Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Best Colorado Elk Unit

Im a NR with 2 points for Colorado elk. Im planning for 2010 and would like to find the best unit for trophy elk 300+ that I can draw with my 2 points. I can hunt archery, muzzleloader or rifle. Any help or direction would be great.
Thanks
Jeremy Gugelmeyer

Look thru the drawing book and see what you can draw with 2 points in a trophy unit. I am afraid it will be slim pickings but I can't speak without reviewing the draw numbers.

Jeremy:

2 preference points and 300+ B&C. If those are your only criteria, I'm afraid that you are SOL.

Although there's a slim chance that you could kill a 300+ bull in almost any unit, the real chances are somewhere between slim and none, except in the premium units in the NW corner of the state, which are managed to produce trophy bulls. Those units take mucho points to draw. I have 12 points and I may never draw a tag before they put me in a nursing home. A friend and fellow correspondent on this site just drew a tag there and he had 19 points.

I have taken 30 elk in the last thirty years but none have aproached 300 B&C.

KC

Forget it.

Wait until 5 or more points. Most good limited license units during the good seasons are currently requiring 8-14 points to draw a tag. Achery, muzzleloader, or centerfire.

Now that the recession is in full bloom, it will be interesting to see if there are less applications, which will increase the chances...slightly.

But when you have 10,000 applicants for 250 licenses in a given unit for a given season, a 20% drop in applications is only relative........


Casey

Im not looking for a guarantee by any means just looking for units that have potential of producing a 300+ bull.
Here are the units I have found that I can draw or dang near draw with 2 pts according to a hunt odds calculator. Does anybody have any suggestions about any of these. There may be other ones these were just the ones I picked off the map and I don't know anything about them.
Unit 20 archery or rifle
67 rifle
68
86
82
Thanks for any and all help.

GMU 20:
Dominated by Rocky Mountain National Park and private land. The late-late season guided hunts on private land produce big bulls. Having said that, I have a friend who bowhunts a honey hole somewhere in the area between Pingree Park and Cache La Poudre river--but he ain't giving any exact locations. The second biggest bull ever killed in Colorado (~410 points) was taken in the Never Summer Range northwest of the park. But unit 20 is waaaay too close to the I-25 urban corridor for my liking....

GMU 82 and 86:
You'd better be in shape. Lower elevations are private, the upper elevations are the Sangre De Cristo's--steep and rugged. By early October the critters are moving out--even the bighorns. 86 is the east side approached by the Wet Valley. I've archery hunted sheep twice in the early and mid 90's from the west side 82--and it is a rugged momma puppy--mostly a backpacking proposition even for elk. Not a lot of elk in 86, but I have seen some nice bulls while chasing bighorns and big bucks with a bow in August and September. I once had a 325 bull 500 yards below me and a 35 inch bighorn above me while archery hunting. Talk about a dilemma. Needless to say I didn't close to either........

GMU 67:
I grew up hunting elk in 66 and 67 off the Alpine Plateau on public land and private land below. 67 is mostly the Powderhorn country. Plenty of elk on public lands, but not many big ones. Used to be monster bucks in that country though.........

GMU 68:
For the life of me I can't understand why the CDOW even bothered to make 68 into a limited license unit.........

In other words there are reasons why these units are easy to draw. That doesn't mean there are not little "hot spots"/micro-habitats/honey holes that will produce mature bulls in any of these units--I can assure they are there somewhere. But it's a learning curve, and you have to put in a multi-year effort to find them.

I've been at it for 40+ years, and those good spots come and go--it's always a learning curve.

Casey

I would go for the state wide muzzy tag. aint sayin units tho!

Colrado leans towards quantity elk,not quality.It brings in a lot more money.There is a reason why you have to pay $850 for high demand hunts in NM, or hefty fees in Montana and Idaho.

If you want to shoot a big bull pay the big bucks and hunt the northern Gila in NM, or buy a private land tag for some area in CO and pay an outfitter

There is always a chance of taking 300+ bulls on public land,which I assume you wnat to hunt, but as KC said that chance is slim. Im the one who he mentioned had 19 ppoints to draw area 201. Average bulls there are about 320 with a few every year toping 350. They issue 25 tags a year. Now compare that with your 2 points wanting a 300 bull and you see where that puts you.
Hell, most of us are darn glad to be able to hunt elk every year and shoot mediocre ones,or even cows.

