With two-thirds of the unit in Willamette National Forest and lots of private timber land open to public hunting, this unit offers many opportunities to hunt elk and blacktail deer.

Blacktail deer and Roosevelt elk are increasing in this unit due to mild winters and the opening of timber by logging and forest fires. Hunters who hunt hard have a good chance of taking mature bucks and bulls. This unit also offers one of the few chances to hunt Columbian Whitetail deer.

A small part of this unit is composed of flat land along the North Fork Umpqua River in the southwest and the Willamette River in the east. Above it are rolling hills and short ridges between many creeks and their countless feeders. Most of the western third of the unit is below 2,500 feet in elevation. The hills get progressively higher toward the east, becoming the Cascade Range. Many of the mountains are between 4,000 and 6,000 feet above sea level. Many slopes are steep, such as those on Kitson Ridge, Coyote Mountain, east of Diamond Peak, Dame Rock, the Calapooya Mountains, Monte Rico Ridge and Boulder Creek Wilderness. The northern half of the unit is mostly in Lane County, the southern half in Douglas County.

The eastern half is composed of heavily forested mountains. Most trees are firs, spruces, cedars and hemlocks. The western and southwestern edges have some farmland with strips of timber in draws and on ridges. The foothills are mostly forested with many old logging sites where trees have been removed and are now grassy or brushy.

Hunters have a lot of public land to explore in the Indigo Unit. Roughly the eastern two-thirds of the area is inside the Willamette National Forest and includes the Boulder Creek Wilderness and the western third of the Diamond Peak Wilderness. Horses must hike or use horses to travel inside wilderness boundaries. Much private timber land is open to public hunting, including property included in the Willamette Private Timberlands Law Enforcement Project. Weyerhaeuser charges a fee to hunt some of their land in the Row River area. Some of the company’s land could be available at no charge in the Mosby Creek, Big River and Little River drainages. Call the Weyerhaeuser access hotline (888-741-5403) for details on restrictions. Private lands generally are closed to camping and are subject to closures due to fire danger or timbering activities. Some lands offer little road access. Scout in advance and check with timber companies for closures. Some lands are open only on weekends.

At least two dozen campgrounds are in this unit or on its edges. Many campgrounds are scattered across this unit, including private and public facilities. There are no RV hookups or dumps on public facilities although many campgrounds can accommodate RVs. Several towns just outside the western boundary of the unit have RV camps and motels, including: