3-D satellite terrain of Unit 21, served by Wayward — the free iPhone GPS app from the people behind Sleeper Units. Drag to turn, scroll or pinch to zoom. Get Wayward and the whole unit rides on your phone, offline.
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Area 21 covers the foothills and broken country north of Cody between the Shoshone River and the Montana line, including the Polecat Bench, the Heart Mountain area, and the country running up toward Clark and the South Fork of the Clark's Fork. Elevations run from about 4,500 feet along the Shoshone River to 9,000 feet on the higher timbered ridges where the country starts to climb toward the Beartooth Plateau. The terrain is classic Bighorn Basin foothill: red and yellow sandstone breaks eroded into hoodoos and benches, sage and bunchgrass flats, mountain mahogany and limber pine in the rocky draws, and Douglas fir holding the cooler aspects. Heart Mountain itself is a famous geologic anomaly—a slab of older Paleozoic rock sitting on top of younger formations, the largest known landslide on Earth. The country glasses for miles.
BLM, state trust, and private ranch share the country. WY-120 and county roads provide the access. Cody is the full-service town right there—gas, hotels, the Buffalo Bill Center, real grocery. Cell service is fair on WY-120 and degrades fast in the breaks. Mule deer dominate—this is classic broken-country mule deer habitat where the bucks live in the mahogany and juniper breaks year-round. Antelope work the open sage flats. Whitetail show up in the Shoshone River bottoms and irrigated fields. October archery is productive; rifle in November can produce mature bucks during the rut. Watch for the wind on Heart Mountain and the breaks above the Shoshone—it gets brutal, especially in late season.
Unit Stats
Hunting Season Temps (3-yr avg)
Sep
70°
47°
Oct
50°
33°
Nov
36°
22°
Dec
27°
15°
Jan
23°
13°
Feb
22°
10°
Recent Trophy Scores · 2020–2025
Trophy score data is tracked by county, so the overlap with GMU boundaries is approximate. These numbers tell you whether the area is capable of growing big animals — they do not indicate public vs. private land. Big elk can come from anywhere; most elk in the lower 48 trace back to Yellowstone stock that was transplanted west after the species was nearly extirpated in the early 1900s.
County
Species
Method
Count
Avg Score
Top Score
Carbon
Elk
Archery
19
315
347
Carbon
Elk
Rifle
2
374
380
Carbon
Mule Deer
Rifle
2
186
191
Carbon
Pronghorn
Archery
9
74
78
Carbon
Pronghorn
Rifle
13
84
89
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Nearest Towns
Sundance
Small town; gas, groceries, lodging. Gateway to Black Hills NF and Devils Tower.
Gillette
Full services: gas, groceries (Walmart, Smiths), lodging, hospital (Campbell County Health). Largest NE WY city.
Newcastle
Full services: gas, groceries, lodging, medical clinic. Southern Black Hills access.
Moorcroft
Small town; gas, basic supplies. Near Keyhole Reservoir and Devils Tower.
Hulett
Small town near Devils Tower; gas, basic supplies, lodging.
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Campgrounds
Reuter Campground
USFS (Black Hills NF)
Near Sundance; 24 sites; 6,200 ft; ponderosa pine setting.
Cook Lake Campground
USFS (Black Hills NF)
Bear Lodge area; 32 sites; 5,800 ft; trout lake.
Devils Tower Campground
NPS
Devils Tower NM; 46 sites; scenic; fills up quickly.
Keyhole State Park
WY State Parks
Keyhole Reservoir; multiple loops; good base for NE WY hunts.
Dispersed camping
USFS (Black Hills NF) / BLM
Available along forest roads in the Bear Lodge Mountains and BLM land throughout the Powder River Basin.
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Statewide Outfitters & Directories
These outfitters operate statewide or in multiple regions. Check each one's website to confirm they cover Unit 21.