I was told 82 and 86 were rough country but I was also told that some of the ranches in that area produce some giant bulls? Any truth to that? Is it too rough to get a horse into?
I 've been in 67 with a friend so I know what its like hows it compare to 82 or 86?

I sure appreciate the help, Im not looking for anybodies honey hole in a unit just trying to gather general info on the units.

I understand wanting to kill a big bull and that is always my intention. That said, I've got a lot of unguided bulls that don't score for crap but which mean the world to me. I remember each detail. I'd draw a muzzleloader tag and go wallow in the glory of the Rockies in September. If you kill a bull it is icing on the cake.

+1 moosemuncher

If this is your first trip to Colorado, save your points and buy a leftover cow tag. Choose an ares and get to know it. I've lived and hunted elk in Co. for many years and have yet to shoot a bull over 300 points.
I find shooting a good cow is just as satisfying to me.

A gun writer once said that any public land bull elk is a trophy. I tend to agree.

JV

Jeremy:

Units 82 and 86 are both in the Sangre De Cristo Mountains; 86 is East of the crest and 82 is West of the crest. I've hiked and climbed all over that area and not seen much that is encouraging except in the Dead Man Lakes area. I went in there a few years ago, when you had to hike in from the East, over Music Pass and two mountains after that to get to the Dead Man Lakes. I saw a small herd and there were two very big bulls. But you better have horses or mules if you intend to hunt that area.

Here's a tip that you might want to checkout. The Great Sand Dunes National Monument just aquired a bunch of land to the North and East of the Park, so that they could include the entire drainage system in managed lands. That opens up the way into Dead Man Lakes from the West, which is shorter and not quite as miserable. But you still need horses or mules to get in there. The first few people that hunt that area just may discover that some big bulls have sought refuge there, escaping from areas that are easier to hunt.

KC

As long as you think that way you'll never have a Bad hunt!!! Good Luck

you have gotten a pretty good idea of the steep challenge you face. If you have set your sights on a 300 bull, they are way too high in my opinion.

I have hunted elk in some good areas and some years, you are lucky to even SEE an elk. So unless you can pay to hunt private land, I would suggest you shoot the first legal elk you see. Don't believe the magazine hype or start to think that since you constantly see pictures of big elk on this site, that they are lots out there. ANY elk is a trophy.

You might try and draw a cow tag as a second choice next year and use that trip to scout for a bull on the next hunt.

my reply would be hahahaha... but you've seen the other replies... its just that way. I don't recall but maybe have 4-5 points now, I wouldn't even START to think about something like a 300... hell I'm still relearning/learning elk.... cow tag is high on the list, just use them to learn what to do, while saving points.. THEN get a bull tag.

But you can do it your way too... Can't eat the antlers, but sure would like a decent bull for the wall one of these years...

A NR coming into area 20 will be HIGHLY disappointed. It has taken me years to learn the unit. Alot of private, RMNP boundry's to deal with, only the west half of the unit is elk habitat the rest is people habitat. The known huntable areas are going to be packed with folks just like you. It takes some research and time to get into the areas away from company.

I would lower your expectations when you come to Colorado and say if I kill any elk it will be a good hunt. You come out here with 300" inches in mind and it's going to be a long trip.


For that fella's talking about Cache Le Poudre and Pingree park that is area 19. He is right there are some hawgs that come out of there.

the troublesome basin produces what you are looking for. the nevere summers are also a good bet but you might not even see a elk, becauses theres nothing easy about that country. The sangre de cristos also produce what you are looking for, but its the roughest [bleep] colorado has to offer, If you set a hunt for that area you might not be looking for a 300 inch bull, but you also might be lucky to get out alive!!(thats no understatment)A 300 inch bull is not going to be easy to find in any colorado unit, but then again there is proably one in every unit in colorado. The flattops have produced 300inch elk, but they are damn tough to come by up there. I would focus on the troublesome basin and head over and check out elkheaven.com, do some research and you might get lucky.

+100

Areas 82 and 86 are very rough country where the big boys hang during archery and black powder seasons. There are a few places I can take my horses, but most of my favorite spots where the really big bulls hang are backpack only. Some access to the better spots is also limited...guess that's why the big bulls are there!

I hear of groups that kill 300 inches of elk every year almost.. of course that might be 2-3 bulls added up..

I saw a big one last year, I think it would fall into the very low 300 class. It was on public land in a unit that does not require any points to draw.

