Colorado 1st Rifle at Flat Top Wilderness advice/experience?

[cnelk]

If Slugz sends you a PM first, you can then send back and forth

 

[Greenduck18]

I was out there this past fall and did see a lot of hunters in our area but that can also help you. I’d focus on the areas that the horse guys ride past but further than most people would want to hike. Find an area with good visibility, be patient, and let the other hunters do the work for you.

 

[Slugz]

If Slugz sends you a PM first, you can then send back and forth

Thanks sir. Did not know that.

 

[ManyBullets]

I was out there this past fall and did see a lot of hunters in our area but that can also help you. I’d focus on the areas that the horse guys ride past but further than most people would want to hike. Find an area with good visibility, be patient, and let the other hunters do the work for you.

Not a bad strategy in a heavily hunted area. There will also be a ton of deer hunters tromping around looking to whack any forked horn that gets within 1000 yards of their rifle.

With that many people in the woods you may be able to trade TP, airplane shooters (Jack or Crown would be best), or cannabis for elk intel with any deer hunters you encounter in the woods.

 

[FatCampzWife]

Regarding leasing horses...How far do you want to go in? Are you in good shape? How many years of horse experience do you have? How well do you know/trust the person you"d lease horses from? I have ridden, broke, finished, & rode horses in forest, plains, & marshland for 30 years. They are 1200 pounds of wonderful, beautiful, potentially deadly, unpredictability. Mules can be more dependable, but also more...muley (some people will very much understand that description). Unless you are willing to put a bullet in a downed animal (that isn't yours), or spend hours (or days) potentially looking for a lost animal, I'd lease llamas or goats. Or hire a well reviewed guide to pack you in & out.

 

[Gene_The_Elk_Machine]

Regarding leasing horses...How far do you want to go in? Are you in good shape? How many years of horse experience do you have? How well do you know/trust the person you"d lease horses from? I have ridden, broke, finished, & rode horses in forest, plains, & marshland for 30 years. They are 1200 pounds of wonderful, beautiful, potentially deadly, unpredictability. Mules can be more dependable, but also more...muley (some people will very much understand that description). Unless you are willing to put a bullet in a downed animal (that isn't yours), or spend hours (or days) potentially looking for a lost animal, I'd lease llamas or goats. Or hire a well reviewed guide to pack you in & out.

Well, I wasn’t thinking of leasing. I have a colt I’ve been training, only a 3 yr old now, but the most bomb proof and trail confident horse I’ve ever owned. I believe we are basing out of Trappers Lake Lodge, and Im pretty sure they have a horse set up there. None of the other guys I’m going with are very horsey, so I was thinking it could be a good experience for my colt to go and I could ride her around the lodge and to scout for the first couple days before season, and once the season opened just leave her at the lodge and hunt on foot. Don’t know if that would just be more work than it’s worth, or if it’s even a realistic idea, that’s why I figured I would ask some people with experience on here.

 

[Gene_The_Elk_Machine]

Does anybody have any pictures they could upload of any bulls they have taken in the Flat Tops, or some pictures of the area and terrain so I can gain a better understanding of the area?


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[FatCampzWife]

Well, I wasn’t thinking of leasing. I have a colt I’ve been training, only a 3 yr old now, but the most bomb proof and trail confident horse I’ve ever owned. I believe we are basing out of Trappers Lake Lodge, and Im pretty sure they have a horse set up there. None of the other guys I’m going with are very horsey, so I was thinking it could be a good experience for my colt to go and I could ride her around the lodge and to scout for the first couple days before season, and once the season opened just leave her at the lodge and hunt on foot. Don’t know if that would just be more work than it’s worth, or if it’s even a realistic idea, that’s why I figured I would ask some people with experience on here.

I like your plan of riding around the lodge & leaving her there...I rode young horses for 20 years in all sorts of knarly places. When I FINALLY started taking my older, experienced horses instead, I seriously had to wonder what the hell I'd been thinking suffering through all those wrecks & stressful situations with the young colts. It's SO MUCH more enjoyable when you're not fearing for your life every minute of the ride...lol.

 

[fishslap]

Not a bad strategy in a heavily hunted area. There will also be a ton of deer hunters tromping around looking to whack any forked horn that gets within 1000 yards of their rifle.

With that many people in the woods you may be able to trade TP, airplane shooters (Jack or Crown would be best), or cannabis for elk intel with any deer hunters you encounter in the woods.

Colorado didn’t issue very many deer tags for first rifle this year.

 

[Slugz]

Does anybody have any pictures they could upload of any bulls they have taken in the Flat Tops, or some pictures of the area and terrain so I can gain a better understanding of the area?


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Sent

 

[Sgtusmc14]

 

[Kstitz]

1 st rifle is draw, so shouldn’t be too crowded I would think.

It is draw but there are leftover bull & cow tags. It will be very crowded!

 

[Elktaco]

I have hunted this area on several occasions. Yes there are a lot of hunters even in the 1st rifle season. Just accept the fact that you will not be able to get away from all the hunters. There are also a decent amount of elk. In my experience a lot of the hunters start to head out Sunday afternoon. Very few hunt hard the entire 5 days.

