3-D satellite terrain of Unit 38, 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 38 covers the southeastern corner of Wyoming near Pine Bluffs—high plains country running right up to the Nebraska and Colorado lines, with rolling sage and grass prairie, irrigated wheat and corn fields, and creek bottoms cutting through. Elevations run from about 4,500 to 5,500 feet. This is true high plains: open horizon in every direction, scattered windbreaks of cottonwood and Russian olive around the homesteads and ranch headquarters, irrigated ag where the wheel lines and pivots can reach, and dryland farming and cattle range filling the rest. Lodgepole Creek and Horse Creek thread the country with thin cottonwood ribbons. The Pine Bluffs themselves are a chalky escarpment giving the town its name and a small landmark in flat country.
Almost entirely private with very thin scatters of state and federal. The Walk-In and HMA programs are essential here; the public ground is so limited that without permitted access you'll be hunting fence-line ditches. I-80 and US-30 frame the country; county roads thread the rest. Pine Bluffs has a gas station and a couple of restaurants; Cheyenne 40 miles west is the full-service supply hub. Cell service is good on the interstate and reasonable elsewhere—you're close enough to the Front Range corridor that towers cover most of the country. Antelope rifle in October is the headline and the wheat-stubble fields and irrigated corners hold quality pronghorn; mule deer concentrate in the creek bottoms and breaks. Whitetail come into the irrigated fields. Wind is brutal and constant.
Unit Stats
Hunting Season Temps (3-yr avg)
Sep
63°
43°
Oct
46°
29°
Nov
35°
19°
Dec
29°
15°
Jan
27°
14°
Feb
24°
9°
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
Sheridan
Elk
Archery
6
291
338
Sheridan
Elk
Rifle
1
385
385
Sheridan
Mule Deer
Archery
3
149
152
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Nearest Towns
Cody
Full services: gas, groceries (Walmart, Albertsons), lodging, hospital (West Park Hospital). Primary hub for NW Wyoming hunts.
Powell
Full services on US-14A: gas, groceries, lodging, medical clinic. 25 mi NE of Cody.
Meeteetse
Small town with gas, basic supplies, cafe. Gateway to upper Greybull River and Absaroka backcountry.
Wapiti
Unincorporated; a few lodges and gas on US-14/16/20 between Cody and Yellowstone East Entrance.
Cooke City, MT
Tiny border town at NE entrance to Yellowstone. Limited gas, lodging, restaurant. Access to Beartooth country and Area 2.
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Campgrounds
Wapiti Campground
USFS (Shoshone NF)
North Fork Shoshone; 41 sites; 6,000 ft; popular staging point for Absaroka hunts.
Rex Hale Campground
USFS (Shoshone NF)
North Fork Shoshone; 8 sites; 6,100 ft; near trailheads into the wilderness.
Hunter Peak Campground
USFS (Shoshone NF)
Sunlight Basin area; 9 sites; 6,600 ft; close to Sunlight Creek trailheads.
Dead Indian Campground
USFS (Shoshone NF)
Near Dead Indian Pass on WY-296; 12 sites; 8,000 ft; panoramic Absaroka views.
Wood River Campground
USFS (Shoshone NF)
Meeteetse area; 5 sites; 7,000 ft; trailhead access to the Wood River drainage.
Dispersed camping
USFS (Shoshone NF)
Abundant dispersed sites along North Fork Shoshone, Sunlight Basin, and Greybull River roads.
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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 38.