Luck was on my side that day, now if I had a bull tag and not a cow tag it could have been an even better day.

I see 300+ bulls in 86 all the time.Trouble is they are about 100 yds inside the fence of Wolf Springs Ranch and know they are safe.

We ambushed one heading back across the fence several years ago,a nice 6 x 7

With two points, you can get into plenty of decent units. You don't have to go to the Northwest, but that'll help your odds of actually harvesting. There are a handful of units that kill same % of bulls every year as the Northwest units, and some of them are OTC. Units 10, 2 and 201 all harvest less than 10% of the available bulls per year. Unit 1 is a waste as they shoot closer to 50% of the bulls per year there.

The reason they only harvests 10% of the available bulls in trophy areas is so the bulls there can get some age to them. Pretty hard to get a 300+ bull that is two-three yrs old.

Same reason they put the 4pt or better restriction on bulls in a lot of areas years ago. Most of the available bulls were being shot off as spikes or 3 pointers

They kill a good percentage of bulls in the Flat Tops ,but the majority are 4 x's and small 5 x's.

Percentage of bulls killed does not have much bearing on things if one is looking for a better bull. In every unit that requires an increasingly number of preference points to get a tag,usually increases the odds of getting a little better bull.

There are exceptions and good bulls are killed every year in OTC areas. However,it is like the old saying. Even a blind pig can find an acorn every once in awhile

I'm not sure I'm reading you right or you're reading me right. Shooting a large % bulls makes it difficult to grow "trophies". That's why I mentioned that 3 of the Northwest units shoot under 10% of the available bulls each year, except for unit 1. The Flat Tops only produce raghorns because they shoot over 40% of the bulls every year. The only way for OTC units to retain 90% or more of the bulls each year is with lower success rates. And there are few places that are OTC or low preference points that will kill less than 15% and some shoot less than 10% of the bulls annually.
So I think it does have bearing if you're looking for a "trophy", in that you want a low % of bulls killed.

I also have 19 PP mine being NR. Not sure where I plan on using them. Seems 2 and 10 are getting away from me. With only 2 tags a year and 20 people ahead of me who knows when I will draw. I was lucky to draw a LE Elk tag in UT this year with potential for a 350 bull. If I get lucky and score I may just use up my CO points on a fun hunt somewhere and not worry about bone.

Curious about that. I've not hunted there, but word around is that the Troublesome gets lots of pressure. Has that been your experience?

What unit did you draw in Utah?

Exbiologist.Yep,we are on the same page

the troublesome has produced 350 class bulls and I think a 380 bull last year, but thats a maybe. The area is hunted very hard, but there is also plenty of places to get away from people. The good areas in there are 6-10 miles in, and you will not be alone. The is heavy dark timber, so the bulls will hide, and most of them wont be found by the hunters. This area is proably the last remaning habitat like it in colorado.

Like I said elkheaven.com is a fantastic site run by someone who knows this area like the back of their hand, anyone intrested in this area should take a look at the site.

Guys I appreciate the conversation.
Jeremy Gugelmeyer

Nick,

Question for you. Hope it don't offend. If the Troublesome Basin is such a great area with potential for big bulls, why is this guy dedicating a website and spreading that info around like this? 9 out of 10 guys would never give up info on places that produce big elk every year. Myself included. Great elk hunting is one of the most closely guarded secrets I've ever seen. Just curious as I'm familiar with the Troublesome area and I've just not seen what this guy is saying. Just curious..

Thanks.

Yeah, the odds are getting better--instead of 500 applicants per license for popular units/seasons, it will now be 350 applicants..............

Instead of waiting 15 years to accumulate enough points, you'll only have to wait 12 years........


Casey

As far as getting info on units, a couple of evenings on the DOW site and reading the Elk Hunting University will give you a real education on hunting elk, and a lot can be applied to all CO big game hunting. AS far as statistics, unit information and herd information, all of it is free for the looking if you just take some time.

With that said, 300+ bulls can be had even in marginal success areas with OTC tags. I know, I have one, all it took was physical effort,going where no one else would go. 4WD and ATV will get you within a few miles, after that its foot or hoof time where any sane person would not go. Serious trophy elk hunters do not pass sanity tests.

I have 12 CO points and put in for one more each year. Since each year it typically takes one more point to draw the best units, I probably will never get to use them! However, although I don't know if I have ever even seen a 300 bull in the wild, I have seen a few good elk on each of my three Colorado OTC hunts. Who cares about 300+, you can have a good hunt with NO points.