 

[ILMhunter]

Beautiful country out there. Really difficult terrain in the burns near trappers lake due to deadfall, but otherwise it's pretty navigable. Bring a fly rod if you like fishing, there's some nice trout in the lakes and streams. I've never hunted the area, just fished.

 

[Gene_The_Elk_Machine]

Beautiful country out there. Really difficult terrain in the burns near trappers lake due to deadfall, but otherwise it's pretty navigable. Bring a fly rod if you like fishing, there's some nice trout in the lakes and streams. I've never hunted the area, just fished.

Now you’re speaking my language, I’m a fly fishing fiend! Any lakes specially you recommend, or what streams?


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[ILMhunter]

Now you’re speaking my language, I’m a fly fishing fiend! Any lakes specially you recommend, or what streams?


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Pretty much every body of water I threw a fly in around trappers lake held fish. Lakes, creeks, you name it, I had a lot of fun fishing the inlets and outlet of trappers lake when I was out there. If you're coming in from bear river, the river (which is more like a creek at that point) holds some nice fish, lots of whitefish to sort through though. I don't want to get too specific but there's lakes out there that hold some insane fish, once I can send PM's I'll hook you up.

 

[Gene_The_Elk_Machine]

I have hunted this area on several occasions. Yes there are a lot of hunters even in the 1st rifle season. Just accept the fact that you will not be able to get away from all the hunters. There are also a decent amount of elk. In my experience a lot of the hunters start to head out Sunday afternoon. Very few hunt hard the entire 5 days.

That’s good to know. We will definitely be there for the whole season and plan on staying a couple days after as well. In your experience do many of these hunters hike in and out in the dark? do they cover a lot of ground throughout the day, or mainly post up in a location and sit all day?


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[ManyBullets]

That’s good to know. We will definitely be there for the whole season and plan on staying a couple days after as well. In your experience do many of these hunters hike in and out in the dark? do they cover a lot of ground throughout the day, or mainly post up in a location and sit all day?


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All of the above. It's public land hunting

 

[GusF16]

A buddy and I are going to be hunting the first rifle season in the flat top wilderness, but we are both out of starters and will not be able to visit before season. I have never been to Colorado, and am unsure of what to expect as far as weather, difficulty hunting in the area, number of other hunters, how much hiking should we be expecting, and any other general advice for that area would be greatly appreciated!! I am also considering leasing some horses and hunting horseback, is that possible in that area, or is it too steep, or will the snow be too high at that point?


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I've never hunted the flattops, but what guys are telling you about the weather and terrain rings true throughout most of CO. Something that's brought me success over the years in heavily pressured areas is hunting transition areas. Saddles, draws and places that funnel moving elk. If it's warm and dry don't rule out deep canyon draws that hold water and tend to be 20 degrees cooler. Elk will hold tight in those areas, especially if there's pressure. Sometimes early season they're still location bugling so you may get a bead early on where in those draws they're holding. It's usually a brutal pack out so many hunters won't drop down in there to get one...and that's what makes those potential honey holes. Good hunting.

 

[LA Hunter]

My two sons and I went there last year during 1st Rifle. We first hiked in too far at first; 6 miles. This limited our interest in going the short hikes of 1-2 miles which is what we should have done. As such, we limited ourselves to 0.5-mile hikes and road hunting (yuk).

Yes, there are many tags, but they give you access to thousands upon thousands of acres. You can get alone if you work harder than the others. We parked at a campground that did not have any guide permits issued; this also helped result in fewer people. Consider this, some people target areas where the guides are (for obvious reasons and still maintain a respectful distance) and other DIY hunters avoid them. I was pleased to learn for myself that elk are and were in both areas.

We went in two (2) days before the season and hardly anyone was near us. We found tons of elk sign and saw deer and moose. The valley we spent most of our time in had numerous ridges, draws, and one hidden canyon that just did not show up on the topo map. This area looked so flat.

The hidden canyon will be in my mind forever. During my e-scouting, the plan was to camp adjacent to two (2) lakes and a steep rise that we would ascend for glassing. In between us and the steep rise were two (2) things that did not show up on Onx or satellite; 1) an unusually large array of crisscrossed deadfall concealed by green forest and 2) a hidden canyon that dropped down just before the steep rise.

The lesson within a lesson: deadfall is visible on satellite imagery and you can plan accordingly. However, just because the forest is lush and green does not mean there isn't any concealed deadfall.

If I do this unit again, I would have hiked two miles in (not six), camped at or just above treeline, (there is water on the plateaus), and glassed from the rims until we found elk.

It snowed once but melted within a few hours. The weather was very nice; 40-70 during the day; 29-40 at night. 1st Rifle is now later in October, so heavy snow is even more likely.

There are a few burns that should hold elk if you can get to the ridges and glass; if I return, I will focus on at least one of the big burns with the expectation of increased hunting pressure.