Unit 889 Book Cliffs, Little Creek/South
The roadless heart of the Book Cliffs — a limited-entry trophy-buck and old-bull sanctuary where the best animals live beyond the trucks
Eastern Utah — Book Cliffs / Little Creek (southern Tavaputs) · Last reviewed 2026-07-12
Area
1,382
sq mi
Public land
90%
approx.
Elevation
4,200–9,200
feet
Motorized
limited
access
Overview
The Little Creek/South portion of the Book Cliffs takes in the roadless core and southern desert rim of Utah's legendary eastern trophy country. Managed as a premium limited-entry unit for both mule deer and Rocky Mountain elk, it is held to one of the highest bull age-class targets on the Book Cliffs (a harvested-bull 3-year average around 7.5–8.0 years on the Little Creek subunit), and its light-pressure, hard-to-reach terrain grows mature, heavy bucks with genuine 180-inch potential. Desert bighorn work the cliff bands, black bear and cougar hunt the canyons, and free-ranging bison from the Book Cliffs herd range the plateau — a once-in-a-lifetime tag. Success is a scouting-and-legwork game.
Terrain
A dissected mesa-and-canyon landscape rising from the Green River desert to the timbered Tavaputs Plateau tops. The Little Creek subunit is the roadless center of the southern half, a broken maze of canyon heads, benches and cliff bands; the southern rim drops off toward I-70 and the Green River in low desert.
Cover: A strong elevation gradient: salt-desert shrub, greasewood and shadscale on the low flats; extensive pinyon-juniper on the mid-benches and cliff faces; and aspen, Douglas-fir and mountain brush on the high plateau tops and north slopes. Springs, seeps and creek bottoms are the wildlife magnets in dry country.
Landmarks: Little Creek · Ten Mile Knoll / Steer Ridge · Willow Creek · Green River / Desolation Canyon (west) · Winter Ridge · Book and Roan Cliffs escarpment
Access
Predominantly BLM public land with substantial open SITLA state trust mixed in, so the accessible-public footprint is large. This is the designated roadless core — vehicle travel dead-ends at the perimeter (the Little Creek subunit begins near the Steer Ridge road at Ten Mile Knoll) and the interior rewards horseback or backpack effort. Know the Uintah & Ouray (Ute) Reservation boundary on the western side, which is closed to non-tribal hunters and not obvious on the ground.
Managers: BLM (Green River District), SITLA, private, USFS
Access points: Steer Ridge road / Ten Mile Knoll (roadless-core edge) · Seep Ridge Road corridor · Willow Creek / Hill Creek road network · I-70 access from the south near Green River
Species notes
Mule Deer
common trophyThe signature hunt. Managed as a premium limited-entry buck unit, the Little Creek/South country grows mature, heavy bucks with real 180-inch potential and the occasional larger — a hard-to-draw tag that concentrates age class in low-density, lightly pressured terrain.
- →Glass aspen pockets, mountain-brush stringers and north-facing benches off the high plateau tops at first and last light
- →Focus on water — springs, seeps and creek heads pull deer in the dry country
- →Hunt the transition ridges between pinyon-juniper and the aspen/fir break where mature bucks bed for security
- →Push into the roadless core on foot or horseback — the best bucks live where trucks can't go
- →Time effort to the rut when big bucks travel and drop their guard
Rocky Mountain Elk
common trophyA limited-entry bull unit held to a high age class (roughly a 7.5–8.0-year harvested-bull average on the Little Creek subunit), producing mature, heavy Rocky Mountain bulls in the plateau timber and canyon country. The roadless terrain protects age class.
- →Work aspen/conifer benches and canyon heads on the high Tavaputs country during the rut for bugling bulls
- →Set up on saddles and creek-bottom travel corridors between bedding timber and feed
- →Glass big broken canyon systems at dawn and hunt into the wind toward raking and bugles
- →Get beyond the perimeter roads — the oldest bulls hold in the roadless drainages
Bighorn Sheep
limited trophyRocky Mountain bighorns, spread from reservation-area reintroductions, use the steep cliff systems and rimrock throughout the Book Cliffs. A once-in-a-lifetime tag on the escarpment's broken crags.