I would recommend picking an area that has the terrain you like and then keep going there. I've found it takes a few years to learn an area well enough to have a chance at a nice bull. Obviously there are exceptions... Just about everywhere has elk, and the occasional big one, knowing the area well enough to find him is another matter all together.

If you check the "what's new this year" section of the regs., I think you'll find that there are no more statewide muzzleloader tags.

Another thing to consider is to do what I have done and put in for additional preference point for first choice, then make your second choice a unit that may take 1 or 2 PP to draw. If you get lucky, great. if not, you can still hunt unit 82 or many other units with OTC licenses in certain seasons. I think unit 82 is OTC in season 3. I hunted there in 2002 and it was tough. Steep and high elevation. I saw elk every single day and passed up on one day two that had half of his rack broken off one side. After that, they were on the other side of the valley every other day, than the one I was on.
That country up there makes you wish you had gotten in better shape no matter how "in shape" you thought you were.

Good luck.

I have just finished some fairly extensive scouting of unit 82.
I spent 3-day weekends for all of August up there. There are some elk but neither 82 nor 86 have ever been among the better units that I have been to.

Of the maybe 25 or 30 major drainages that are accessible on the Western side of the Sangre�s I�d estimate that only a very few hold small herds. The larger herds tend to be found toward the Southern end and have found safety on abundant private land and now recently more federal land. Sure there are singles and pairs throughout the range but those are some smart survivors. As was previously noted, the Sangre�s are extremely steep. It�s a tough hunt for a DIY. Not as bad if you have horses.

I have seen some trophy bulls in 82 and 86 but really not very many given the amount of time I�ve spent in that range over the past 2 decades. Usually those bulls were well protected by both steep terrain and large parcels of unhuntable land.

I purchased a leftover tag for unit 82 this year, either sex, 1st season (mostly because I had the opportunity to do so much scouting there and I wanted to add a 2nd elk hunt this year). I�m not even thinking about 300 class bulls. I�m starting off looking for evidence on any elk.
The fact that this tag is even available as a leftover tells you that this is not going to be a high % success area.
Anyone who does manage some success in this area can feel good about having beaten some pretty long odds.

I'm coming out for my first hunt during 2nd rifle season and I'll be tickled pink just to SEE and Elk! Just being there is a dream for some folks. Good luck!!

Last year we hunted area 75 during the second season. Got there the first day and there a few bulls taken but nothing special. After the first day we didn't see or hear an elk for 3 days and then a big snowstorm came through and kicked us off the mountain. We had cow tags and I didn't see one cow.

We are thinking about putting in for a cow tag for new year during muzzleloader season. Is it pretty easy to draw a cow muzzleloader tag or do you need points for that too? We live in Kentucky and the drive to Durango was painful. We were hoping to find an area with good cow numbers a little easier to get too. Maybe north and west of Denver. We are not after bulls just meat for the freezer.

Thanks

Along with a bunch of other units, I've hunted unit 20 twice on the late season or January hunt. As mentioned it's a patchwork of private and public and would be very confusing to know and hunt without a guide because of that.

It is not a particular pleasing unit to hunt aesthetically speaking-- it's not wilderness but winding roads, fences, and park-and-hunt scenarios.

Aside from that, it's highly weather dependent. While the regular seasons will find elk in the unit outside of RMNP, the late season hunts which are meant to harvest some of the big bulls that weather finally pushes out can still be mild, long sleeve shirt weather, or like my last one there, uncommonly frigid with a -25 below wind chill. Snow conditions can help, or greatly hinder; for example, old snow that has repeatedly thawed and frozen again making quiet hunting nearly impossible. Think walking across side hills of Corn Flakes.

While I did take a 330 bull in Jan of 2008, conditions were very poor for hunting and uncomfortable but this can happen in any unit and "is hunting".

[/b]While we all would like to take big bull, the odds are so against it on public land in CO as has been mentioned that placing less emphasis on that and more on the experience, the country, the process, etc will make it more enjoyable for you especially for one who hasn't spent years hunting elk or learning one GMU intimately. [b]

I'm in that group! I've been hunting elk in Colorado on and off since the mid 80s and ain't got one yet. Now I've been stationed out of the state for several of those years, and others I was somewhat limited in how far I could get from roads as my Dad was with me and couldn't move real well, so I haven't serioulsy put in the effort for 25 years and come up blank.

