Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Changes in elk tags for NW Colorado

The CPW commission meeting Nov 17 will consider changing Elk tags in the 2nd and 3rd rifle seasons from OTC to limited draw for the next two years in the units hit by the 2023 severe winter kill in NW Colorado.

I am sitting on 26 points and have been holding out for unit 2. If I was still a CO resident I could pull it. I was a CO resident for 54 years but work took me to TX. If they cut back on unit 2 tags I will never get one. May be time to consider unit 61

Sounds like a good plan.
It is odd how you go East of there and slightly up into Wyoming, our elk and deer did fine over that winter.
They did take a hit though up in Baggs area too.

Doing away with NR OTC has been getting a lot of talk in Colorado. Some NRs are not happy about it but sounds like a good plan for residents in Colorado.

Where did you get those details? Commission meeting notice just says consider modifying unlimited bull licenses in the severe winter zone.

My daughter and I spent the day in unit 2 yesterday. We saw elk but the numbers are down. I suspect they’ll recover fairly quickly if the go cut tag numbers. They usually take A LOT of cows out of 2.

Todd

https://cpw.state.co.us/.../November/Item.19-W-2_Issue.pdf. Pages 24-35 or so

This is just a sign of things to come, what will CPW do once the wolves are established, the low numbers will be the new norm. The CPW will be screaming for money then!!!

Thanks, SS. The way it sounded to me was CPW is looking at limited bull licenses on public land for at least 2 years and private land status quo. I suppose we’ll know next week what they decide.

So how did this turn out?

Curious myself.....

CPW won't announce anything until winter herd counts are done I believe. So far, nothing has been posted except the Meeting Recap.Next Meeting is in January


https://cpw.state.co.us/aboutus/Pages/News-Release-Details.aspx?NewsID=3992


Supposedly looking for the 6000 hunter survey about it.

https://cpw.state.co.us/aboutus/Pages/News-Release-Details.aspx?NewsID=3993

I hunted just east of that area this year, and my buddy hunted the Bear's Ears units this year. He was one of the few that got a tag. He saw three elk total in six days. Last year, that we saw 60 opening day. East of there we got lucky and got on a cow, but didn't see a single elk before or after we got the cow. Another buddy went in the Medicine bow area, saw nothing over three days. Limited draw is the minimum they need to do for all seasons up there and I'd add, no cow tags in the post-rut seasons.

And the number one thing CPW needs to do is DECIDE BEFORE THE APPLICATION PROCESS BEGINS. Last year our entire hunting party applied for tags in the area, only to find out in MAY - a month after we applied - that tags were being severely limited, limited to a total of 10 cow tags. There was talk before then, but nothing near how they ended up. If they change the rules/limits after the application process begins, applicants should get double points back.

Yea,I applied early on for cow, ML tag, North in Unit 12. Then a week before the draw they issued a news release that the number of tags would be reduced, but not how many.They did not reduce ML or archery tags however.

I saw three elk, one came home with me. Archery hunters were seeing a few more, but not many were tagged.

I agree that CPW needs to decide AND publish tag number reductions.

Make that 3 of us with applications in that area only to find out tags were severely restricted.

For all of us, our elk hunting years are limited. Possible hunting seasons could range from 1-60, with (a complete guess) average of maybe 5. I know some of us elk hunt every year and will get 20, or 30, or maybe 40 seasons in our lifetime. I think that's rare though. It's more of a bucket list item for about half the hunters would be my guess. They might go once, maybe 5 times in their life as time and $$$$ allows. My point is, when CPW changes the rules after the application process is well under way, it's affecting this very limited and often extremely expensive opportunity. Mother Nature wins, always, and no problem on limiting tags to allow the natural resource to thrive again - that's your job. All of us will adjust accordingly - If you let us know in a timely fashion.

Spot on. Back when I was 40 or so, I counted up how many elk seasons I had left, figuring to hunt until I was maybe 75. 35 wasn't very many and I have only missed one elk season since. They sure went by fast. I don't hunt out of state, but I added a few more when I could buy an "A" and a "B" tag plus I hunted another five years after being 75.

I went t a CPW meeting two years ago and they said in their survey, most elk hunters would be happy to hunt every 2-3 years. I told them they were full of bull do-do. If CPW treated residents and seniors as well as they treat non-residents it sure would help us out.

Well said.

I think guys like us might actually be in the minority. I saw a group of 4 guys this year up on the mountain. Nonres with one rifle and one bull tag and 4 spotting scopes. I know some guys here that go out to CO or WY to elk hunt. A couple groups go every other or third year and another group goes about every year but alternate who buys a tag. See it in videos regularly online too, one guy with a tag and a posse of guys with spotting scopes and packs.

I don’t get it myself. I go on hunting trips to hunt. Even if it’s low odds like OTC bull tags in CO the odds improve 100 percent when you actually have a tag. And I like to hunt and shoot things.


The current situation in CO is pretty much a sh it sandwich thanks to the Information Age amongst other things. I’m glad I got in the years I did because it looks pretty bleak going forward.

I went t a CPW meeting two years ago and they said in their survey, most elk hunters would be happy to hunt every 2-3 years. I told them they were full of bull do-do. If CPW treated residents and seniors as well as they treat non-residents it sure would help us out.[/quote]

This forum needs a thumbs-up button. Out of curiosity the other day I went to the ADA part of CPW's website. They made sure in every circumstance to say that age wasn't a disability. And if you did happen to qualify for a disability, you had to reapply every year because maybe you were cured of the qualifying life-changing disability in the off-season. I mentioned this in another thread, but I'm convinced that CPW wants, and needs, your money, but they'd rather not have you be successful, especially as a resident, as they aren't making much if any money off you.

I’m curious as to what makes it easier or better for the nonresident hunter to be successful in CO?

I’m not being argumentative and I’m fully onboard with the idea that CPW doesn’t care or necessarily want ANY elk hunter to be successful, I know because they’ve told me as much. I’m just curious because two of you now have intimated that they make it harder on residents than nonresidents. I’ve hunted elk in CO a lot but my scope is rather narrow as we always hunt the same area during the same season.