Unit 26

The Hams Fork Plateau anchors the unit as a central landmark and navigation reference. Key ridges include Hams Fork Ridge, Muddy Ridge, and Mahogany Ridge, useful for orientation and route-finding. Names Hill provides a distinctive marker near the southern boundary.

Fontenelle Gap, Windy Gap, and Wright Divide serve as natural passes through the rolling terrain. Major summits like Graham Peak, Sublette Mountain, and South Fork Mountain offer vantage points for glassing. The Sublette and Tunp Ranges frame the unit's western reaches.

These features combine to create a landscape with natural corridors and high ground that aid navigation in complex terrain.

Terrain rises from around 6,000 feet in valley bottoms to over 10,500 feet at the highest ridges, creating distinct elevation transitions without dramatic vertical walls. Most of the unit sits in rolling, open country—sagebrush flats and benches dominate, with scattered ponderosa and Douglas-fir appearing on north-facing slopes and higher draws. Sparse timber is the rule; dense forest is rare here.

The landscape reads as high desert transitioning to montane terrain, with extensive parks and meadows interspersed throughout. LaBarge Meadows, Mule Meadow, and the various flats provide open glassing country, while timbered ridges offer travel corridors and thermal cover.

Limited road density creates a filtering effect—main highways provide straightforward access, but secondary roads thin quickly. U.S. 189/30 and Wyoming 89 are the primary access corridors, with scattered BLM roads and ranch access roads penetrating the interior. This limited access translates to moderate hunting pressure concentrated near main roads and known trailheads; hunters willing to go deep find less competition.

The high elevation and rolling terrain require solid fitness and navigation skills; casual access is limited. Staging areas exist near Cokeville, Fossil, and Frontier, but the unit sprawls large enough that concentrated pressure remains avoidable with effort and route planning.

Unit 26 straddles the tri-state corner where Wyoming, Utah, and Idaho meet, bounded by U.S. Highway 189 and U.S. Highway 30 on the east, Wyoming Highway 89 to the south, and the state lines forming the western and northern edges. The unit encompasses the Hams Fork Plateau and multiple basins including the Schuster, Pomeroy, Salt, Fontenelle, Raymond, and Dempsey Basins. The Oregon Trail's Lander Cutoff passes through historic country here.

This remote section spans roughly 800+ miles of roadway but remains sparsely developed, with scattered communities like Cokeville, Fossil, and Frontier serving as reference points rather than population centers.

Water exists but requires some hunting to locate consistently. The Salt River and Hams Fork represent major drainages with reliable flow, functioning as primary water sources and valley corridors. Multiple creeks—Rabbit Creek, Sublette Creek, Chalk Creek, and others—provide secondary drainage systems.

Springs are scattered throughout: Emigrant Spring, Wyman Spring, Indian Spring, Gooseberry Spring, and Stirrup Spring among others offer reliable stops for backcountry travel. Fontenelle Lakes, Spring Lake, Lake Alice, and Twin Creek Lakes provide concentrated water sources. Several man-made reservoirs (Graham, Philip, Poison Creek) augment natural water availability.

During dry seasons, spring locations become critical; water should be researched before hunting trips.

Unit 26 holds moose historically tied to the creek bottoms, riparian willows, and higher-elevation meadows. The Salt River drainage, Hams Fork system, and tributary creeks provide prime habitat where willow stands concentrate. Early season hunting focuses on higher parks and timbered benches during thermal movements; rut activity typically occurs in mid-September, pushing bulls into more visible patterns.

Late season forces moose toward lower, less-snowed valleys and riparian corridors. The rolling, sparse-timber terrain allows strategic glassing of meadows and parks from distance, but thick willows require close-quarter work. Water sources concentrate moose in predictable drainages; hunting near springs and creek crossings in early fall often pays.

The elevation range and terrain complexity demand solid conditioning and map study.