I see bulls when I have a cow tag or the day before the season. I see cows when i have a bull tag, or they're heading into thick stuff and gone by the time I get there. I'm still learning about these critters and hope to get my first trophy cow this year. I'll mount it on the grill instead of the wall, though. Numbers and rack size mean nothing to me.

That said, I've seen a lot of really nice bulls on public land earlier in the year...apparently somebody provides them with season info, though, because come opening day, they're nowhere around.

Hey all. I have a family cabin at the base of the Sangres and am looking to get an elk over the coming years. I plan to do a scouting weekend this coming labor day to get the latezt live scoop on the land. The info that y'all have provided has already helped a great deal. The satellite maps show a couple spots that stand out as honeyholes, but hiking it is the only way to confirm. It sounds like a sizeable challenge from what is said about the terrain. I've hiked the area as a teen, but not up into the alpine yet. (I'll be in shape when it's time though) My cousin lives in the area and he mentioned that if the elk are not in safe spaces of private land, they will be in the nastiest and thickest spots. Of course, right! lol

So, is it wise to keep a base camp at the cabin and hike the mountains for a week or so, camping each night? Should I focus on glassing from ridges and stalk from there? Hunt around watering holes? North vs South facing ridges? Probably best to keep far away from easy access roads and other hunters, ya?

Any tips or advice for a novice elk hunter would be greatly appreciated! Thank you guys and have a great day!

You didn't say what season,but glassing once the elk are hunted gets pretty dismal. Usually in alpine areas there is water everywhere.Even a little seep is enough for an elk to get water.

Hunting from the cabin would be nice,but you have a long trek every morning, unless you can find elk close.
If you chose to hike in and camp a few nights, be aware of your location. Sounds like you are on foot,and getting 3-400 pounds of meat out on your back is not for the faint of heart

TxVince - Remember that since this thread was last active the North end of 86 has burned.
That could be good for you but depends on where the cabin is.
Success rates are not high there for either bulls or cows but having a cabin available is a great start.

Depends on which season. By mid/late September the elk have generally moved down out of the alpine above timberline because the hard freezes have turned the grass brown while down in the quakies and small openings or snowslide chutes their will still be green grass.

The Sangres are very steep--especially on the San Louie side. If you're starting from a cabin at the base of the range a guy--even in good shape--will spend a couple hours or more getting up higher in most places along the range.

I've archery sheep hunted up there twice, didn't see a lot of elk during archery season but the ones I saw were primarily mature bulls.

Casey

Don't worry, you are not alone.........



That's the spirit!



My younger brother is convinced somebody gives all the elk a calendar each year..........


Casey

I hunt a 4 point NR elk unit

In this unit even seeing elk is a red letter day.

But in 2015 I literally won the lottery and don't need anyone to tell me it will never happen again because I know it!!!

This guy tapes as is....broken royals and one broken 5th at just over 320"

Public land, tent camping, wilderness area so we walk everywhere

This bull died 4 miles from the nearest road

I'm in a lifelong debt with 2 very good friends for helping me put him down and get him out.

No mules, horses.....just pain...lots of pain











First rest



I will be lucky to see another bull of this quality in my life on Colorado public land much less kill one

This bull was killed in Unit 86 in 2001(not by me). I have hunted every year since then.Drew one tag in Unit 201 ,the trophy unit in NW CO. The bull I killed there was not as big, and in all these years,I have never seen a bull as big on public land. This gives one the idea of how hard it is to kill a big bull on CO public land.This bull probably went above 350. I could have killed that bull but as is always the case,I was carrying a cow tag in my pocket

I'm no expert but I've taped more than a few....

Why do you think that bull is over 350"

I am not sure where the recession comment comes from, but there is another issue impacting the elk populations in CO: predators. In MT and WY, ID, etc. they have wolf problems, but in CO I believe it more a mountain lion problem.

For the first time in 30 years of hunting the same unit in CO, this past November I saw two distinctly different sized mountain lion tracks within 5 miles. Considering that it used to be unusual to see one mountain lion track, seeing evidence of two lions within that distance is highly remote. I know mountain lions prefer to prey on deer, but to think they don't make the elk nervous is simply naive.

The latter bull I killed was 343 and this bull is bigger. Because of the straight in angle that the photo was taken,you can't get a true view of the length of the main beams.

Uhhhhh........

--My comment was posted 8 years ago.