- →Focus on the steep cliff bands and rimrock of the Book and Roan Cliffs and Winter Ridge country
- →Spend days behind quality glass locating and aging rams in escape terrain
- →Work canyon rims and broken breaks where sheep feed off the crags morning and evening
Black Bear
common qualityBlack bears use the aspen, oakbrush and creek-bottom timber of the plateau country, concentrating in good berry and mast years.
- →Hunt oakbrush, chokecherry and serviceberry benches during fall feed-up
- →Watch creek bottoms and spring-fed green pockets on the plateau edges at first and last light
Cougar
common qualityMountain lions follow the strong deer and elk herds through the canyon and cliff country. The broken, prey-rich terrain supports a healthy cougar population.
- →Cut fresh tracks on perimeter canyon-rim roads and in creek-bottom mud after snow
- →Focus on deer-wintering benches and rimrock breaks where cats travel and ambush
Pro tips
- →Treat this as a scouting-and-legwork unit — if you draw, plan on horseback or backpack access to the roadless core where the mature animals hold
- →Know the Ute reservation boundary cold on the west side; it is closed to non-tribal hunters and not obvious on the ground
- →Anchor deer and elk effort on water — springs and creek heads are the magnets in dry country
- →Carry more water, fuel and recovery gear than you think you need — help is hours away
- →Time deer effort to the rut for the best mature-buck chance in low-density terrain
Watch out for
- !Uintah & Ouray (Ute) Reservation on the west edge is closed to non-tribal hunters — trespass risk
- !Roadless core: interior access requires horseback or backpack, no vehicle travel
- !Clay/gumbo roads become impassable when wet and can strand vehicles
- !Minimal-to-no cell coverage — carry a satellite communicator
- !Scarce water in the desert portions — plan resupply
- !Scattered private and oil/gas parcels near the perimeter — verify boundaries
Logistics
Genuinely remote, roadless-core country — plan to be fully self-sufficient. Fuel, groceries and lodging are in Green River (south, off I-70), Vernal (north, in the Uintah Basin) or Price to the west; there are no services inside the unit. Access dead-ends at the perimeter, so budget for horseback or heavy backpacking to reach the interior. Carry extra water, fuel, recovery gear and spare tires — BLM roads to the trailheads turn to impassable gumbo when wet. Cell coverage is minimal to nonexistent; carry a satellite messenger. Warm early seasons make meat care over long pack-outs a real challenge.
Nearest towns: Green River, Vernal, Price, Bonanza
Seasons & regulations
This page carries no season dates or regulations. Get current rules from the official Utah sources:
Research sources: UDWR Book Cliffs Elk Herd Unit Management Plan (Little Creek subunit age class, boundaries) · GOHUNT — Utah Book Cliffs, Little Creek Unit Profile · Book Cliffs — Wikipedia (geography, escarpment, bighorn) · UDWR Big Game Application Guidebook 2026
FAQ
- How big is Unit 889 in Utah?
- Unit 889 (Book Cliffs, Little Creek/South) covers about 1,382 square miles, ranging from roughly 4,200 to 9,200 feet in elevation. Area is computed from the unit boundary polygon.
- How much public land is in Unit 889?
- Approximately 90% of the unit is public land. Primary managers: BLM (Green River District), SITLA, private, USFS. Always verify ownership boundaries on the ground.
- What species does the catalog list for Unit 889?
- Mule Deer, Rocky Mountain Elk, Bighorn Sheep, Black Bear, Cougar. For seasons, tags, and regulations, use the official Utah agency resources linked on this page — this page carries no regulatory information.
Put Unit 889 on your map.
Boundary lines, public/private ownership, topo, and offline maps for this unit — in Baseline Maps, free for 14 days.