Gentlemen and Ladies,

My hunting group (5 of us) drew tags for first season in the limited GMU 67 in the Gunnison Area of Colorado.
I was wondering if there are any of you who know the area and have some input or advice for us. It would be much appreciated.

Also, I thought I would run my equipment past you all to see if there are any concerns that you can think of.

I am going to hunt with my Browning A-Bolt 7mm WSM with the Winchester 160gr Accubond CT with a Leupold VXII 3x9x50 scope.
As a group we are taking my Remington Model 700 7mm Mag with 160gr Nosler Partitions with a Leupold VXII 3x9x40 scope as our backup gun.

I appreciate you reading my thread and any feedback that you can give. Thank you.

I can't give you any specific tips, but can offer some general suggestions.

Be prepared for any kind of weather. It could be sunny and 70 degrees or bitter cold and snowing like crazy. It could all happen on the same day too! If you're not used to high altitude, arrive a few days early and get acclimated. Drink lots of water and take it easy to start with.

Your guns/optics/ammo should work just fine. Good luck!

Todd in Gunnison

What he said, otherwise if it is hot the elk will stay high or at least in the shade. It has been a wet summer so waterholes will be not so predictable. Remember Elk are grazing animals so they will eat grass, they only browse when they have to. Be patient and use your binoculars a lot. If the human traffic is high on the roads, you will have to hike in to the elk. Of course lucky is good too. Expect the nights to be in the 30's and the days up to the 70's, but as Todd points out, anything is possible. Buy a map and compass and play with it. Guns will be fine. Good luck and have fun. Drink lots but lay off the liquor until you kill and elk, you will feel really bad and need even more water.

Get a topo map of the area. Look at the north-facing slopes, then look for drainages. Also look for the small "parks" (openings in the timber) where elk like to graze in the afternoon and early evenings. Get away from the roads and atv trails. drink lots of water and have fun!

Thank you for all the advice. I have the topo map and have always had a compass....I think on equipment I am in pretty good shape.
I even printed off a few views of the area close to camp from the google earth viewer. they turned out pretty good.

I appreciate the advice. Take Care and best of luck this fall.

P.S. A good cigar back at camp is always in line when I shoot one.

Thank you all for the advice. I really appreciate it.

I bought a topo map about 4 weeks ago and I have always had a compass. I feel like I should be in pretty good shape as far as equipment.

I will have to remember the tip about water....especially about it versus other beverages....I always have to have a good cigar back at camp after harvesting on though.

If you are hunting public land, forget about watching meadows etc. Very few elk will come into them after opening day, or even then. I hunt north of Ginnison. The 1st season is a week later than usual this year. Gunnison typically does not get as many early snow storms as norhern CO, but they do come in.

Thank you. I will keep that in mind. I am used to hunting heavy brush in WI, so I would prefer to stay in the thick stuff.

Down in the south of the unit there are high rolling forests that lead up to the mountains around Stewart and San Luis Peak, with lots of good camping spots with road access. The area around the peaks is wilderness area, that you can access with a 2 or 3 mile hike for a spike camp or just day hunts.

Northwest of Old Agency is a small range of mountains that jut up to the north toward Gunnison. Check your maps and you can find 4wd access into this area.

Last year scouting for a deer hunt I saw elk in both these areas, up high (including at and above timberline) in late august and early september.

Check the gunnison weather the week before the season, to see if any big snow has dropped in the high country. Talk to the DOW folks in town also, they are south of the Safeway, and real helpfull.

JohnDog

Thank you sir....you are a gentleman and a scholar.

I must see martians when I look out the window of my cabin in unit 67 and see elk feeding in the medows durring hunting season in the mornings and late afternoon... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Don't know where you plan on hunting, but if you can't find an elk or 12 while glassing from a vantage point, I'd say you're either looking through the wrong end of your bino's or blind. There are plenty of elk in that unit, not behind every bush, but out of the last 4 years of owning a cabin in 67 and spending quite a few days up there, I can't think of a single time that I went up there and didn't see at least one elk per day. Most of the time it was close to a dozen. The 'famine' times are the summer and early fall. One day we saw about 80 out feeding in the middle of the day during 4th season...

Get away from the roads and kill yourselves some elk.

