CO just posted '16 harvest data

[cnelk]

161.....private land was closed down too? If not, I can believe those numbers.

According to InciWeb, 161 was closed in Sept. BLM/NF & Private. I know landowners that couldnt even get up to their places during the fire.

Here is a map of the closure for National Forest on Oct 6th - https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd521131.pdf

Here is a map of the closure for BLM on Oct 6th - https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/photos/COR...ek-Fire/picts/2016_10_28-14.18.22.869-CDT.pdf

Most of the private land is over on the east side - including Trophy Mtn Ranch [High Fence Elk]
[From my understanding, High Fence hunts dont participate in the harvest stats]

Most of the elk hunting takes places from Independence Mtn and west to Davis Peak and then south [included in map above]

I went back and looked at the GMU 161 harvest stats posted for 2015

Archery - 49 bulls, 21 cows - ML 8 bull, 3 cows, 4 calves
To me, it looks like the stats were just sliced in ~half from '15 to '16

Im still calling BS. Just based on the sporadic harvest inquiries everyone has posted and experienced.

Maybe a CORA request [Colorado Open Records Act] asking for the actual survey results would prompt something

 

[AdamW]

I used past years' data as part of my unit selection for 2016. The success rates were good according to the numbers. We hunted 2016 and ran in to some locals who all said "We've never seen it like this, things are just dead" and the 2016 data seems to mirror that. Success rate about half of what it was in the past several years. I guess I feel a little "better" knowing that it wasn't just a couple of Missouri noobs that didn't tag out. Super accurate or not, it is nice to see the data.

 

[Coveyleader]

Success rates are just another clue as you can't separate out private land . I kill an elk almost every year, sometimes 2, and see tons of them. In all my years on different message boards, I've never seen anyone postanything about the unit I hunt other than one time in the early 2000's. My point is, OTC units are difficult to get any info on that is relevant. Most guys won't disclose much, and Biologists I've found aren't that much help either.

One of the key things when looking for OTC spots that has worked for me is to find almost landlocked land that borders private. I either go that route, or get real high in alpine units.

 

[MAT]

CO GMU 161 extends west all the way to the continental divide so there were open areas in that unit during the fire. That area by the divide was always hit pretty hard during the bow/ML season, and I suspect it was even more so last year. And will be again this year and near future too. That fire was pretty big with all the beetle killed trees, so it was only a matter of time.