Hunt Area 13, Lusk, Wyoming

Rolling short-grass prairie and mixed-grass rangeland with broken hill country; the Hat Creek Breaks — a ridge of pine- and cedar-covered hills — run east-west through the south-central portion of the area. Named summits include Chimney Rock (5,433 ft), Chalk Buttes (5,420 ft), Rocky Top (5,384 ft), Butler Hills (5,285 ft), Flat Top Hill (5,312 ft), Flat Top (5,023 ft), Signature Rock and Swanski Rock (both ~5,049 ft), and East Rabbit Mountain (4,577 ft). Elevation range is roughly 4,577–5,433 ft. Drainages are ephemeral — even Lance Creek, with its well-defined channel, is dry most of the year. Land south of the Hat Creek Breaks sits about 1,000 ft lower in elevation and receives slightly more precipitation than the lower plains to the north.

Access is the defining challenge in Area 13. Approximately 83% of the land is privately held; 17% is public (roughly 1% BLM surface acres and 15% Wyoming state sections). The BLM Newcastle Field Office (Newcastle, WY; 307-746-6600) administers scattered federal surface in Niobrara County; BLM land including the Lance Creek Fossil Site is accessible via Wyoming Highway 270 south of US-85. A portion of Thunder Basin National Grassland (USFS Douglas Ranger District, 307-745-2300) extends into Niobrara County with highly complex intermingled land patterns. The Wyoming Walk-In Access (Access Yes) program is the primary mechanism for public entry: Niobrara County has 18 enrolled Walk-In Areas totaling 74,337 acres. Walk-In Area 1 (42,512 acres, open Aug 15–May 31) is the largest block and allows deer under both Hunt Area 9 and Hunt Area 13, plus antelope, elk (Area 126), turkey, and sharp-tailed grouse. Walk-In Area 13 (10,529 acres, open Aug 15–Nov 30) allows antelope (Area 9) and deer (Area 13) only — elk, moose, bighorn sheep, mountain lion, and black bear are not permitted on WIA 13. Both are managed by the WGFD Casper Regional Office (307-473-3400). The official boundary per WGFD Chapter 6 (2026 draft): beginning where Hat Creek Road (Niobrara County Road 64) intersects the Wyoming-Nebraska state line; southerly along said line to U.S. Highway 20; westerly along said highway to Twenty Mile Creek Road (Converse County Road 46) at Lost Springs; northerly along said road to Manning Road (Converse County Road 53); easterly along said road to Twenty Mile Road (Niobrara County Road 23) at the Converse-Niobrara county line; easterly along said road to Wyoming Highway 271; easterly along said highway to Wyoming Highway 270 at Lance Creek; northerly and easterly along said highway to U.S. Highway 85; southerly along said highway to Hat Creek Road (NCR 64); easterly to the Wyoming-Nebraska state line. Motorized use on BLM land is limited to designated roads.

Dominant cover is mixed-grass prairie and sagebrush-steppe. Ponderosa pine and Rocky Mountain juniper (cedar) woodlands occupy the Hat Creek Breaks ridge and other elevated terrain, forming the area's primary timbered habitat. Creek bottoms and ephemeral drainages support narrow strips of cottonwood and shrubby riparian vegetation. The landscape functions as an ecotone between the Great Plains grassland to the east and the sagebrush steppe to the west. Black-tailed prairie dog towns are present in the open flats. The area lies within the broader Thunder Basin National Grassland ecological zone, characterized as semi-arid grassland with both sagebrush and mixed-grass plant communities.

Mule deer are the primary deer species in the area; white-tailed deer also occur in creek bottoms, broken timber, and along brushy drainages. As of the 2025 WGFD hunt forecast, mule deer populations in the Casper Region (which includes Area 13) have decreased or remained stable over recent years and all populations remain well below management goals; hunters should expect low to moderate success on public land. Buck-to-doe ratios remain relatively high. Pronghorn (antelope) are abundant and widely distributed across the open prairie, hunted under separate antelope hunt area numbers (Area 9 covers the Lance Creek portion of Niobrara County). Wild turkey (eastern subspecies) is present and huntable under a separate turkey hunt area system; WIA 1 designates Turkey Hunt Area 1. Sharp-tailed grouse are present in the open grasslands east of the Continental Divide and are huntable under upland game regulations. Black-tailed prairie dogs are common in flats, supporting associated raptors and burrowing owls. Non-game predators including coyote, badger, swift fox, and red fox are present. Mountain lion is present statewide under a separate quota system. Elk are nominally accessible via WIA 1 (Elk Hunt Area 126) but are uncommon in the core grassland. The area is not associated with moose, bighorn sheep, or mountain goat.