Good luck and I hope the weather is condusive to elk hunting. 1st season can be tough, after the rut, but before the winter 'migration' to lower ground. I would hunt as high as I could climb on the mountain, and like others said hit the north slopes. The elk will have thier winter coats on and if its hot out they won't want to move around much, and will avoid the sun like the plague.

Quote.
"I must see martians when I look out the window of my cabin in unit 67 and see elk feeding in the medows durring hunting season in the mornings and late afternoon... "

Those must be on private land or public land that is either locked up by access to recieves very little pressure. Since you said "looking out your cabin window, I would suspect private land. I have elk and deer right out in my pasture also.

Most of the +80% of hunters that go home empty handed sit on meadows and don't hunt the nasty dark timber

Well my comment seems to have opened up a can of worms. My intent was that elk will eat grass thru the day and must eat a lot of grass to support that bulk. It might not be in open parks and meadows though, especially if it is hot. Wear all of your cold weather gear and when you find a spot that feels comfortable in your winter woolies, then thats where the elk will be...

The only private land is all of about a section... all the rest is public land 99% of the elk we hunt are on the public and its accessible to anyone with the drive to hike more than a mile or two around our property. Christ from one point you only have to hike half a mile, but no one does because 90% of the hunters in CO can't seem to get off thier ATV's our out of the truck and fortunally there are no ATV's allowed in this area. From my cabin I can see about 180 degree's. Everything I can see is public land, AND is accessible to anyone. We regularly see elk our feeding where hunters had just been the day before.

Elk hunting ain't rocket science. The only thing elk are is predicable... Especially in CO where the elk abound. I think its kind of odd out of the last three years, we've killed oh, 10-11 elk and everyone of them was spotted out feeding in a park either the same day or the day before we killed them.

You are right, though don't be afraid to hunt the dark timber. I won't start staking the timber until after they've bedded for the day though.

Like I said get away from the road and spend some time glassing and you'll kill an elk. They don't vanish once the season starts, they still have to eat and drink, toss in a few people pushing timber and ridding their ATV's around etc, and they will move during the day too.

All advice is much appreciate everyone.
Thank you.

i hunt unit 68 every year during 3rd season. Haveing taken all of my elk on the fence line that seperates 68 from 67 in saguache park. If you go up to the salt house and hang a right, you are in 68 but if you drive down there you will see an old water bladder, keep going on that road vearing to the right, you can drive up into the trees and then walk on in to the fenceline. the fencline is pretty open about a jeeps width. cross the fence and you will be in unit 67. elev is around 9-10k and unit 67 is on the north slope. you can walk up and down the fenceline but its best to stay off the fencline about 25 yards, find an open spot and wait. They will come believe me. Tons of sign in there and its not hard to find. you will have them crossing from the n.e. going s.w in the evening and vice versa in the morning. Morning hunts are the most opportunity of course. get on you spot by 5:15 am and between light and 8 am are the best times for the fencline. We have hunted there for the last 20 yrs and have bagged every year along that fenceline.

ps.
if you dont go to the salt house, about 3/10 of a mile before the salt house there is an old road, beware, very very steep to try to drive it, it's slanted road and very treacherous, but once over it, you can go back in there to what is called ducks foot, on a map, it looks like a ducks foot thus the name. that is unit 67 as well and lots of open and wooded aread in there and lots of elk as well. its a natural funnel and they will be in there as well. I wish you a very safe and successful hunt.

Where would that be relative to where CR-17ff crosses the continental divide?

P.S. I sent you a message to your inbox as well.

Thank you much for the advice.

hey no problem at all, i replied to your pm and left my phone number if you would like to call me. Let me know if i can be of any more help.

How did you guys do. Any elk?

He couldn't have gottten snowed in, first season.

Actually we had quite a bit of snow... Not enough to be snowed in though.

It must be a secret.

Sorry for not getting back to you right away gentlemen. Things have been a bit hectic around here.....I finally got the pictures downloaded.
We had a pretty darn good season. 3 out of the 5 guys harvested animals. One nice 6x6 on the first day, a 5x5 on Monday and I shot a cow on the last day (which I put the sneak on and shot from 50 feet).

We hunted Mike's hill pretty hard but never took one off of there. In fact we saw a nice 6x6 on that hill the Friday before the season, but couldn't track him down again. That hill gets pretty big up in there and I spent a lot of hours on it. I think I saw a total of 11 elk there throughout the week. I was able to get close to them a few times, but wasn't able to get a clean shot.

