X-Bar Ranch Hunter Management Area: hunting, access and rules
X-Bar Ranch Hunter Management Area is 18,748 acres in WGFD's Laramie Region. Hunter Management Areas are private and leased lands where WGFD arranges hunting access; hunters need a WGFD permission slip for the area. WGFD lists elk (hunt area 9), deer (hunt area 76) and antelope (hunt area 45) for big game hunting here.
Data updated October 2026. Area facts: WGFD's HMA data. Boundary: WGFD GIS. Harvest: WGFD reports to 2025.
National forestBLMState trust landNational wildlife refugeX-Bar Ranch HMAElk hunt area lineLakeHighway
| Size | 18,748 acres (WGFD) |
|---|---|
| WGFD region | Laramie Region |
| Big game listed | Elk, Deer and Antelope |
| Nearest towns | Woods Landing-Jelm (3 mi), Albany (6 mi) and Fox Park (8 mi) |
What is X-Bar Ranch HMA?
The X-Bar-Ranch Hunter Management Area (HMA) is located twenty miles southwest of Laramie on Highway 230, and is comprised of private and/or leased lands of the Wyoming Office of State Lands & Investments' X-Bar Ranch and the Flying Heart Ranch.
What are the rules on X-Bar Ranch HMA?
A permission slip from WGFD is needed to hunt an HMA; WGFD issues them on its website, often by drawing or first come, first served, with limits per hunter. WGFD's page for X-Bar Ranch has the current slips and rules.
WGFD's permission slip and its page for X-Bar Ranch set the rules for this private and leased ground.
What can you hunt on X-Bar Ranch HMA?
WGFD lists the hunt area each big game species is hunted under here: elk in area 9; deer in area 76; antelope in area 45. Also listed: waterfowl, rabbit, mountain lion and black bear.
What did hunters take in the hunt areas around X-Bar Ranch HMA?
WGFD reports harvest by hunt area, not by access area. The hunt areas that overlap X-Bar Ranch HMA, with the acres of the HMA in each and WGFD's latest harvest for the whole hunt area:
| Hunt area | HMA acres in it | Harvest, whole area | Hunter success |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elk Area 9 | 14,630 | 266 (2025) | 17.3% |
| Elk Area 8 | 18 | 189 (2025) | 50.1% |
| Deer Area 76 | 14,631 | 257 (2025) | |
| Deer Area 77 | 17 | 31 (2025) | |
| Antelope Area 45 | 14,630 | 635 (2025) | 94.6% |
| Antelope Area 44 | 18 | 130 (2025) | 91.5% |
| Moose Area 38 | 14,648 | 53 (2025) | 85.5% |
| Bighorn sheep Area 18 | 14,648 | 3 (2025) | 100% |
Harvest: WGFD harvest reports, latest year each area was reported (WGFD harvest reports). Acres measured by FilledTag from WGFD's boundaries.
What land is around X-Bar Ranch HMA?
Inside the HMA boundary, by manager (WGFD's own holdings and leases are not in the federal and state layers, so they show as unlisted land):
| Manager | Acres inside |
|---|---|
| State trust land | 12,972 |
| National forest | 3 |
| Other land (WGFD-held, leased or private) | 1,673 |
Measured by FilledTag from USGS PAD-US 4.1 (federal land) and the Office of State Lands and Investments (state trust land) inside WGFD's boundary (14,648 acres as drawn).
How do you get to X-Bar Ranch HMA?
Highways within 8 miles: WY 230, WY 130, WY 11 and WY 10. Nearest towns: Woods Landing-Jelm (3 miles), Albany (6 miles), Fox Park (8 miles) and Centennial (11 miles).
Questions hunters ask
What can you hunt on X-Bar Ranch HMA?
WGFD lists elk, deer and antelope for big game, and waterfowl, rabbit, mountain lion and black bear. Each species follows the season of the hunt area the ground is in.
Where is X-Bar Ranch HMA?
About 3 miles from Woods Landing-Jelm, and 6 miles from Albany, measured from the area's boundary.
Do you need permission to hunt X-Bar Ranch HMA?
Yes. Hunters need a WGFD permission slip for a Hunter Management Area; WGFD's page for X-Bar Ranch lists the slips and the area's rules.
Which hunt areas is X-Bar Ranch HMA in?
By WGFD's boundaries it lies in elk Areas 9 and 8, deer Areas 76 and 77 and antelope Areas 45 and 44. Each hunt area's season applies to the ground inside it.
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Where these numbers come from
- Area facts, access dates, rules and species: WGFD Hunter Management Area details; WGFD, X-Bar Ranch.
- Boundary: WGFD Hunter Management Area boundaries. Surrounding land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (federal land) and the Office of State Lands and Investments (state trust land).
- Hunt area harvest: WGFD harvest reports, 2021 to 2025.
FilledTag is not part of the Wyoming Game and Fish Department. Numbers are copied from WGFD and the other agencies named, or measured by FilledTag from their maps; nothing on this page is estimated by FilledTag. WGFD's regulations are the final word on every rule.
Wyoming hunting Laramie Region Elk Area 9 Elk Area 8 Deer Area 76 Deer Area 77 Antelope Area 45 Antelope Area 44