Hunt Area 18, Campbell, Wyoming

Rolling plains and low hills transitioning into moderately broken badland-style breaks; elevation ranges from approximately 3,600 feet along the Little Powder River in the northern portions to about 4,600 feet on higher benches and divides. The landscape is semiarid with an average of roughly 15–16 inches of annual precipitation. The Little Powder River bisects the unit, flowing north toward Montana, cutting coulees and draws that provide the most topographic relief in an otherwise flat-to-rolling landscape.

The unit is bounded by major paved highways: Rocky Point Road (Campbell County Road 85) along the eastern boundary from the Montana line south to the D Road; the D Road south to I-90; I-90 west to US-14/16; US-14/16 north to WY-59; and WY-59 north to the Montana state line. These form a defined perimeter. Internal access is via a network of county roads and BLM two-tracks, including the Spring Creek Road north of Adon and the Cow Creek Road in the southwestern portion. Roughly 20 percent of the unit is public land (BLM and state sections), but ownership is checkerboard in nature — federal, state, and private parcels are intermingled, making navigation of legal access complex. Private land accounts for approximately 80 percent of the unit and the best riparian and deer-holding habitat tends to be on private ranch land. Walk-In Hunting Area 13 (approximately 1,210 acres) offers contracted public access for deer (Hunt Area 18), antelope (Area 18), turkey (Area 3), and sharp-tailed grouse and is open August 15 through May 31. The nearest town with services is Gillette (via I-90/US-14-16). Cell phone service is reported as spotty throughout the unit.

Sagebrush-steppe and mixed-grass prairie dominate the uplands, composed primarily of big sagebrush, Wyoming big sagebrush, grasses such as blue grama, western wheatgrass, and needle-and-thread. The unit sits on the ecotone between the Great Plains grassland to the east and the sagebrush steppe to the west. Riparian draws along the Little Powder River and its tributaries support cottonwood, willow, and shrubby vegetation that provide the most dense deer cover in the unit. Small stock ponds are scattered throughout. Thunder Basin National Grassland terrain within or adjacent to the area includes both sagebrush-dominated and open grassland plant communities. Ponderosa pine is absent from this unit. Prairie dog towns are present.

Mule deer are the primary big-game species; the unit is open to general (OTC) licenses for both residents and nonresidents. A small population of white-tailed deer is present, concentrated along creek and river bottoms and in riparian draws; a limited-quota (Type 8) doe/fawn white-tailed deer license (200 quota) valid on private land only is available. Pronghorn antelope are abundant — Campbell County supports some of the highest pronghorn densities in the state; Antelope Hunt Area 18 (Rockypoint, using a smaller boundary following creek divides rather than I-90) is a limited-quota draw area. A small number of elk are present within the broader Elk Hunt Area 129, which covers all non-specific-area lands in Campbell County; elk here occupy sparsely timbered Powder River breaks and are primarily on private land. Wild turkey (Hunt Turkey Area 3, covering Campbell, Johnson, and Sheridan counties) are present but almost entirely on private land. Mountain lion are present statewide under Wyoming's quota system. Upland birds including sage grouse and sharp-tailed grouse occupy sagebrush-steppe and grassland habitats. Black-tailed prairie dogs are a significant ecological feature. Mule deer herds in the Sheridan/northeastern Wyoming region have trended below management objectives since 2019, attributed to severe winters in 2018–19 and 2022–23, extended drought, and disease (epizootic hemorrhagic disease, bluetongue). Fawn recruitment ratios improved after 2023 but full recovery will take multiple years. 2024 season harvest (from WGFD 2025 harvest report): mule deer General — 695 active hunters, 231 bucks, 33.2% success, 12.7 hunter-days per harvest; white-tailed deer Type 8 — 62 active hunters, 25 harvested, 40.3% success.

1. Season dates confirmed from WGFD CH 6 Draft 03.16.2026.4: archery Sep 1–Sep 30, general Oct 1–Oct 14 (antlered MD or any WTD), Type 8 doe/fawn WTD Oct 1–Nov 15 quota 200 private land only. 2. Area 18 does NOT have the Nov 1–Nov 30 General white-tailed deer season seen in Area 17 — that claim in the original draft notes was incorrect. 3. No separate muzzleloader season for Area 18; muzzleloader is a legal weapon type during general and archery seasons. 4. WIA 9 (Campbell County 9, 640 acres) covers Deer Area 17 and Antelope Area 17, NOT Area 18 — corrected from original draft. 5. Antelope Area 18 (Rockypoint) uses a smaller boundary than Deer Area 18: follows Cabin Creek/Mitchell Creek/Spring Creek Road/Cow Creek Road rather than I-90. 6. Harvest data from WGFD 2025 Harvest Report (2024 season): mule deer GEN 695 hunters, 231 bucks, 33.2% success; WTD Type 8 62 hunters, 25 deer, 40.3% success. 7. Sharp-tailed grouse added to species list — confirmed present via WIA 13 enrollment. 8. Region C nonresident quota 1,800 confirmed shared across areas 17-19, 23, 26, 29, 31.