CO Unit 3 Deer

[nobody]

Hey everyone, curious if anybody here has hunted Mule deer Unit 3 in Colorado? My good friend and I have been researching like fiends for the past 6 months or so and have landed on this unit for third season. Just curious if anybody has any experiences on the unit, looks fairly checkerboard and flat. Anybody wanna share some stories? Don't send your GPS coordinates or pins though, cuz that feels dirty!

Thanks everyone!

 

[ckleeves]

Never had the desire to deer hunt it but i antelope hunt it as often as I can and have ran trail cams all over the unit.

There are tons of deer in the unit. Finding decent quality bucks will be a struggle, there are roads everywhere so if your looking for a “get away from it all” type of hunt 3/301 are NOT it. Look at the tag numbers for deer for 2nd and 3rd then add elk hunters and that should tell you everything you need to know.

If your a older hunter or can’t hike it could be a decent option, but if your in decent shape I would definitely keep looking.

 

[nobody]

Never had the desire to deer hunt it but i antelope hunt it as often as I can and have ran trail cams all over the unit.

There are tons of deer in the unit. Finding decent quality bucks will be a struggle, there are roads everywhere so if your looking for a “get away from it all” type of hunt 3/301 are NOT it. Look at the tag numbers for deer for 2nd and 3rd then add elk hunters and that should tell you everything you need to know.

If your a older hunter or can’t hike it could be a decent option, but if your in decent shape I would definitely keep looking.

Yeah mobility and access isn't concerning to us (I'm 28 and my buddy is 36). Vicinity to where we live in Utah was a contributing factor to us looking at the unit, along with harvest percentage and draw odds. But this info is good to know. We could tell the odds of getting off the roads were probably low, but to hear from a local changes the perspective. Thanks!

 

[ckleeves]

I’m sure harvest is high, 3/301 aren’t hard units to hunt and I would guess the harvest of 1.5-2.5 year old bucks is very high. It’s pretty glassable terrain, pretty much all sage brush and a road about every mile.

 

[Wags]

I’m sure harvest is high, 3/301 aren’t hard units to hunt and I would guess the harvest of 1.5-2.5 year old bucks is very high. It’s pretty glassable terrain, pretty much all sage brush and a road about every mile.

This is accurate. The issue you'll also face is that it overlaps with OTC Rifle Elk as well. Long story short, it's a freaking Zoo. Some of the most unethical "hunting" I have ever seen happens in that unit during 3rd rifle. Overall quality is average to below average. Most bucks taken are small 3s or less. It's my least favorite hunt from an overall experience perspective. A truck on every hill, knob and several on each side of every draw. Shooting over roads, out of windows, chasing game with ATVs & trucks, trespassing, you name it. I'm not saying not to go, just know that's what you'll be seeing and experiencing.

 

[Gunnersdad49]

This is accurate. The issue you'll also face is that it overlaps with OTC Rifle Elk as well. Long story short, it's a freaking Zoo. Some of the most unethical "hunting" I have ever seen happens in that unit during 3rd rifle. Overall quality is average to below average. Most bucks taken are small 3s or less. It's my least favorite hunt from an overall experience perspective. A truck on every hill, knob and several on each side of every draw. Shooting over roads, out of windows, chasing game with ATVs & trucks, trespassing, you name it. I'm not saying not to go, just know that's what you'll be seeing and experiencing.

I filmed an out of state truck stop by some private land, two guys step out, one with an orange hat, one with no orange. The one with no orange stood leaning against the truck, and shot a buck on that private land. I reported him to the warden, and showed him the video, including both dudes' faces, and the license plate. He was unsurprised and it was not even enough to get him to raise an eyebrow. 3rd season in that area.

If you hunt then and there, wear your orange. Make sure it is visible, and even still, don't assume others will care as much for your safety as you do.

 

[Wags]

I filmed an out of state truck stop by some private land, two guys step out, one with an orange hat, one with no orange. The one with no orange stood leaning against the truck, and shot a buck on that private land. I reported him to the warden, and showed him the video, including both dudes' faces, and the license plate. He was unsurprised and it was not even enough to get him to raise an eyebrow. 3rd season in that area.

If you hunt then and there, wear your orange. Make sure it is visible, and even still, don't assume others will care as much for your safety as you do.

Completely accurate description of what happens there frequently. I watched an outfitter "guide" a guy during antelope season and had him prone ON THE COUNTY RD shooting up the road in the direction of oncoming traffic....

I've found my fences cut, undoubtedly from someone who poached on my place and have had my neighbors call wardens to their properties with no enforcement. Pretty messed up if you ask me.

I can say just over the boarder in Wyoming, our warden is awesome. She's everything you'd want in one from a hunter and landowners perspective.

Great advice on the Blaze, besides it being the law, its a legit must for safety in that area during that season.

 

[ckleeves]

I’m going to develop a line of Blaze Kevlar just for hunting up there. See if I can get the Murdoch’s in Craig to stock it. Should sell like crazy come 2nd and 3rd rifle especially if I can get Sitka to put their name behind it!

 

[Wags]

I’m going to develop a line of Blaze Kevlar just for hunting up there. See if I can get the Murdoch’s in Craig to stock it. Should sell like crazy come 2nd and 3rd rifle especially if I can get Sitka to put their name behind it!

Or Carhartt ...

Love that store though, I always leave there poorer....

