Hunt Area 51, Beaver Creek, Wyoming

Transitions sharply from low-elevation Bighorn Basin floor (approximately 3,700 ft) up to the Bighorn National Forest boundary at roughly 8,000 ft. Lower reaches consist of river-bottom flats, agricultural irrigated land, and broken sagebrush flats cut by deep coulees and creek drainages. Mid-elevations feature rocky, steep canyons, long drainages, cedar-covered ridges, and rugged bluffs in the Bighorn Mountain foothills. Upper portions approach the national forest edge with more conifer-covered slopes. Total relief of approximately 4,300 vertical feet in a compact footprint makes terrain demanding.

Primary access corridor is U.S. Highway 14, which forms the northern and western boundary of the area from Greybull eastward toward Shell. The Bighorn River flanks the western boundary through Greybull. Approximately 74% of the unit is publicly accessible — roughly 70% BLM and 3% Wyoming State lands, with 26% private. Two-track BLM roads and primitive routes allow four-wheel-drive and ATV access into remote canyon and foothill country; an ATV is noted as highly beneficial for getting around the unit. Camping is allowed on BLM land. Private agricultural land, particularly irrigated fields near the Bighorn River, creates access complications in the lower portions of the unit; Type 6 and the Gen irrigated-land extension are explicitly restricted to within one-half mile of irrigated land. Hunters must carefully verify land status before crossing private parcels. BLM land ownership maps should be cross-referenced with OnX or similar prior to access; the Worland Field Office (BLM) administers the majority of public lands in this portion of the southern Bighorn Basin. No wilderness or designated roadless areas fall within Area 51 itself — those begin inside the adjacent Bighorn National Forest. Cell service is spotty throughout the unit. Greybull offers lodging, grocery stores, gas stations, and restaurants as the main base of operations.

Lower elevations support sagebrush-steppe and grassland with irrigated cropland (hay, grain) along the Bighorn River and Bear Creek corridors. Mid-elevation foothills carry Rocky Mountain juniper (cedar) and mountain mahogany on canyon slopes and rocky ridges, transitioning into mixed shrub draws. Higher terrain near the national forest boundary grades into ponderosa pine, mixed conifer, and aspen. Riparian corridors along the Bighorn River and Bear Creek provide dense willow and cottonwood cover that concentrates white-tailed deer.

Mule deer are distributed throughout the entire area, using the rugged canyon and foothill terrain; early winter snowfall pushes deer to lower elevations near the basin floor. White-tailed deer are concentrated primarily at lower elevations, in riparian corridors along the Bighorn River and Bear Creek, and in irrigated agricultural fringe habitat. The Northern Bighorn mule deer herd — which includes Hunt Areas 50, 51, and 53 together — has remained below WGFD population management objectives as of the 2025 management year, with herds recovering from prolonged drought and elevated chronic wasting disease (CWD) prevalence in the region. White-tailed deer in the Bighorn Basin are managed as a single herd unit spanning 33 hunt areas. Pronghorn antelope inhabit the sagebrush flats of the wider Bighorn Basin, though Area 51 itself sits primarily in foothill terrain less typical for pronghorn. Elk move through the foothills adjacent to the national forest boundary but are primarily managed under separate elk hunt area designations. Mountain lion are present on public lands and are hunted statewide under WGFD quota management. Black bear are present in the national forest zones immediately adjacent to the upper boundary.

Season data verified directly against WGFD Chapter 6 PDF via pdftotext. Key correction from draft: Type 6 regular season closes November 15 (not October 24 as drafted — the Oct 24 close applies only to the Gen antlered window). Gen irrigated-land extension (Oct 25–Oct 31) applies to antlered mule deer OR any white-tailed deer. No antler point restriction (APR) found for Area 51 in the regulations — APR noted for adjacent areas only; confirm annually. Harvest statistics (814 hunters, 518 harvested, 68.5% success, year ~2021) sourced from HuntScore and are paywalled/unverified independently; figures reflect total deer combined. Wyoming has no separate muzzleloader-only deer season for Area 51. Pronghorn and Mountain Lion tag data null — separate WGFD area numbering systems not cross-referenced. CWD documented in the broader Bighorn Basin mule deer herd.