CO National Forests and Accessing Via Roads/Trails

[huntercooper84]

I’m looking for some general insight on accessing trails/roads into some the national forest areas or even BLM land in Colorado.

On OnX I can see multiple roads that take you into these areas but often they cross through private land. Some look and/or are labeled as a type of county road, but then when on Google earth I can pretty clearly see a gate in the road. This I would assume means accessing that way is probably not going to happen.
With these however it looks like once you get on the public land that these roads turn into a named road that definitely is available to the public. Does this mean the private owner basically has gate keeping ability to this section of public road?

In another post I was told to contact the ranger/officer for the area and I’m definitely going to do that for specific roads/areas. I’m just wondering if there are some overall general rules to keep in mind with accessing in Colorado.

 

[BigAntlerGetter]

1. Contact local blm or USFS for that area and that property exactly
2. Ranchers will put up gates on the roads to keep livestock in as they can be more effective and less maintenance (if there is a gate leave it how you found it) most ranchers will have a please leave closed or something like that, if there’s a sign about it supposed to be closed I shut it. Been yelled at one time cause the rancher was actually moving cattle through it later. But he agreed better to have it closed than some yahoo leaving it open and his cows escaping
3. If you are allowed to access it, respect their land. Some properties have legal easements, some are just allowing the road. Drive through be gone, don’t stop to take a leak or glass the mountain side, nothing like that just get through there
4. Don’t completely trust onx and all that, that’s why said call. It’s your responsibility as the hunter to know where you are, what trails are open closed etc. there isn’t much tolerance for that stuff


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[11boo]

1. Contact local blm or USFS for that area and that property exactly
2. Ranchers will put up gates on the roads to keep livestock in as they can be more effective and less maintenance (if there is a gate leave it how you found it) most ranchers will have a please leave closed or something like that, if there’s a sign about it supposed to be closed I shut it. Been yelled at one time cause the rancher was actually moving cattle through it later. But he agreed better to have it closed than some yahoo leaving it open and his cows escaping
3. If you are allowed to access it, respect their land. Some properties have legal easements, some are just allowing the road. Drive through be gone, don’t stop to take a leak or glass the mountain side, nothing like that just get through there
4. Don’t completely trust onx and all that, that’s why said call. It’s your responsibility as the hunter to know where you are, what trails are open closed etc. there isn’t much tolerance for that stuff


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That pretty much covers it. There are gates all over some areas.
This is a better time to figure out access than a week before season. If you are set on an area, figure out the exact location of said gates, make a list and call FS/BLM or the CPW guy for that area. CPW has been the most help for me on that subject.

Land owners do pull some sketchy stuff sometimes, like one gate I had used for years to cross a small private slice. Went up one year and a huge no trespassing sign was up. No lock though. But I didn’t want to get into trouble, so I went elsewhere. CPW dude was parked a mile up the road so I stopped and talked. He said they can put any sign they want up, but it was still public access. Also said it was probably cause they were sick of the gate being left open and cattle getting out, despite the big close the gate sign.

 

[Jaquomo]

Almost all National Forest Ranger Districts have a Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM). You can download it and print it. It will show what roads are open, the dates, what vehicles are allowed and the type of roads. Many Forest roads cross private via easements, and they will be numbered roads on the USFS map.

BLM is a little trickier, as they are much more lenient about vehicle travel. Gates are often in place for grazing. Generally there will be a sign telling you to close the gate. If you encounter a gate on BLM that isn't locked, 99% of the time it's good to go.

DO NOT trust OnX for anything. The info may be outdated, property lines may be way off (for instance, OnX shows my house and garage to be well into public land, and my property boundary is off by more than 80 yards). It may show roads as open that have been closed for years. It may also show land as public that has been traded in a land transfer.

 

[Poser]

Download the COTREZ app. https://trails.colorado.gov/

It will provide you with the most official info you are going to get on roads without calling somebody: seasonal closures, which types of vehicles are allowed etc.

 

[huntercooper84]

Thank you for all the info everybody. Now secondarily, I have a 1500 4x4, it’s leveled out and has all terrain tires. Are more aggressive tires needed if things are a bit wet? Obviously not gonna try to mud bog my way through anything just curious about general motorized trail/ road conditions.

 

[Poser]

Thank you for all the info everybody. Now secondarily, I have a 1500 4x4, it’s leveled out and has all terrain tires. Are more aggressive tires needed if things are a bit wet? Obviously not gonna try to mud bog my way through anything just curious about general motorized trail/ road conditions.

Where I live in the San Juans, AT tires are by far the most common. I do use mud tires myself during the Summer and Fall, but even though they perform better on rock and in mud, they can be downright terrifying on ice because those big lugs and lack of siping don't have enough surface contact for icy conditions. So long as your tires are at least 8 ply, I wouldn't worry about changing anything. I would, however, recommend that you have the ability to air down and air back up in both a precise and expedient manner. Airing down is going to be performance game changer when it comes to rugged, muddy or snowy roads. There are a few different methods to air down, I prefer the tire deflators that remove the valve stem.
For getting back up, a twin compressor that connects directly to your battery is nice. You can buy the ones with a small tank if you want to spend more money. Once you get longer than about 10 minutes for airing back up, it gets real annoying real quick.

