CO 1st rifle

[Bellis]

Anyone have expierence with 1st rifle ? I have only archery hunted elk. Was curious if it’s a safe bet to basically hunt them as I would in archery season as far as terrain / elevation . I’m hoping some elk will still be vocal if I’m lucky. Any advice and or experiences would be greatly appreciated. Not looking for spots or 350 bull

 

[wildwilderness]

Well I had a spot with a 350 bull but I guess you don’t want it

But yes, the bulls I have noticed during 1st rifle were in similar spots to the end of archery season. Never had much luck with tail end of rut action either. But the only places that I hear of that is private with lots of elk anyway

 

[patagonialuke]

At least for the local herds that I can keep tabs on throughout the year, I see them in roughly the same elevation and terrain ranges almost the whole time the ground isn't snow covered. With this year's dry winter, that meant they were in my archery zones by early April, and I've seen them there all the way through third rifle if we don't get big early storms. For context, nearly all the private land here is residential, so they don't have big private grazing swaths to hide in once pressured. I wouldn't expect much vocalization, but you never know; e.g., we barely had any bulls talking all of archery season last year, but then they went crazy the final two days of the season.

 

[Tohrchur]

Yeah more or less. They will start quieting down but depending on the area they can still be bugling.

 

[Phaseolus]

Ist Rifle in Colorado is draw only, I assume you drew your license?

 

[HairyScandinavian]

I killed my cow last year on Oct 22nd (WY). I was setup and dialed on a calf and a spike and a scraggly scrawny looking small cow grazing and hoping something else would join them and debating shooting the scraggly one. I kept hearing this God awful bugle, 1.5 hours screaming like crazy every 30 seconds. It started getting closer and I was sitting there discussed at this stupid hunter stomping around the mountains in late October bugling non-stop. After 1.5 hours out pops about 30 cows in a tiny clearing in the pines and a bull pushing them and he bugled out in the open. I quickly shot his hottest wife and laughed at myself because I almost left multiple times because I thought it was a hunter I was just sitting there on my phone out in the open like a dummy.

So yeah, never know if they wanna be vocal they will.