Birch Creek Hunting Reserve

Birch Creek Hunting Reserve consists of 8,595 deeded acres plus 640 acres of privately-leased land, located eight miles west of Woodruff, Utah and within 30 minutes of Evanston, Wyoming's Burns Field—a corporate jet-capable airport. Salt Lake City sits 90 miles south via Bear Lake or Huntsville and Ogden routes.

The Reserve qualifies as Utah's largest individual property in the Strawberry Ridge Cooperative Wildlife Management Unit (CWMU)—a 24,000-acre total across the unit. The current outfitter leases the land for $60,000 annually and runs guided hunting trips while managing the herds for trophy genetics.

If you own the property and want to hunt yourself, you negotiate tags directly with the outfitter each year. The CWMU program means the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources allocates tags based on property characteristics, with some reserved for public draw and the remainder going to the landowner.

Historically operated as summer sheep pasture, the property was acquired in 2008 specifically for its exceptional elk and mule deer habitat. The adjacent Deseret Livestock Ranch—a 217,000-acre holding nine miles north—has been managed as one of North America's premier elk and mule deer destinations for more than three decades. Birch Creek benefits directly from the north-south migratory patterns of big game herds whose genetics have been carefully calibrated over decades.

Over the last seven years, focused management has targeted trophy harvests and enhanced the big-game habitat specifically for this purpose.

The Reserve straddles roughly two miles of Montana-to-Utah Highway 39 (Monte Cristo Highway), a designated Scenic Byway closed in winter. About 7,061 acres lie north of the highway; 2,174 acres lie south.

Well-maintained four-wheel drive roads crisscross the interior, but serious hunting happens on horseback or on foot tracking game through remote terrain. Elevations range from 7,000 feet at highway frontage to 8,100 feet at high points.

Four-season environment with monthly mean temperatures between 24°F and 55.1°F. Summer highs average 74–82°F; winter highs range 28–31°F with lows around 4°F. About 60 freeze-free days annually (July 15–September 15), with roughly 10 inches of annual precipitation and abundant sunny days. Cell phone reception available at higher elevations.

Birch Creek Reservoir occupies the western portion's northeast side—a 100-acre impoundment built in 1969 for irrigation. Utah DWR stocks it with rainbow, cutthroat, and tiger trout for fishing access.

Livestock Grazing generates income: a local cattleman leases portions and grazes 282 cow-calf pairs from May 15 to June 28 annually, allowing grass recovery before hunting season. Annual lease income approximately $6,300.

The entire Reserve sits under a Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation conservation easement. Two building envelopes are reserved: 10 acres on the north side of Highway 39 and 5 acres on the south side for future home construction.

Current zoning by Rich County is Forest Recreation with 40-acre minimum lot sizes. Property taxes (2014): approximately $900 annually, assessed under Utah's Greenbelt Provision (farmland assessment based on productive value, not market value). Note: conversion from agricultural use triggers a five-year roll-back tax.

Mineral rights convey at 100% of whatever the Seller owns (subject to prior reservations—majority believed reserved by previous owners). Utilities are 8 miles away in Woodruff.

The property sits in a region with established big-game patterns influenced by the massive Deseret Livestock Ranch to the north, meaning decades of proven hunting success and genetic management of herds.