The best story of the season:::::::
Monday night I took an evening stand. My Dad and uncles picked me up after dark from their evening stands. We had about a half hour drive back to camp. We pulled in and were about 100 yards from camp....as the headlights began to swing towards camp we saw 10 cows, a 5x5 and a dandy 6x6 about 50 yards from our tent where we had diesel and gas cans, a tent, food, two elk hanging from the meat pole, etc. It was the most unbelievable thing I have ever seen.

Anyway, I want to thank you gentlemen for all of the advice. We appreciate everything. Mike we owe you some Jerky.

I would appreciate one more piece of advice.....how do I put the pictures on here for you guys to see?


P.S. Now in three weeks we will be back to trying to out-smart those WI whitetails. Good luck to all.

Congrats on the hunt! Was there much snow around? Two weeks from today I plan on waking up and looking out the window at my elk hanging off the meat pole. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Glad you had a good hunt. BTW did you see any elk out feeding? LOL <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

To get pictures posted the easiest way to go about it is to set up an account with an online picture 'host' then upload the pictures there and then copy a link to here. To copy the link, right click on the picture, go to properties, copy the URL and then post it here with the following [img]the URL[/img] It should pop right up. I might have the "/" in the worng place.

Also I think you can upload the picture directly to the thread, but I've never tried it. I think you go to the 'reply' button and there should be a button for uploading a picture. Good luck, can't wait so see the pictures.

See any decent bucks while you were chasing the big ones???

Congrat's on the elk hunt!!!

Muley Stalker, I did see one good buck on an evening stand. Then during one of the late mornings I heard movement, stopped and had 6 does come with 10 paces and stop trying to figure out what I was. That was followed by a whistle and the 6 of them bouncing off.
I also saw quite a few antelopes about every day and coyotes all over.
One day I saw a dandy Ram with two ewes.
He just puffed his chest out and knew there was nothing I could do to him.

Bambistew, I will try to see what I can figure out with the pics. As for if they were out feeding, I would have to ask the guys who kept driving around on their quads and trucks while I was in the timber. ;-) Just jabbin' ya.

Hey Cacciatore congats on the hunt..... by any chance were you hunting up east beaver creek out of soldier's park? in so by mike's hill are you referring to the large park at the head of east beaver creek. I also hunted unit 67 and was fortunate enough to take a large 6x6 bull just off the large medow.

The area that my hunting group covered was from the Divide to about 6 miles West of it and from HWY 114 to about mile South of it.

Congrats on your 6x6. Did you hunt 1st Season?

The area that my group covered was from the Divide to about 6 miles West of it and from HWY 114 to about mile South of it.

Congrats on your 6x6. Did you hunt 1st Season?

Here you are fellas. You will have to click on the links though. The dates are wrong on the link. We had 1st season. The camera must not have been adjusted.
I want to thank you guys again for all of the advice.
Mike, if you are ever headed to WI, bring your 12 gauge and we will shoot some clays on our property.



One Uncle's 6x6:
http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p251/rlsilha/10-26-2006-67.jpg

Another Uncle's 5x5:
http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p251/rlsilha/10-26-2006-70.jpg

Camp:
http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p251/rlsilha/10-26-2006-64.jpg

Group with 6x6:
http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p251/rlsilha/10-20-2006-07.jpg

Meat Pole before my cow:
http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p251/rlsilha/10-26-2006-76.jpg

Guys, I figured it out. Try these
Meat Pole before my cow:


Group with 6x6


Camp:


5x5 (Right Eye must have taken a blow in battle....it was white and rotting...that is how we were able to sneak up on it <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />):



6x6 was taken on the first afternoon:


Heavy snoring went on in here (none by me of course):

Good job! Looks like a fun time. Did it snow later in the season?

Thank You

Yes we got about 3 inches of snow on Tuesday afternoon.
It made vision great and it more difficult for vehicles to get around on the jeep trails.

Congrats, looks like ya'll had a great time. Did you see many other hunters while ya'll were there.

You's guy's done good, congrats! Glad you got elk.

Thanks Fellas.
We saw a good amount of hunters...None in the timber......all on quads and in trucks.