Colorado muzzleloader for dad: hunt in OTC archery unit or focus on draw only unit

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cbellosu

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Steamboat, CO
I have been focusing my research for a muzzleloader hunt on a draw archery unit assuming there will be less pressure during the muzzleloader hunt. The units I am looking at are 57/58 and had an archery tag quota of 180. We will be doing a basecamp and day hunts, most likely. Is it a good strategy to favor the draw archery units for a muzzleloader hunt or should I focus on the OTC archery units as an equal option?

Thanks for your contribution to our first elk hunt. I am planning a Colorado muzzleloader hunt with my dad and uncles for September 2019, and we will all have 2 nonresident points. I am considering unit 57/58 after quite a bit of research and advice from contributors on this forum.
 
cbellosu said:
Is it a good strategy to favor the draw archery units for a muzzleloader hunt or should I focus on the OTC archery units as an equal option? .
Click to expand...

Firstly, congrats! Sounds like a lot of fun. To get to your question, it's a bit too general to give specific advice. Different units have different amounts of pressure for different seasons, as do different areas in different units. The best piece of advice I can give is to check the hunting pressure statistics for each unit. Perhaps you're already aware, but if you aren't, Colorado posts statistics for essentially every unit and hunt that it offers.

http://cpw.state.co.us/thingstodo/Pages/Statistics-Elk.aspx

Scroll down to the "Estimated Harvest" report for 2017. Page 37 is the start of the archery statistics, page 40 is the start of muzzleloader statistics. Compare different units and see the number of hunters that typically are in each unit. Draw units typically have less pressure but not always.

It's also worth mentioning that units aren't necessarily draw units because they offer better hunting. That's definitely the case often, but some units are draw simply because of their proximity to major population centers. Too many people would choose to hunt there, so they have to be careful to control herd population objectives. Something to keep in mind if you don't already know. I'm not familiar with 57 or 58, so I can't give advice on those units specifically. Good luck!
 
Thank you very much. Everyone on this forum has been a wealth of knowledge, as well as detailed in their explanations.

I have briefly looked at the statistics for muzzleloader, but didn't realize they have OTC archery hunter numbers and success rates also. I will definitely review the archery hunter numbers in more detail. It looks like the units I am looking at (57,58) have substantially less hunter numbers than the OTC units, which I assumed they would. I do think the purpose of the units is for hunter density control and not trophy potential. I am fine with this as my goal is for my dad just to see elk.

Thanks again for the detailed response!
 
If you are looking for a hunt for you dad in 2019, I would suggest doing an archery hunt in whatever unit you want to go to this year to kind of scope it out and see if you need to adjust plans for next year. The nice thing about the Colorado season is that archery and muzzleloader overlap, so you could hunt archery while your dad hunts with a muzzleloader and you can save your muzzy points to try a different unit in 2020 if need be.
 
Not familiar with those units. I burned my points last season on a mz either sex tag. Probably the toughest elk hunt yet. Hunters everywhere (mostly archery hunters) it was hot, ranchers had cattle everywhere. I saw one bull about a mile away and he was the only elk I heard bugle. I ended up getting on a herd of cows the last morning of the hunt and filling my tag. I think the biggest issue was the temps way too hot. I have hunted the first week of archery and it was cooler than last year's mz season.
 
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Redman said:
Not familiar with those units. I burned my points last season on a mz either sex tag. Probably the toughest elk hunt yet. Hunters everywhere (mostly archery hunters) it was hot, ranchers had cattle everywhere. I saw one bull about a mile away and he was the only elk I heard bugle. I ended up getting on a herd of cows the last morning of the hunt and filling my tag. I think the biggest issue was the temps way too hot. I have hunted the first week of archery and it was cooler than last year's mz season.
Click to expand...

I had a similar issue during 2nd rifle season. The unit I hunted has a historically high success rate for the state. But, with a warm dry summer and fall, the elk were all in the private irrigated ag fields and not coming back to public. It's hard to guess a unit in March and hope for the best come September when it's time to hunt with so many variables in between. A unit might look good in the stats, but the weather could go wrong between then and hunting season.
 
Broadly speaking, those units with a limited quota have higher success rates than the OTC units. I’ve never hunted 57/58 but I’ve been considering it. For 2 points, it looks like a great option. I like your thought process. I think you’re onto something. Good luck with it!
 
JohnCushman said:
I had a similar issue during 2nd rifle season. The unit I hunted has a historically high success rate for the state. But, with a warm dry summer and fall, the elk were all in the private irrigated ag fields and not coming back to public. It's hard to guess a unit in March and hope for the best come September when it's time to hunt with so many variables in between. A unit might look good in the stats, but the weather could go wrong between then and hunting season.
Click to expand...

I talked to an outfitter at a trade show from Meeker and he said it was a rough year with the high temps. Taking the daughter out first rifle (if we draw) hopefully it isn't a repeat of last year.
 
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