Area 96 covers the country bridging the southern Absaroka Range and the upper Wind River drainage south of Cody and east of Dubois—the headwaters reach where the Absaroka volcanic country and the Wind River granite country meet. Elevations run from about 6,000 feet on the Wind River valley floor to over 13,000 feet on the Continental Divide and the high Absaroka peaks. The country is dramatic: lower benches of sage and bunchgrass climbing through Douglas fir foothills into dense lodgepole and Engelmann spruce timber, then alpine meadow and rock above 10,000 feet. The Washakie Wilderness covers the heart of the unit. Major drainages include the upper Wind River, Wiggins Fork, and the East Fork Wind River. Shoshone NF and the Washakie Wilderness dominate, with the Wind River Reservation forming a hard southern boundary—tribal permits required for reservation hunting and they are extremely limited. BLM fills in the lower country. US-26/287 frames the access on the south side; trailheads off the Wiggins Fork road and the Crandall area approaches reach the upper drainages. Dubois and Cody are the supply points. Cell service drops fast. Quality elk in the wilderness backstop with strong migration influence from the Yellowstone country, mule deer in the foothill mahogany, bighorn sheep in the high country. Grizzly country in earnest. Pack-in for the high wilderness.