Help Provided In Locating Elk

Hunters will again have some extra help in finding elk and securing access in the Laramie Peak area for the 2014 hunting season.

The Hunt Management and Assistance Program (HMAP) efforts focus on hunters with Elk Area 7 cow/calf licenses (types 4, 6 or 7), on and around the existing Pinto Creek and McFarlane HMAs, as well as Albany County Walk-In Hunting Areas #3, 4, 5, and 12.

“This program is about providing essential information to hunters to help them find elk, and we’ll also assist them in the field when possible,” says Hunt Management Coordinator Kyle Berg.

Berg is charged with locating and monitoring elk herds and communicating with and coordinating hunters to successfully harvest elk. The program is somewhat of a “hybrid” design as no special permission slips are required aside from those already in use for the Hunter Management Areas in the vicinity.

The HMAP is not a guided hunt. It is a way for Game and Fish Department personnel to help hunters locate elk by sharing information in the field. “I am out there all the time and I can show hunters where the elk have been hanging out,” Berg said.

As usual, hunters should be prepared to hike and have proper equipment for packing the meat out of the field.

In 2013 Berg said he assisted hunters with more than one hundred elk harvests through the program. Berg and other department personnel are likely to be visible and ready to share information with hunters in the field.

Hunters with Area 7 Type 4, 6 or 7 licenses may call the Laramie office at (307) 745-4046 beginning Nov. 1 for more information.

Hunters are reminded that they will still need permission slips to hunt on the Pinto Creek, McFarlane, and Bell-Otte Hunter Management Areas. Permission slips, maps, rules, and general information on these areas can be obtained online at http://wgfd.wyo.gov .