First Time CO Elk hunt

[BeerCheeze]

Looking to do an Elk hunt in CO this year with my father and brother. We were thinking about hunting in Unit 12 for the first rifle. I saw some posts from years ago that this unit is pretty full of hunters. Is this still true? Never been on an elk hunt before and looking to have an enjoyable time. Any pointers/advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

All OTC units will be "full of hunters" doesn't mean you can't get away from the crowds with some hiking, that said Colorado is not the place to hunt if you want to be completely alone. I was 5 miles in on a draw unit last year and saw plenty of people. Still had a great time and got an elk.

 

[BeerCheeze]

Thanks, not looking to be completely alone. But didn't want to have people right on top of us.

 

[wannakillabigbull]

Thanks, not looking to be completely alone. But didn't want to have people right on top of us.

It’s kind of a roll of the dice with any unit or hunt. If you watch Western hunter, Nate Simmons drew a coveted Nevada archery bull tag that takes well over a decade to draw, hiked in miles and miles, and kept running into hunters and outfitters everywhere he went right on top of him.

Back to unit 12. That part of the state typically has a lot of hunters but also a ton of elk. Sounds like a good plan to me! Good luck whatever you decide to do.

 

[D-Mac]

In most areas of Colorado that I’ve hunted it’s not uncommon to find a lot of people in the first few miles of the trailhead. Get in a couple miles though and the numbers of hunters are lower. They are certainly still there and you will find and see them, but less of them are there. Now the caveat to that is the animals are not always “in deep”. Often they are, but design your hunt around the right terrain and habitat, not necessarily hunter numbers. Often times those two do go together. It also depends on your style of hunt and what type of experience you want. In my experience though if you want solitude in an OTC unit, that means you need to lay down some shoe leather.

 

[plumber1969]

Just find something very steep and a road less area and you will start to get away from the crowds quickly. We saw a total of 2 people in the woods last year during our archery elk hunt and had a blast and didn't pull the string back.

 

[Tubb2402]

If you look on CPW website they provide the total # of hunters for each unit. Here is the link http://cpw.state.co.us/thingstodo/Pages/Statistics-Elk.aspx. If you look at the 2017 estimated harvest number you can see the # of hunters. 2017 is not up yet but based on 2016 for 1st Rifle they had 1518 hunters.

 

[wannakillabigbull]

It's worth mentioning, for those that aren't aware, Colorado does not require surveys from every hunter. Some states do (such as Idaho) and their numbers are far more likely to be closer to being correct. Colorado's numbers are just guesstimates but they do give you general ideas of what to expect.

 

[BeerCheeze]

Thanks alot. I have been checking out areas on on-x maps, and using the numbers from CPW. We are looking at multiple locations so should be able to avoid some of the crowds. Just trying to get a handle on what we should expect.

Again thanks very much for the info!

 

[HighDesertSage]

Looking to do an Elk hunt in CO this year with my father and brother. We were thinking about hunting in Unit 12 for the first rifle. I saw some posts from years ago that this unit is pretty full of hunters. Is this still true? Never been on an elk hunt before and looking to have an enjoyable time. Any pointers/advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

Unit 12 has alot of hunters and alot of elk. I don't think it's any worse or any better than any other OTC/Easy to draw unit. Units like this in CO have readily available tags, alot of elk, a ton of pressure, and small bulls. Generally.

As far as pointers, I would try and find travel corridors and ambush points and set up. Let others push the elk around.

 

[Ohio Josh]

I have never seen a hunter a 1/2 mile from the trailhead. I have only been twice. Find a mountain with no 4 wheeler access and you might be surprised how lonely it is at the top. In my limited experience (not unit 12) most guys break camp and head home the third morning.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

I have never seen a hunter a 1/2 mile from the trailhead.

Lol I want to hunt that unit. I have seen tons of hunters 10miles from the trail-head in 45. Most units have outfitters with horses so if you are hunting 0-5 miles from the trail head you are competing with guys on foot, 5-15 miles with outfitters. The one exception might be during the later rifle seasons as hiking in the snow is way more difficult.

 

[Ohio Josh]

I'm not being a wiseguy. I have hunted OTC 2nd season and a no point 1st rifle. Maybe Ive been lucky. If I see horse trailers I move on. From what I've seen most guys barely get off their ATV's.