Wyoming Unit 78 Elk Hunting Guide

Wyoming Unit 78 is a general-season elk unit that also offers limited-quota draw opportunities, making it a dual-path option for hunters researching elk hunting in this corner of Wyoming. Spanning 45,417 acres with elevations ranging from 6,146 to 10,905 feet, the unit presents a substantial vertical relief that shapes both elk movement and hunter access throughout the season. With 37% public land, hunters have a real but limited base of accessible ground to work with, meaning private land plays a significant role in how elk distribute across the unit.

Because this is a general-season unit, hunters pursuing antlered or either-sex elk are not limited strictly to the draw — a general license covers antlered animals here, which is a meaningfully different proposition than a pure draw-only unit. That said, nonresidents need to understand a critical distinction: Wyoming requires nonresidents to draw for every big game license in the state, including the general license. There is no over-the-counter purchase option for nonresidents in Wyoming, regardless of whether the unit is "general season" or not. Residents, by contrast, can often buy a general license without entering a draw, giving them a meaningfully different path into this unit than nonresidents face.

Beyond the general season, Unit 78 also offers limited-quota draw hunts that include antlered and either-sex animals, giving both residents and nonresidents an additional avenue into the unit with potentially different hunt structures and pressure levels than the general season draw.

Harvest Success Rates

Unit 78 has produced consistently solid harvest numbers over the past four years, data that HuntPilot's historical records confirm shows a unit where hunter success rates hover in a respectable middle-to-upper range for elk hunting.

• 2025: 238 hunters, 106 harvested — 45% success
• 2024: 296 hunters, 138 harvested — 47% success
• 2023: 221 hunters, 106 harvested — 48% success
• 2022: 222 hunters, 125 harvested — 56% success

The trend shows a gradual softening from the 56% success rate posted in 2022 down to 45% in 2025, alongside a corresponding dip in harvested animals even as hunter numbers fluctuated. The 2024 season saw the highest hunter participation of the four years at 296 hunters, yet success rate landed in the middle of the range at 47%. Overall, hunters entering Unit 78 across these four seasons have faced close to coin-flip odds of filling a tag, with success never dropping below 45% — a strong baseline for an elk unit by national standards, though the downward trend from 2022 to 2025 is worth noting for hunters setting expectations.

Trophy Quality

The counties overlapping Unit 78 carry a strong history of producing trophy-class elk, according to record-book data. Because trophy records are logged at the county level rather than by hunt unit, this trophy pedigree is shared with neighboring units that fall within the same counties — the bulls behind these records could have been taken anywhere across that broader landscape, not necessarily within Unit 78's exact boundaries. Still, a strong county-level trophy history is a meaningful indicator that the surrounding habitat and elk genetics in this part of Wyoming are capable of producing mature, well-antlered bulls.

Hunters should treat this as a positive signal rather than a guarantee — strong trophy history in the broader area suggests the right age structure and habitat exist, but any individual hunter's chances of connecting with a record-class bull in a given season remain low, as they do in virtually every elk unit in the West.

Herd Health & Population Trends

Wildlife survey data collected across four years (2021–2024) shows an average bull:cow ratio of 46:100 in Unit 78. This is a healthy, biologically realistic ratio for a general-season elk unit — well within the normal range seen across productive Wyoming herds and indicative of a bull segment that isn't being over-harvested relative to the cow population. A ratio in this range typically suggests reasonable bull age structure survives into multiple years post-maturity, supporting the unit's trophy potential discussed above.

Unlike units that show single-year survey spikes suggesting small sample sizes, a 46:100 average across four consecutive survey years is a more trustworthy, stable figure. Hunters can view this as evidence of a herd that is being managed sustainably rather than one experiencing wild year-to-year swings in bull availability.

Access & Terrain

Unit 78 covers 45,417 acres with elevation ranging dramatically from 6,146 feet up to 10,905 feet — nearly 4,800 feet of vertical relief within the unit boundary. This kind of elevation spread typically pushes elk through multiple vegetation zones over the course of a season, from lower sagebrush and foothill terrain up into higher timbered and alpine basins, giving hunters opportunities to adjust strategy based on elevation band and time of year.

Public land makes up 37% of the unit, which means the majority of the acreage — 63% — is privately held. This is an important access reality for hunters to internalize before planning a DIY trip: with less than half the unit open to public access, hunters will need to carefully identify where public parcels lie relative to elk movement corridors, and many will need to pursue landowner permission or consider guided access on private ground to fully capitalize on the unit's elk population. This is not a unit where hunters can assume broad public access across the landscape; scouting public boundaries carefully before the season — using tools like HuntPilot's public land mapping overlays — is essential.

The unit carries 0% wilderness designation, meaning there are no wilderness-area access restrictions here, and nonresident hunters don't need to worry about Wyoming's wilderness-guide requirement in Unit 78 specifically. Access is governed by the public/private land split rather than wilderness regulations.

