Unit 313 District 313 (Region 3)

The marquee draw — migratory Yellowstone elk drop onto the Dome Mountain winter range and valley bottoms as snow deepens. Numbers and hunt structure are tightly managed to protect the migration, so opportunity is largely permit-driven rather than general.

• →Hunt the tail of the season when weather forces animals out of the park and onto lower winter range
• →Glass the sage benches and WMA fringes at first and last light
• →Watch the timing of storms — migration pulses with snow depth to the south
• →Know exactly where WMA closures and permit boundaries fall before hunting

Mule deer use the Absaroka foothills, sage benches, and rocky breaks above the river. Mature bucks hold in the steep timbered pockets and feed the open faces.

• →Glass south-facing sage slopes and rimrock at dawn
• →Push into the fir stringers and rockslides where old bucks bed
• →Hunt higher early, then follow deer down as snow arrives

Whitetails hold in the cottonwood and willow bottoms along the Yellowstone River and irrigated valley fields, mostly on private ground.

• →Focus the river-bottom edges and ag-field margins at dawn and dusk
• →Use Block Management or WMA river frontage for legal bottom access
• →Hunt the rut in mid-November when bucks move in daylight

The western Absaroka rims and Yellowstone-front cliffs hold bighorns; any opportunity is a rare, deeply coveted limited draw.

• →Glass the steep rimrock and canyon walls above the river
• →Expect a physical high-country hunt if you draw
• →Scout well ahead — sheep are localized to a few escape-terrain complexes

Black bears work the timbered Absaroka slopes and creek bottoms, feeding on spring green-up and fall berries. This is also core Greater Yellowstone grizzly range.

• →Glass avalanche chutes and green south faces in spring
• →Hunt berry patches and oak-brush pockets in fall
• →Positively identify species before any shot — grizzlies share this ground