--Have you checked the age of this thread?

--Colorado has been issuing very high numbers of cow tags for the past 20 years in a attempt to reduce the elk numbers in most units. Only recently has CPW approached their desired numbers in some units. In other words we have more friggin' elk then we know what to do with.........

--Having worked on a lion study in the 80's, I can assure you cougars, a) don't kill many elk, and b) have little effect on movement or behavior of elk.

Casey

Oh, please excuse my ignorance and failure to pay tribute to your lion study experience. I do believe I stated the lions make elk nervous, just to clarify.

Saddlesore, Alamosa, I appreciate the advice.
Saddle, We'll probably be going for the second rifle season(Oct.22 -30?). I'll have some friends with decent legs to help if I get one. Definitely good to be mindful of distance though. Would you recommend horse(s) if they were available?

Alamosa, thanks for the info. The cabin is southwest of Westcliffe, just downhill from Alvarado Campground. Hopefully the fire didn't reach there!

Alpinecrick, Thanks for the timetable. Those mountains have a lot of elevation, and quickly too. There also doesn't seem to be many shortcuts or easy access trails. If it's not dense or fallen timber, it's near vertical rock faces.

Is there a good chance of snow cover in mid to late October for GMU 86 area?? (Sounds like a dumb question but I don't see much snow down in TX :P) Thanks guys!

Horses are always good idea.

That east side of the Sangres is a lot steeper/rougher than the west side.
So would you be going in towards Horn Lake?

A rangerette made me leave Alvarado one time several years ago because I had horses.Said I had to tie them at least 100 yards outside the campground.She was obviously a dirt biker because they were joy riding all over the campground and there were signs every where,no dirt bikes

ANY predator makes elk nervous--especially predators wearing blaze orange and packing heat.....

Rather than pay tribute, it's best if one educates himself on the subject, and better yet, pay attention to the age of thread.


Casey

SS,
25 years ago I drew archery sheep tags twice in three years in the Sangre unit. The drainages we hiked there was no way a guy could get a horse in there. A couple other sheep hunters used pack goats and twice they had to unload the goats to get through some tricky spots.

Casey

Don't know where you hunted Casey,but in the same time frame,I took two mules up the Mt Shavano trail, the bush whacked north into the drainage that has Shavano Lake . We camped at timber line and we killed two goats up another 1000 feet.

Many times we have ridden into Sand Lake, past Music Pass and did quite a bit of riding north of Medano Pass above timber line. We rode up to Venerable lake ,but didn't go over the top. They have killed a few horses on that pass.

I have ridden into Crestone lake a few times,but it has been awhile.

Probably why I ride mules instead of those short eared affairs, although I admit,there are areas,I can't ride into

SS,

Yes, I've ridden enough mules to be impressed with their 4wd characteristics! But the three drainages I was in a guy wouldn't get a burro up there unless he quartered it and carried the pieces up. Two of them had trails part way up (sort of), but one was a choked ravine with no trail whatsoever.

As a teenager I babysat cows in what is now the Uncompahgre wilderness and pushed cow ponies into places I wouldn't put a horse (or mule) into today.

Casey

What pack frames were you using? I'm in need or a new one.

SS, Crick,
Sounds like the Sangres hold some formidable country. I guess that is a good thing for the elk, not so much for us.

With the thick forest and rough terrain, would it be a good starting point to wake up early and just start hiking into a draw?? How far in should I go? Stay below or above the apline? If no sign in one draw, should I hike over the ridge to the next draw? I wouldn't mind taking a small camp setup and staying out for a couple days, especially if it means putting me where the elk are before they get there. I'll be out for 2nd rifle in Oct, so i hope there is not too much snow.
I'm excited as hell to get out there!
And thanks for all the info guys. Appreciated.

TXvince

Starting down low and hiking to where the elk maybe sound s like more of a hike with a gun in your hands. Those questions can't be answered until you figure out where the elk are and how much hunting pressure is in that area. There might be elk right out the back door and there might be elk 4 miles up the canyon.
I have not been in that country for a lot of years,so I can't be a big help.

TxVince

The majority of my elk hunting over the last 17 years has been in units 86 & 861. During that period my family and I have killed 18 elk in those two areas. 5 of them were mine, all cows.

Not one of the 18 was killed on the national forest.

