First Colorado Elk Hunt During Second Rifle Season

[JakeP2015]

New user here. I have been planning an Elk hunt in Colorado during the second rifle season for the past few months. I happened to come across this forum the other day and decided to give it a go. One of the biggest things that I have learned in my short time doing research is that there is no shortage of information. I feel incredibly overwhelmed and am not entirely sure what is reliable and what is not. I know that one of the first things to decide on when planning this hunt is the gmu that I plan on hunting in. I have it "narrowed" down to the Southwest portion of Colorado and have even looked into a few units such as 65 and 70. The plan was to find a unit that consisted mostly of public land so there wasn't a huge chance of crossing over to something that was private. Another attractive point of going somewhere this large is that the hunter density isn't very high. I suppose that the question that I am asking is if anybody has any gmu recommendations that has a relatively low hunter density, a lot of public land, and a decent success rate. Is there any other piece of information that may make the planning of this hunt more stream lined? My apologies for the generic questions as I am sure that this sort of thing is posted on this forum quite a bit.

 

[Tobe_B]

Are you planning to come this year or next? If next year I would suggest onX maps and doing a lot of research and taking your time to sift through. If you are planning to be here in the next two weeks pick a unit and go. Be ready for any kind of weather and know your physical limit. Depending on where you hunt, South West Colorado is no joke. It’s steep, rough, and unless you’ve spent time here it isn’t likely you’ll truly appreciate the terrain.


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[wannakillabigbull]

Any gmu recommendations that has a relatively low hunter density, a lot of public land, and a decent success rate?

All three of those criteria are available publicly on the web. Colorado posts projected hunter density and success rate for essentially every hunt in the state every year.

Colorado Parks & Wildlife -
Elk Hunting Statistics

Percentage of public land in each unit is available in many different places but I like using Toprut.

Colorado Elk Hunting, Draw Odds Results and Harvest Data - Toprut.com

Or you could use a site like GoHunt that costs money but allows you to filter this sort of data quickly and easily. Southwest Colorado has plenty of elk so you would have a hard time picking a bad unit with that strategy. Good luck!

 

[JakeP2015]

That is really helpful. Thank you. I was planning on going next year to give myself enough time to figure it all out. I figured if I was going to do this I mine as well do it right.

 

[justinspicher]

I can tell you that google earth will straight lie to you about SW Colorado. It’s steeper and tougher terrain than it shows.

It takes a person much longer to get from one place to another than is initially expected.

The weather here can be odd, 85* to freezing rain and snow, all in the same day.

Depending on which GMU you pick, the forest service has multiple cattle allotments out so if you hunt archery, you’ll have more than just other hunters in the woods with you.

Most of these places have plenty of FS roads, along with OHV trails so lots of folks. There’s also a ton of hiking/biking trails down here that attract quite the crowd. The CDT and CT run through here so there’s always people everywhere.

Don’t forget about forest fires either, along with the seasonal monsoons we get down here.

If you are thinking 74, 75, or 751, give me a shout and I can give you some food for thought.

 

[coloyooper]

^^ Justin - I listened to a podcast this past year -- couldn't tell you who it was, where, or when -- but there was a guy on there talking about how he uses Google Earth to scout. Apparently there's a way to over-exaggerate the steepness of terrain. If you go to Tools --> Options.... --> there is a spot for Terrain and Elevation Exaggeration. The guy on the podcast said he always does it 2-times the normal setting so he can really get a feel for how steep it may be. Might be helpful when scouting tricky layouts.

 

[njdoxie]

All three of those criteria are available publicly on the web. Colorado posts projected hunter density and success rate for essentially every hunt in the state every year.

Colorado Parks & Wildlife -
Elk Hunting Statistics

Percentage of public land in each unit is available in many different places but I like using Toprut.

Colorado Elk Hunting, Draw Odds Results and Harvest Data - Toprut.com

Or you could use a site like GoHunt that costs money but allows you to filter this sort of data quickly and easily. Southwest Colorado has plenty of elk so you would have a hard time picking a bad unit with that strategy. Good luck!

True, they’re all “good” units, but there are wide swaths of elk free public land in each unit, that look like elk should be there.