Wyoming Elk — Hunt Area 38

Tongue

Wyoming Hunt Area 38 covers 361,030 acres and lies 15 miles west of Dayton and 29 miles west of Sheridan. 79% of it is public land, mostly national forest (74%) and state land (5%). In 2025, 1,125 people hunted elk here and took 407 — 36% of them killed something. The 2026 draw put up 66 nonresident tags here for 0 first-choice applicants.

Nonresident tags (2026):341 Applicants:1,246 Hunter success (2025):36% Public land:79% Size:361,030 acres

Your chance of drawing here

Every elk license type on offer in Hunt Area 38, with the prior-draw chance for a first-choice nonresident applicant. Type your points in to see your own number.

Chances are from the 2026 draw (the most recent) for a first-choice nonresident. "Points needed" = the cut in the last draw.

Simple view Odds at every point level

38-1 Any elk 29 tags · 389 applicants · needed 12 pts · Regular

3% Point builder 0% as 2nd choice
38-1 Any elk 20 tags · 117 applicants · needed 11 pts · Special

6% Point builder 0% as 2nd choice
38-1 Any elk 48 tags · 0 applicants · Landowner

100% No first-choice applicants
38-4 Antlerless elk 59 tags · 114 applicants · needed 0 pts · Regular

36% Long shot 0% as 2nd choice
38-4 Antlerless elk 27 tags · 1 applicants · needed 0 pts · Special

100% Undersubscribed 56% as 2nd choice
38-4 Antlerless elk 66 tags · 0 applicants · Landowner

100% No first-choice applicants
38-6 Cow or calf valid off national forest and off the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission’s Amsden Creek and Kerns Wi… 16 tags · 37 applicants · Reduced price

43% Real chance 0% as 2nd choice
38-6 Cow or calf valid off national forest and off the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission’s Amsden Creek and Kerns Wi… 16 tags · 0 applicants · Landowner reduced price

100% No first-choice applicants
38-9 Any elk, archery only 18 tags · 432 applicants · needed 15 pts · Regular

1% Point builder 0% as 2nd choice
38-9 Any elk, archery only 12 tags · 156 applicants · needed 14 pts · Special

3% Point builder 0% as 2nd choice
38-9 Any elk, archery only 30 tags · 0 applicants · Landowner

100% No first-choice applicants

Hunt	Your odds (0 pts)	As 2nd choice	Points needed	Tags / applicants	License	Season
38-1 ↗ Any elk Any legal weapon	3% Point builder	0%	12 +4 since 2021	29 / 389	Regular	Oct 10–31, 2026
38-1 ↗ Any elk Any legal weapon	6% Point builder	0%	11 +4 since 2021	20 / 117	Special	Oct 10–31, 2026
38-1 ↗ Any elk Any legal weapon	100% No first-choice applicants	—	—	48 / 0	Landowner	Oct 10–31, 2026
38-4 ↗ Antlerless elk Any legal weapon	36% Long shot	0%	0 +1 since 2021	59 / 114	Regular	Oct 1 – Nov 15, 2026
38-4 ↗ Antlerless elk Any legal weapon	100% Undersubscribed	56%	0 steady since 2021	27 / 1 undersubscribed	Special	Oct 1 – Nov 15, 2026
38-4 ↗ Antlerless elk Any legal weapon	100% No first-choice applicants	—	—	66 / 0	Landowner	Oct 1 – Nov 15, 2026
38-6 ↗ Cow or calf valid off national forest and off the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission’s Amsden Creek and Kerns Wi… Any legal weapon	43% Real chance	0%	—	16 / 37	Reduced price	Sep 15 – Dec 31, 2026
38-6 ↗ Cow or calf valid off national forest and off the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission’s Amsden Creek and Kerns Wi… Any legal weapon	100% No first-choice applicants	—	—	16 / 0	Landowner reduced price	Sep 15 – Dec 31, 2026
38-9 ↗ Any elk, archery only Archery	1% Point builder	0%	15 +3 since 2021	18 / 432	Regular	Sep 1–30, 2026
38-9 ↗ Any elk, archery only Archery	3% Point builder	0%	14 +3 since 2021	12 / 156	Special	Sep 1–30, 2026
38-9 ↗ Any elk, archery only Archery	100% No first-choice applicants	—	—	30 / 0	Landowner	Sep 1–30, 2026

What these columns mean

Your odds: the share of applicants at your point level who drew this tag in the 2026 draw. Not a forecast: quotas and demand move every year.
The badge: plain language for that number. Likely draw 75% or better · Real chance 40%+ · Long shot 15%+ · Point builder below that, so you are applying mainly to bank a point · Undersubscribed means fewer first-choice applicants than tags, so everyone who applied drew.
As 2nd choice: Wyoming lets you name more than one hunt on the application. Miss on your first choice and you go into the pot for whatever tags are left, alongside everyone else's second choices. Points never help a lower choice, so this number is the same whatever you have banked — it is usually worth naming a hunt that goes undersubscribed.
Points needed: the lowest point total that still got a tag in the 2026 draw, and how that cut has moved since the earliest draw we hold.
Tags / applicants: tags on offer and first-choice applicants for them, as the agency published them. Under five tags we print counts instead of a percentage, because one applicant either way swings it.

What it costs to apply (2026 nonresident fees)

License	Up front	Gone if you miss	If you draw
Regular license	$707	$15	$728.50
Special license	$1,965	$15	$1,986.50
Reduced price license	$303	$15	$324.50
Landowner license	$15	$15	$36.50
Landowner reduced price license	$15	$15	$36.50

Application window: opens Jan 2, closes Feb 2, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.

The country

Hunt Area 38 within Wyoming

Hunt Area 38 and its neighbours

Zoomable USGS topo, aerial imagery and shaded relief, with the neighboring areas drawn on.

Boundaries are drawn for orientation only — the written boundary description in the regulations governs.

Who owns the ground

National Forest 267,183 ac · 74%
Private 75,544 ac · 21%
State land 16,464 ac · 5%
BLM 910 ac · 0%
National Wildlife Refuge 693 ac · 0%
County or city land 168 ac · 0%
Other public 66 ac · 0%

Source: BLM WY Surface Management Agency (land ownership / SMA)

Nearby areas

How the hunting has gone

What Wyoming Game and Fish Department publishes for this area after each season — harvest statistics for everyone who hunted it, not draw odds and not a forecast. Wyoming's figures are estimates from a voluntary post-season survey of license holders, extrapolated to every license issued — not a count of animals checked in.