Colorado elk hunting advice

SRuneare · Feb 17, 2019

Hello everyone,

My father and I are planning a 2020 elk hunt to Colorado for 1st rifle season. Planning for a few days of scouting before the opener. We will be purchasing a preference point this year and plan to hunt a unit that draws with 0 points or 1 point.

After watching some educational videos and reading articles on here and the elk101 website. As well as looking at draw stats on the CPW website we decided to do a bivy type hunt to enable us to get back away from pressure of other hunters.

My question would be is if anyone is willing to give us some advice as to, good units, areas to avoid or just any advice in general either publically or through a private message? Anything constructive would be appreciated, right now our plan is to hunt an area where others don’t want to go due to the post rut senario.

Thank you

Bullshot · Feb 17, 2019

I'd do that for archery but not rifle. It can get dangerously cold and snowy in the mountains (this past season for instance), even in the 1st season, so have a backup plan in the event weather is possible if you are not very experienced winter campers. Goes without saying that if you ARE experienced winter campers, you probably already have 2-3 backup plans in mind.

Backcountry Hunter 2 · Feb 17, 2019

Do some research and pick a unit you want to hunt. Every unit has their own unique challenges. Colorado Parks and Wildlife hunting statistics would be a good place to start. Look at herd numbers, bull to cow ratio, ect. Other places to obtain information is helpful as well. Eastmans MRS and gohunt can point you in a direction as well. You need to decide what hunting style you want to do, spot and stalk, still hunting, calling: or a combo of them.

There is nothing wrong with bivy hunting, but then again there is nothing wrong with truck camping and staying mobile. As mentioned in the previous post, last year we had a lot of snow and very cold temperatures. I experienced negative 13 degrees one morning. Carrying a sleeping bag that is safe for that type of temperatures is a lot of weight and can be very expensive. I wouldn't be going without a floorless shelter and a stove as well. I was "comfortable" truck camping in a wall tent. Good luck and happy hunting!

Jayden12 · Feb 18, 2019

A zero point unit won't give you a much better hunt then OTC.I would buy a point for a few years and bowhunt one of the easy to draw 2nd round units.Ill message you with a unit if your a bowhunters.Weather is nice and bulls are vocal and easy to locate mid Sept
If your set on a 1st season tag then my advise is looking at how Randy finds bull hideouts.Find areas a mile off a trail at least.Most guys consider going deep following a trail 4-5 miles in a trail but then won't hunt far off of it.You usually don't need to go that far in to find plenty of bulls.Key is finding places people walk by and avoid due to terrain or fear of getting lost.

SRuneare · Feb 18, 2019

This is all great advice everyone! we appreciate any help offered.

SRuneare · Feb 18, 2019

@Jayden12

we have watched all the escouting videos by Randy and listen to alot of the hunt talk podcasts. however there is no experience like first hand.

we are looking for sanctuaries is areas like GMU 24 and 12 (high pressure) . using onx we find alot of roadless limited use areas in these units but a quick look at google earth reveals alot of drop camp wall tents. We are bowhunters and would love to chase bugling bulls, however we picked rifle in order to gain experience in elk habitat and how to find them. Also my father shoots traditional archery and is afraid he will not be able to make the long shot that may be required. in the future i plan on many more years of chasing elk and will be going with bow in hand.

The areas of 24 and 12 dont seem to offer much topographical sanctuaries so i assume the next step is distance away from trails and drop camps?
obviously we were drawn to these areas by high succ rates and large elk herd but i assume everyone is thinking the same thing. should we try finding a new area with less elk and succ and inturn less pressure?

Thank you

wannakillabigbull · Feb 18, 2019

SRuneare said:
Should we try finding a new area with less elk and succ and inturn less pressure?

If you're a less experienced elk hunter, which it sounds like you are, I definitely would pick an area with plenty of elk. We all want to get away from people but if you're smart about it, you can use that pressure to your advantage. Good luck.

HighDesertSage · Feb 18, 2019

You won't get away from people in 12 and 24. Roads will have ATV's, wilderness will have outfitters and horse guys from all over the country. Personally, I wouldn't backpack or bivy in the rifle seasons. You won't get away from the pressure, you commit yourself to an area without knowing if elk are there, and from a safety standpoint you really need to be able to dry out. That time of year can bring cold and wet snow at 9000'+. It might be worthwhile if you have one of the tents with a backpacking wood stove.

SRuneare · Feb 18, 2019

You won't get away from people in 12 and 24. Roads will have ATV's, wilderness will have outfitters and horse guys from all over the country. Personally, I wouldn't backpack or bivy in the rifle seasons. You won't get away from the pressure, you commit yourself to an area without knowing if elk are there/QUOTE]

so if we were to basecamp from a trailhead area, would you suggest only getting a mile or two back each day in the dark?
our thought was if we bivvy we would be further from walk in access and also be closer to camp, rather then hike out 6 miles in the dark each day?

HighDesertSage · Feb 18, 2019

It really depends where the elk are. A mile or two could do it. I would use the pressure to your advantage and find escape routes. OTC elk in CO is tough. I would use your point for a late season cow elk hunt or hunt mule deer. You will have a much better quality experience. 6 miles in CO elk woods can take 6 hours. I've said this on here before, but CPW wouldn't issue OTC and easy to draw tags if success rates were high. You always have a chance though. Good luck!

