Quick Tips
- Hunters can drive ATVs only on roads built for full-size vehicles
- Be in great shape to hunt elk or deer in the high country
- Get away from roads and you're virtually alone here
- Trout fishing in Mackay Reservoir
| species | general Size | trophy potential |
|---|---|---|
| Mule Deer | 140"-160" | 160"+ |
| Whitetail Deer | 120"-130" | 130"+ |
| Elk | 260"-290" | 300"+ |
| Antelope | 65"-70" | 70"+ |
On The Ground
This area is along the road between Arco and Mackay. This unit holds a good number of pronghorns, mule deer, elk and small numbers of whitetail deer.
Officials manage this unit to provide high quality elk hunting while minimizing conflicts with private landowners.
Terrain
Ranging from 5,500 to 6,500 feet above sea level, the valleys are mostly flat with dry and wet creek beds and ravines running through them with foothills on the sides. Ranges are mostly steep, but there are some big basins and valleys with mild terrain such as the Copper Basin and the Sawmill Creek bottoms. Some peaks exceed 9,000 feet in the western half of the unit, including 11,878-foot Standhope Peak.
Roughly 1,652 square miles
82.5% public land
Elevations from 5,500-11,000 feet
Vegetation
Timberline varies from about 9,000 to 9,500 feet. Above it grow lichens, mosses on stable rock outcroppings and low shrubs and wild grasses on thin soils and in alpine basins. The highest trees are sparse firs, pines and spruces. Below them are dense conifer forests which have Douglas firs, Engelmann spruce, aspen and ponderosa pines. Some junipers and mahoganies grow on some foothills and low ridges and in some draws. The foothills below timber are mostly covered with sagebrush and wild bunchgrass.
Access
Most of the mountains are in the Salmon-Challis National Forest, while most foothills are on BLM land. The main road is U.S. Highway 93, which enters the unit from the northwest and travels down along the Big Lost River. Trail Creek Road provides good access in the northwestern part of the unit and leads to several other roads that go through the middle of the unit.
Hunters can drive ATVs only on roads built for full-size vehicles
Four-wheel-drive is recommended
Camping and Lodging
Some hunters camp along dirt roads or in Forest Service campgrounds. The Forest Service has several campgrounds, such as Park Creek Campground on the Trail Creek Road and a campground up Iron Bog Creek. A campground at Mackay Reservoir is close to mountains on both sides of the Big Lost River. Several private campgrounds are in or near Mackay. Lodging is available in Mackay and Arco. In Mackay are The Bear Bottom Inn and Wagon Wheel Motel, which also has an RV park, as does White Knob Motel (phone: 208-588-2622). Arco Inn Motel (208-527-3100) is on the southern edge of the unit.
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