Based on the most recent available statistics, (2015) you have a 13% chance in 86 and an 18% chance in 861. This is for all seasons, sexes and manner of take. For the 2nd rifle in 86 (which is what I assume you are most interested in) you would have a 18% chance of an antlered and a 11% chance of antlerless ... unit wide.

I have seen elk within a quarter mile of my home below Alvarado and from there all the way to the very top of Horn Peak.

I can assure you a public land hunt in those units will not be easy. Not impossible, but far, far from easy.

The short answer to your question is yes, you can day hunt from your cabin. There will be elk within 3-4 miles and on the NF. I've done it. I don't recommend it. Staying in a spike camp at 11,000 feet will give you a great deal of advantage ... because, in my experience most elk are killed just at sunrise or sundown. That's my opinion. (I've also killed a bull at noon while sitting under a tree eating a sandwich) If you are in position at first light your odds of success will vastly increase.

If you want to know more, PM me.

I parked near Alvarado the day I took these photos. I went north on the Rainbow Trail a little ways and hiked one of the ridges that led toward Horn Peak. Glassed the next ridge to the north.




This is with a 50x zoom and I've seen them in similar scenarios many times while scouting sheep. You would not see this during hunting season. During the day they would be in a location where they could take full advantage of their eyes, ears, noses. Probably high in steep timber.

I've probably seen more elk in the Sangres than anywhere else. I counted 80 one day while hiking the summit ridge. I've killed only one in the Sangres and it was not on the NF. Much of this will sound a whole lot like what plainview has posted.

I think the Incident Command website may have an accurate map of the fire. You could probably drive near there any morning for a hunt. Conventional wisdom is that a burn should be great hunting a year or two after the fire. One problem with that theory is that the pasture on that valley floor is some of the best in the world - tough to compete with and on most of it they won't get shot at. Plains bison would migrate into that valley each year for that pasture back in the day.

Catch them moving between the hay fields and the cover of NF at dawn or dusk?
That's a good idea too except that the Rainbow trail follows the bottom edge of the NF and creates a sort of no-elk zone from ATV and other traffic. Sure there are some dumb elk and elk make mistakes but they are all smart enough to know the danger of that trail.

I don't want to sound too discouraging. If I had a cabin available to hunt elk I'd be all over that opportunity. I'm one of those guys who'll buy leftover bull tags for 3rd or 4th season when I have like a 1% chance of success just because I think the Sangres are an amazing place to be and the hunt is as fun for me as the kill. I figure you pay your dues in boot leather and sometimes luck comes to the guy who happens to be out there at the time.

What Alamosa has said is correct. In general. Although, the attached photo was taken on the last day of 4th rifle in 2012 within 200 yards of the Rainbow Trail. I bumped a bedded group of 25 at mid-day ... and I wasn't even hunting. So, basically, nothing is impossible, but hard work and luck are about equal for success when rifle hunting elk in the Sangres. His photo is pretty typical of where they are much of the time ... at or above timberline. So, expect to be climbing up to or over 13,000 feet. And carrying one down boned out will take several trips. If you can afford the the time to acclimate it will be time very well spent. The majority of the Sangres above the Rainbow Trail is designated Wilderness and that means foot & horse access only. No bikes, no ATV's ... nothing but boots & saddles. You're unlikely to be hunting private land so you'll spend all your time above 9,000 feet.

The best way I can describe hunting in the Sangre de Cristo's is ... Armed Hiking.

But that's fine. The days you spend there don't count against your allotted lifespan. (So I may very well live an extra century)

Very good info Plain. Its sounds like if you want to take an elk here, you will no doubt have to earn it. Our group will be up for a week to 10 days so we should have some time to acclimate. Lord knows we'll need it.
Awesome pic in the late season. Just goes to show that anything can happen while hunting, no matter how much you plan or think things will unfold a certain way. One of the many enjoyable aspects of hunting. I like the idea of a spike camp. I think it will be the best way to get scouting done too(stay in the woods method). It will give more opportunity to take an elk also, cause I've heard you can't kill an elk sitting at camp!
I'll do some more research and PM you with question if you don't mind. Thank you!


Alamosa, that all sounds good too. Great pics btw! I am also one that likes to lace up and hit the country. It's almost therapeutic. The sangres will be a much bigger challenge than the hills here in TX, but I should be ready....ready enough lol. I'll be sure to check out the map for the burn location. That fresh grass may be gold to elk when food is scarce.

Again, thank you guys so much for the knowledge. I'll have to buy some cold barley soup for y'all when i come up! (beer)