 

[RyanShields]

I hunted it last year during 2nd rifle. It has alot of open terrain. Imagine a parade of diesel Rams patrolling the sage, separated by a couple hundred yards, looking to spin a turret on anything stupid enough to step out of a washout.
The one area that is walk in only will have at least one person on each hill. Getting into areas that are less conducive to long range glassing/road hunting seems to help.
I would hunt there again if given the chance. Colorado is a beautiful state and I'm grateful that they allow me to hunt there as a non-resident. The people who work for their Fish and Game are always very helpful as are the local folks at Moffat County. I recommend getting a free road map from them. A lot of what shows up in OnX as a two track or road that is cutting through the BLM/Private Land checkerboard cannot be legally used by the public once it leaves BLM unless it is a county or state Rd.

 

[Wags]

I hunted it last year during 2nd rifle. It has alot of open terrain. Imagine a parade of diesel Rams patrolling the sage, separated by a couple hundred yards, looking to spin a turret on anything stupid enough to step out of a washout.
The one area that is walk in only will have at least one person on each hill.

Pretty much sums it up perfectly.

 

[ReddingArcher]

Like everyone else has said, its a war zone. Especially the first day or two, after that it died off a bit. I glassed up a good buck opening morning, he came off the private and was crossing a big chunk of blm. I tried to get in front of him and its the only time in my life hunting that I have felt uncomfortable walking in the woods! I never got a glimpse of that buck again. Later that morning I had a group of deer come by me with a 21-22" 3 point in the group I probably should have shot but those deer had been pushed so hard their tongues were hanging out the side of their mouths. I just couldnt shoot a deer like that. There are a lot of deer there though so if you do hunt it just go in with realistic expectations. We went 3/4 and I could have shot multiple bucks but I was fine with not killing just any buck.

 

[willfrye027]

Completely accurate description of what happens there frequently. I watched an outfitter "guide" a guy during antelope season and had him prone ON THE COUNTY RD shooting up the road in the direction of oncoming traffic....

I've found my fences cut, undoubtedly from someone who poached on my place and have had my neighbors call wardens to their properties with no enforcement. Pretty messed up if you ask me.

I can say just over the boarder in Wyoming, our warden is awesome. She's everything you'd want in one from a hunter and landowners perspective.

Great advice on the Blaze, besides it being the law, its a legit must for safety in that area during that season.

She is pretty awesome. Couple years ago some long range Louie’s lobbed 10-12 rounds cross canyon and hit at least 3 deer for their two tags. She hiked into the public a couple miles and helped me look for the wounded ones to try and stick it to those dudes. Never did find it but those A holes were sweating bullets while we pushed the brush looking for it..

 

[KHNC]

Ive killed a couple of stud bucks during early bow season in 3. Both on private though. If you want a great private land rifle hunt, call Mike Lewarne at Mule Deer Specialists. He may have an opening. Do you have enough points to draw it this year?

 

[timekiller13]

Plenty of deer in that unit. Plenty of hunters as well. But you can get away from them. Only hunters I saw when I was there were some guys hunting elk on private and then 2 other guys who were posted right in the edge of private/public hoping those elk ran there way!! Plenty of camps around but didn’t see anyone else in the field.

 

[Wags]

She is pretty awesome. Couple years ago some long range Louie’s lobbed 10-12 rounds cross canyon and hit at least 3 deer for their two tags. She hiked into the public a couple miles and helped me look for the wounded ones to try and stick it to those dudes. Never did find it but those A holes were sweating bullets while we pushed the brush looking for it..

Kim is as good as they come. We're really fortunate to have her in our area. She's fair, easy to talk to, treats everyone with respect and cares about the game. You can't ask for more than that.

 

[RT84]

I had a great time 3rd season there in 2020. Hunted 3 days, saw 1 nice 26" 4 point on public opening morning, and several 22"-24" 4 points on private. Most of the deer we saw on public were running for their lives, and quickly made it to private land (including the 4 point we saw opening morning). That said, we got to see tons of deer each day we were there, which made it a lot of fun. I ended up killing a 3 point on the third day.

To echo previous replies, there are lots of roads and lots of hunters driving those roads. I don't think I'll hunt there again - I'd prefer to hunt somewhere you can get away from people with some extra effort. There weren't many places that we found that you could get away from the trucks.

 

[firemtn]

Yikes! Sounds like a battlefield out there. I wasn't too aware of any of this before I applied, but I drew a deer tag for 4th season this year. Any of you guys have much experience hunting 4th? There's less deer tags but I know there will still be plenty of elk hunters out there.

 

[CoHunter1991]

This is all great information. I just picked up a unit 3 tag for second rifle and was worried about this given the number of tags and OTC elk hunters. If anyone has some areas they liked and allowed you to get away from the legions please PM me. Probably will only get 2 days to hunt.

 

[Gunnersdad49]

This is all great information. I just picked up a unit 3 tag for second rifle and was worried about this given the number of tags and OTC elk hunters. If anyone has some areas they liked and allowed you to get away from the legions please PM me. Probably will only get 2 days to hunt.

If you want to see some good deer, drive through Craig or Baggs at sunrise and sunset. All on private, but good way to remind yourself what they look like before heading back into the fray. I'll add that hunting right on a private/public fenceline can bite you in the ass. Those land owners get multiple calls each season for a deer or elk shot on public that hopped into private before dying. They get pretty annoyed.

A guy I was hunting with made a bad shot on a deer about 3/4 of a mile from private. His deer made it onto private and we watched it lay down. Tried to contact the land owner, couldn't get ahold of them. Called the game warden, who called the ranch manager on his cell phone. He showed up to escort us to get the deer, but he was UN-Happy! He said it was his 13th call like this that season so far. It was the second day of the season. While we were there, we watched as another group of hunters posted up right on his fenceline. He was seething.