 

[Bearsears]

Thank you for all the info everybody. Now secondarily, I have a 1500 4x4, it’s leveled out and has all terrain tires. Are more aggressive tires needed if things are a bit wet? Obviously not gonna try to mud bog my way through anything just curious about general motorized trail/ road conditions.

All terrains are fine. Buy and bring some good strong chains (Colorado is rocky). I like the boron alloy ones from tirechain.com, they are expensive but Ive been using mine for around 10 years and I still haven't broken one. This is on a 2500 diesel too so heavy truck. I dont care what season it is, they are in my truck, but they are mandatory to have in the truck in the rifle seasons. Recovery gear and at least a come along are always a good bet. A chainsaw for timber in the road after a storm or high wind is sometimes necessary also. Poser nailed everything else.

 

[huntercooper84]

All terrains are fine. Buy and bring some good strong chains (Colorado is rocky). I like the boron alloy ones from tirechain.com, they are expensive but Ive been using mine for around 10 years and I still haven't broken one. This is on a 2500 diesel too so heavy truck. I dont care what season it is, they are in my truck, but they are mandatory to have in the truck in the rifle seasons. Recovery gear and at least a come along are always a good bet. A chainsaw for timber in the road after a storm or high wind is sometimes necessary also. Poser nailed everything else.

During early archery would something like chains be necessary? This would be the 2nd week of September.

 

[Bearsears]

During early archery would something like chains be necessary? This would be the 2nd week of September.

Let me put it this way, I will be in the field the same time and I will have them with me. The thing about September is, it can be sunny and 85 today and snow a foot the next day you just never know that time of year. Also if you were to get a real soaker of a rain storm and you are on the right road, it can become a total mud pit.

 

[SonnyDay]

During early archery would something like chains be necessary? This would be the 2nd week of September.

They certainly could be.... sometimes the high country gets hit with an early-season dump.

Otherwise, as others have said, check the various resources on gates and access.

I carry bolt cutters in my truck and have cut at least one illegal chain/padlock off a gate!

 

[Jethro]

During early archery would something like chains be necessary? This would be the 2nd week of September.

September, 99.9% of time not needed. But nobody can predict the weather.

 

[Poser]

During early archery would something like chains be necessary? This would be the 2nd week of September.

IMO, its very unlikely that you would need them in Sept. A lot of modern vehicle designs won't even accept chains as you just don't have the clearance in the front due to the upper control arm or even in the wheel well itself unless you have a lift. I personally don't have any as I've always relied on airing down to get me out. I wouldn't mind having some, but there isn't enough clearance for them on the front end of my 4Runner. Maybe if I got the really light duty, low profile chains. I maybe have an 2 inches between my tire and UCA.

 

[txhunter76859]

On the road there are gates at certain points. Depending on the time of year and weather conditions, they could close off roads to vehicular travel. That’s the issue I ran into last year. Thought I would drive all the way to the top of a mountain, but it was closed off early in the trail.

 

[11boo]

There is one road we use in September that is murder on a truck when it gets wet. Trucks descend without chains get the trees in the grill.

 

[Gerbdog]

was but 3 years ago? or so. my hunting area saw 12" of snow in september... it doesnt happen often... but its happened.

Actually, edited, i have a photo somewhere from last year of it snowing while i was hunting in September too.

That said, i wouldnt say it gets real icy during September and the icy is the part that ruins your day, the roads likely will just get real muddy and sloppy.

 

[Boone-In-Wall]

My experience is that if it is showing a named road going thru a cattle guard only (no gate), then you should be fine.

 

[Silverback]

DO NOT trust OnX for anything. The info may be outdated, property lines may be way off (for instance, OnX shows my house and garage to be well into public land, and my property boundary is off by more than 80 yards). It may show roads as open that have been closed for years. It may also show land as public that has been traded in a land transfer.

So what’s the best way to know if you’re on/off private land? This will be my first year chasing elk, I listened to a podcast the other day where Corey Jacobsen said skirting the border of private land (400-500 yards off) can be a good way to find elk during the early archery season, so I was considering playing that game. But if you can’t trust onx, what would you trust?

 

[huntercooper84]

There is one road we use in September that is murder on a truck when it gets wet. Trucks descend without chains get the trees in the grill.

By this you mean coming back down out of the mountains the trucks are sliding around on and off the road due to the mud?

 

[Oakman]

Download the COTREZ app. https://trails.colorado.gov/

It will provide you with the most official info you are going to get on roads without calling somebody: seasonal closures, which types of vehicles are allowed etc.

In addition to Colorado trail app as Poser mentioned.

I have been comparing images and data between OnX and google earth, I think google earth is the gold standard if you wanna examine specific area and plan your route accordingly. On x is a great tool to have in field, specially that I can download data for my provisional hunt area. Remember, cell service is not always available.

Question regarding ATV. The area i am looking at allows ATV partially, then I have to take off on foot. For anyone who brought ATV before on top of the tonneau cover, assuming it can handle the weight. Whats your recommendation?