Unit 130 (Bolten Rim)
Wyoming Hunting Guide — Elk
Elk Hunt Area 130, which Wyoming Game and Fish names Bolten Rim, covers about 268 square miles in Carbon County. It belongs to WGFD's Sierra Madre elk herd unit. WGFD's 2025 harvest survey put elk success here at 14.3%, with 28 hunters taking 4 elk at about 117.8 days of hunting per animal. Federal land covers about 43% of it. Check land status on a current map before you plan a route.
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Elk Hunting in Unit 130
Elk Hunt Area 130, which Wyoming Game and Fish names Bolten Rim, covers about 268 square miles in Carbon County. It belongs to WGFD's Sierra Madre elk herd unit. WGFD's 2025 harvest survey put elk success here at 14.3%, with 28 hunters taking 4 elk at about 117.8 days of hunting per animal. Federal land covers about 43% of it. Check land status on a current map before you plan a route.
Where to Find Elk in Elk Hunt Area 130
The Wyoming Game and Fish Commission names elk hunt area 130 "Bolten Rim". It runs to about 268 square miles, entirely in Carbon County. WGFD reports these elk as the Sierra Madre herd unit, which also takes in elk hunt areas 13, 15, 21 and 108. WGFD prints the line and counts the harvest. It doesn't say where inside the line the elk live, so that part is our read of the ground, labelled as such.
The line: North Platte River and Sage Creek
WGFD's 2026 Chapter 7 walks the line around elk hunt area 130 corner by corner. It starts where Wyoming Highway 71 crosses Interstate Highway 80 at the city of Rawlins. On the way round it follows Wyoming Highway 71, Interstate Highway 80 and Carbon County Road 401, and North Platte River and Sage Creek. Read it as the legal edge of your license rather than as a hint about animals. The full text is in Section 9 of that chapter, with this year's season dates and license limitations in Section 2.
Not the same ground as the other hunt area 130s
WGFD numbers each species' hunt areas on its own grid, so the number 130 also belongs to its deer hunt area 130. None of it shares a county with this one. A license is good only in the hunt area of its own species, so this page is about the elk area, and the cards at the foot of the page link the others.
Ground WGFD opens: Public Access Areas
Public Access Areas such as North Platte River-Rochelle (216 acres) are public ways onto water and land; check what each allows before you count on it for hunting.
High ground inside the line: Chokecherry Knob, Sheep Mountain and Hogback
Named high points inside elk hunt area 130 include Chokecherry Knob at 8,133 feet, Sheep Mountain at 7,962 feet, Hogback at 7,309 feet, Savage Hills at 6,947 feet and Grenville Dome at 6,748 feet. Several carry a public-land flag in our data, which makes them the first places to try for a view. Elk want timber to bed in and open ground to feed on, within a short walk of each other.
Holding ground: Smith Draw, Iron Springs Draw and Hugus Draw
Below them sit Smith Draw at 6,598 feet, Iron Springs Draw at 6,513 feet, Hugus Draw at 6,507 feet, Wild Horse Canyon at 7,162 feet and Fivemile Hole at 7,145 feet. That is the low ground — where animals drop when they are pushed or when the weather turns.
Reading the land status
Federal land — BLM, Forest Service and Park Service — covers about 43% of elk hunt area 130 in our read of the federal land-status layer; state trust land isn't counted in that figure. Our ownership read for this hunt area is approximate — it comes out as Private / Other 100%, so treat it as a starting point and check a current land-status layer before you plan a route. The hunt area runs from 6,604 feet to 7,746 feet, averaging 6,969 — not much relief, so the animals move laterally rather than up and down.
Unit 130 terrain and land status
Measured from the unit boundary, not from the agency write-up
The lay of it
- 6,604–7,746 ft on a terrain sample , averaging 6,969 ft ; peaks can run higher.
- 268.1 sq mi inside the boundary.
Who owns the ground
- Private / Other — 100%
Roughly 0% is public. Carry a land-status layer anyway — these are area percentages, not a map of where the boundaries fall.
Water on the ground
- 6 tanks
- 24 stream segments
- 10 lakes
Counts from mapping data, so this is how many exist, not how many hold water in a dry year. Sitting water only pays where you find fresh tracks.
Named features inside the unit
Glass from: Chokecherry Knob (8,133 ft), Sheep Mountain (7,962 ft)
Holding ground: Fivemile Hole (7,145 ft), Severson Flats (6,728 ft), Coal Mine Draw (6,616 ft)
Every one of these was tested against the unit polygon before it went on the map. They are starting points, not agency recommendations.
How to Hunt Elk in Elk Hunt Area 130
Elk Success Rates
Wyoming Game and Fish's 2025 harvest report estimates 14.3% elk success in elk hunt area 130: 4 animals taken by 28 active hunters over 471 days of hunting, or 117.8 days per animal. By residency, residents 14.3% (4 taken by 28) and nonresidents 0% (0 taken by 0).
These are WGFD's own estimates from its hunter survey, for this hunt area and season only — not a statewide average. One season isn't a trend, so check the current report before you read one into it.
Elk Draw Odds
Draw odds data not available for this specific unit/species combination in our database.
Search Wyoming Draw OddsWGFD's demand reports for 2021 to 2026 carry no limited-quota elk draw for elk hunt area 130 that we hold. That usually means the area is hunted on a general license, or was not offered in those years. WGFD's draw results and odds page is the place to check before you apply.
Unit Logistics & Expectations
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Wyoming elk hunt area 130?
What is the elk success rate in elk hunt area 130?
Is elk hunt area 130 the same ground as deer hunt area 130?
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Every fact on this page is tied to a primary source below. Last fact-checked 2026-10-25.
- Chapter 7 — Elk Hunting Seasons (2026) — Wyoming Game and Fish Commission · supports: Name and legal boundary of elk hunt area 130, Season dates, license types and limitations by hunt area · accessed 2026-10-25
- Elk 2025 Harvest Report — Wyoming Game and Fish Department · supports: Hunters, harvest, percent success and days per animal for elk in elk hunt area 130, The same by license type and residency · accessed 2026-10-25
- Chapter 2 — General Hunting Regulation (2026) — Wyoming Game and Fish Commission · supports: Mandatory CWD sample submission (Section 17) · accessed 2026-10-25
- WGFD ArcGIS feature services — hunt areas by species, CWD sampling areas, WHMAs, Public Access Areas, Hunter Management Areas, Walk-In Hunting Areas — Wyoming Game and Fish Department · supports: Mapped outline of the hunt area, Herd unit and square miles, 2026 CWD mandatory and priority sampling areas, WHMAs, Public Access Areas, Hunter Management Areas and Walk-In Areas inside the area · accessed 2026-10-25
- TIGERweb State_County — Wyoming county boundaries (used only to measure which counties a hunt area lies in) — U.S. Census Bureau · supports: Which counties the hunt area lies in, and in what share · accessed 2026-10-25