience—understand elevation transitions and use drainage systems as travel corridors to access less-hunted country away from road proximity.