Unit Neil Creek (Neil Creek)

Neil Creek bucks use the drainage as a travel corridor and concentrate near the creek's upper tributaries during early season.

Upper Creek Timber Edge

Mature bucks bed in aspen-fir cover above 7,500 feet. Glass the timber edge from opposing ridges before first light. Bucks feed at the timber margin and retreat quickly at dawn disturbance.

Oak-Brush Lower Slopes

As temperatures drop in October, deer concentrate on oak-brush mid-slopes between 6,000–7,500 feet. These areas are ideal for spot-and-stalk as bucks feed in the brush margins.

Sage Benches

Open sage benches adjacent to the drainage provide feeding areas for does and the bucks that follow them during the rut. Glass these areas in late afternoon during the last two weeks of October.

Neil Creek rewards hunters who get above the drainage and glass down into the creek corridor during early morning hours.

Above-Drainage Glassing

Access the upper ridge before first light and glass the entire creek drainage from above. This vantage eliminates blind spots and provides the elevation to see into the timber pockets where bucks bed.

Wind and Thermals

Creek drainages channel thermals predictably. Morning thermals pull uphill by 8–9 a.m.; evening thermals push down by 5–6 p.m. Plan stalk routes that keep thermals in your face throughout the approach.