HuntPilot Analysis: Is Unit 78 Worth Applying For?

Unit 78 presents a genuinely interesting case for elk hunters willing to do their homework. On the positive side, the unit delivers harvest success rates that have stayed at or above 45% in every one of the last four recorded seasons, which is a strong track record by elk hunting standards generally. The herd also shows a stable, multi-year bull:cow ratio of 46:100, suggesting sound management and decent bull availability. Add in the strong county-level trophy history, and the biological case for this unit is solid.

The catch is access. With only 37% of the unit's 45,417 acres in public hands, DIY hunters face real constraints on where they can legally hunt, and the majority of elk habitat sits on private land. This doesn't disqualify the unit — plenty of successful hunts happen on the public fraction or through negotiated private access — but it does mean hunters need a plan for land access before they draw or purchase a license, not after.

For residents who can access the general season without drawing, Unit 78 is a strong candidate worth serious consideration given the harvest data and herd health indicators. For nonresidents, remember that every Wyoming license — general or limited-quota — requires drawing first; there's no walk-up option. Given the strength of the harvest and herd data, Unit 78 is worth including in a Wyoming application strategy, particularly for hunters who have already lined up access to private ground or who plan to focus effort on the unit's public acreage. Hunters chasing pure trophy odds should weigh the shared county-level trophy pedigree against the access limitations before committing scouting time and application points to this specific unit.

How to Apply

Wyoming's elk licensing works differently depending on residency, and Unit 78's dual structure — general season plus limited-quota draw hunts — adds another layer for hunters to understand.

Residents: Wyoming residents can typically purchase a general license for general-season units like Unit 78 without going through a competitive draw, giving residents straightforward annual access to the unit's general-season opportunity. Residents interested in the unit's limited-quota hunts, which may offer different hunt structures or reduced pressure, will need to apply through Wyoming's draw system for those specific tags.

Nonresidents: Nonresidents must draw for every Wyoming big game license, full stop — there is no over-the-counter purchase option, even for general-season units. Nonresidents wanting to hunt Unit 78, whether through the general season or the limited-quota draw hunts, need to submit a draw application and be selected before they can purchase a license. Wyoming's nonresident elk draw does not use a preference point system in the traditional sense — there's no "building points" strategy to discuss for nonresident elk the way there is for species like deer or sheep in Wyoming. Nonresidents should instead focus on selecting the right unit and understanding the draw structure at the time they apply.

Because application structures, license types, and draw mechanics are subject to change and this content is designed to stay accurate over time, specific deadlines, fees, and draw statistics aren't listed here. For current application dates, fees, and draw data for Unit 78, visit HuntPilot's Wyoming state page at /states/wy, or check Wyoming Game and Fish Department's published regulations directly.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Wyoming Unit 78 a draw-only unit, or can I hunt it without drawing? Unit 78 is a general-season unit, not a draw-only unit — general licenses cover antlered and either-sex elk here. Wyoming residents can typically buy a general license without entering a draw. However, nonresidents must draw for every Wyoming big game license, including the general license for this unit, so nonresidents cannot simply purchase a tag over the counter regardless of the unit's general-season status.

What is harvest success like in Unit 78? Harvest success in Unit 78 has ranged from 45% to 56% over the past four recorded seasons (2022–2025), with 106 to 138 elk harvested annually out of 221 to 296 hunters depending on the year. The trend has softened somewhat, moving from a 56% success rate in 2022 down to 45% in 2025, but even the lower end of that range represents solid performance for an elk unit.

How big are the elk in Unit 78? The counties overlapping Unit 78 carry a strong history of trophy-class elk production in the record books. Because these records are attributed at the county level and shared with neighboring units in the same counties, it's not possible to say the trophy bulls came specifically from within Unit 78's boundary — but the broader area's trophy pedigree, combined with a healthy average bull:cow ratio of 46:100 across recent survey years, suggests the habitat and herd structure here are capable of producing mature bulls.

What is the terrain and access like in Unit 78? Unit 78 spans 45,417 acres with elevations from 6,146 to 10,905 feet, offering substantial vertical terrain diversity from lower foothill country up into high alpine basins. Public land makes up only 37% of the unit, meaning the majority — 63% — is privately held. DIY hunters need to carefully map public parcels and may need to pursue private land access or permission to fully hunt the unit's elk range. There is no wilderness designation in Unit 78, so Wyoming's nonresident wilderness-guide requirement does not apply here.

Is Unit 78 worth applying for as an elk hunter? Based on the available data, yes — with caveats. The unit has posted harvest success rates of 45% or better in each of the last four seasons, shows a stable and healthy bull:cow ratio of 46:100 across four survey years, and sits in counties with a strong trophy history. The main limiting factor is access, since only 37% of the unit is public land. Hunters with a plan for private land access, or who are prepared to focus on the public fraction of the unit, will find solid justification for applying here.