ColoradoHunter719 · Feb 20, 2019

Same as everyone else. backpack or bivy camp are not ideal for rifle season unless you have cold weather gear and experience. It can get really cold at night and even get a ton of snow. - ColoradoHunter719

nrpate05 · Feb 21, 2019

If you have a few days before hand to scout and can find some elk before the opener, a bivy option can be well worth it. Find some elk and camp out close the evening before the opener and you may have a good shot. My crew and I did a backpack camp last year for 1st rifle and it was definitely a COLD hunt. We are all experienced in cold weather camping so we made it work, but I definitely woke up shivering a time or two during the hunt. Like others have said be sure to be prepared for all kinds of weather and have a backup plan. We were planning on going 10+ miles down a FS road to a spot we had some beta about. The road was a mess and we made it only about 3-4 miles back. Luckily the week before we came up with a plan B and it worked out well. One piece of advice to the backpack hunter is to try to find a place on the fringe of the day hunters capability but not so far that you hit the horse camps. This is impossible to truly figure out until you have boots on the ground, but I think the elk can get concentrated fleeing from day hunters and outfitter camps. If you can find that zone you may be able to capitalize.

1kghunter · Feb 23, 2019

It was 6 deg last year for first rifle. Be prepared for all types of weather. Also, if you decide to go back 6 + miles. You have to be prepared and owe it to that animal to get it out! Perhaps contact an outfitter w/ horses PRIOR that would be willing to pack your animal out if successful.

akdjoutdoors · Feb 24, 2019

I'd stick with basing out of a camp near your vehicles, bivy hunts are a cool experience but you commit to an area and lose the ability to quickly adjust/move to a new area. I wasted 10 days this year bivy hunting (archery) in an area where we averaged 2-4 miles from the closest road access and still managed to call in hunters every day. We backed out and moved areas two more times opting to base camp out of the trucks going in early and coming out late. Like the guys above stated you can use the pressure to your advantage, i killed my bull this year less than a mile from the quads in a canyon no one wanted to crawl down into (plenty of guys called from the top of the ridge while i was down in the bottom). The weather is wildcard you cant know if it will be 80 deg or 10 but the elevation out here is constant! Get in shape before you attempt to hit the mountains!

rmauch20 · Feb 24, 2019

In 2017 I went with a couple other guys to unit 12 2nd season. We had a main camp and then set up a bivy camp about 3.5 to 4 miles in. The day we we arrived it hit 60 degrees. We set up bivy camp the night before opening day, we’ll two of us did. The third was going to just sleep under a pine tree or next to the fire. Didn’t even bring a sleeping bag or bivy sack. Then..... the thunder snow storm hit. It dropped about 6-8 inches of snow that night. I spent 4nights/5 days out there in a 2 man tent so it can be done.

A few things I would recommend. ( disclaimer: I am fairly new to this so what the hell do I know)
1. Take a good 0 degree bag. I had a 20 and woke up cold a lot.
2. Take gaiters.
3. Your not going to get away from the Outfitters or drop camps. All of these guys were easy to get along with.
4. Consider take a floorless shelter with a stove. I plan on upgrading to one this year. You can always leave the stove behind.

tbowers · Feb 28, 2019

I'm headed to SW CO for 1st rifle- looking at historical data on wunderground, looks like lows in the mid 30's with highs in the mid 60's typically. Of course will vary depending on elevation but that is much warmer then I anticipated- I guess i'm used to the temps here in NW WI in that Mid October can get warm into the 70's but typically highs are lucky to hit 50

rmyoung1 · Feb 28, 2019

tbowers said:
I'm headed to SW CO for 1st rifle- looking at historical data on wunderground, looks like lows in the mid 30's with highs in the mid 60's typically. Of course will vary depending on elevation but that is much warmer then I anticipated- I guess i'm used to the temps here in NW WI in that Mid October can get warm into the 70's but typically highs are lucky to hit 50

Yeah, I wouldn't load my pack with the wunderground stats as the primary source. Those averages are for places like Cortez, Durango, Montrose.... a good 3,000 feet lower than where the public land elk will be hanging out, most likely. I've had warm, blue-bird days hunting elk in the CO backcountry in October. I've also had days where there was wind and a foot of snow on the ground. The weather can turn in a hurry in October at the higher elevations! A hunter definitely needs to be prepared... that time of year especially.

AvidIndoorsman · Feb 28, 2019

1kghunter said:
Perhaps contact an outfitter w/ horses PRIOR that would be willing to pack your animal out if successful.

This would be my last resort, I tried it last year and it was a total fiasco. Plan A needs to be a reasonable way of getting an elk out without outside help.

tbowers · Feb 28, 2019

rmyoung1 said:
Yeah, I wouldn't load my pack with the wunderground stats as the primary source. Those averages are for places like Cortez, Durango, Montrose.... a good 3,000 feet lower than where the public land elk will be hanging out, most likely. I've had warm, blue-bird days hunting elk in the CO backcountry in October. I've also had days where there was wind and a foot of snow on the ground. The weather can turn in a hurry in October at the higher elevations! A hunter definitely needs to be prepared... that time of year especially.

Oh I'm sure, weather is unpredictable just like anywhere else. I'll pack a parka and my speedo

bushman13 · Feb 28, 2019

The first day of first CO rifle last year was absolutely brutal weather wise. And it got worse the next 2 days

tbowers said:
Oh I'm sure, weather is unpredictable just like anywhere else. I'll pack a parka and my speedo

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