Colorado Archery OTC DIY Hunt

[Wrogers18]

Hey everyone, I am a first time elk hunter, Been hunting whitetail for 20 years. My plan is to tackle Colorado first and build from there. I am a member of GoHunt and am looking to narrow down some units. Gohunt is a great tool but doing this for the first time can be overwhelming. I know the odds are stacked against me headed there with archery equipment but I'm always up for the challenge.

My question is for anyone that has experience in Colorado with archery public land, can you help me narrow down some units. I will be driving there from Buffalo NY and I will be by myself. I am looking to take a legal bull but wouldn't pass up a cow toward the later part of my stay. I plan on getting there August 30th to do some scouting and plan on staying until Sept 12th. Other than that all my scouting will be done on the computer.

Any help is appreciated. Thanks in advance!

 

[Indian Summer]

Solo. First timer. Bow hunting. Shoot on the first day what you’d shoot on the last. That would be my first piece of advice.

 

[Wrogers18]

Solo. First timer. Bow hunting. Shoot on the first day what you’d shoot on the last. That would be my first piece of advice.

Great advice. A buddy of mine who hunted Wyoming 2017 has regretted not shooting a cow elk and told me the same thing. Thanks for reiterating that!

 

[Dos Perros]

Depending on where you go, I'd have a meat packer lined up. I would also recommend making a scouting trip during the summer, especially if you plan on hunting the high country. Elk that time of year are pretty visible above tree line and it'll give you a good place to start when you show up in August.

 

[Wrogers18]

Depending on where you go, I'd have a meat packer lined up. I would also recommend making a scouting trip during the summer, especially if you plan on hunting the high country. Elk that time of year are pretty visible above tree line and it'll give you a good place to start when you show up in August.

Good call on the meat packer. I unfortunately will not be able to make a summertime scouting trip. All of my scouting will come from the desktop until I'm there. I'll have 2 days to put boots on the ground.

 

[Packin_packout]

Just remember that no matter what you are responsible for getting the meat out. If you are looking at a packer, figure how do you tell him when you have something down ( if he is out in field what happens ) and how far do have to go to get signal ( you have to hike out or does he/you use a garmin in reach ) and how long does it take for him to get there ( does he have to trailer horses over). If he bails what do you do. Always have a pack sturdy enough to get the job done on your own with plenty of ice lined up to cool the meat off. Start working now to get in shape for the potential of packing it out on your own and you will be in better shape for the hunt which will definitely not hurt your chances.

 

[Wrogers18]

Just remember that no matter what you are responsible for getting the meat out. If you are looking at a packer, figure how do you tell him when you have something down ( if he is out in field what happens ) and how far do have to go to get signal ( you have to hike out or does he/you use a garmin in reach ) and how long does it take for him to get there ( does he have to trailer horses over). If he bails what do you do. Always have a pack sturdy enough to get the job done on your own with plenty of ice lined up to cool the meat off. Start working now to get in shape for the potential of packing it out on your own and you will be in better shape for the hunt which will definitely not hurt your chances.

All great points here. Although I am in good shape as it is, I have been working harder with cardio and core and will continue this throughout the year. I do have a meat hauling pack already and am mentally prepared to pack out myself. Along with coolers and ice ready. The reason I am going at this myself is because I dont want anyone holding me back mentally or physically as these are not issues for me and never have been. Thanks for the tips!

 

[cnelk]

Coming from Minnesota, hunt the first OTC units you get to, which are 6/161.
Plenty of elk and people. Hell, you may even run into the BRO guys there

 

[Wrogers18]

Coming from Minnesota, hunt the first OTC units you get to, which are 6/161.
Plenty of elk and people. Hell, you may even run into the BRO guys there

I'll look into both of those. When you filter to non resident and archery OTC there's just so many units. But a couple hour shorter drive always helps! Great advice. Do you have any experience in either of these? Thank you.

 

[Dos Perros]

Good call on the meat packer. I unfortunately will not be able to make a summertime scouting trip. All of my scouting will come from the desktop until I'm there. I'll have 2 days to put boots on the ground.

So get there as early as you can, get high and glass and find animals, and get within striking distance of them in the dark on opening morning. Bonus if you can verify their location with a bugle in the dark. After that it's going to be your regular crap shoot.

Back to the packer: remember these dudes are cowboys and they probably get lots of phone calls from people asking what you're going to be asking. I'd like one up in the summer, and then call him again a couple days before your trip, and have planned out the actual coordination, like how you'll reach him, hours of the day he'll be available, what to do if you can't raise him, etc. One area I'd like to go back to I intend on trying to get a packer to "sign a contract," as in take a deposit, $100 or something, on a packout, and if I don't kill he can keep it, but I want him to be 100% reliable when I make the call.

 

[joel_sledz]

Overwhelming is an understatement. Colorado has a ton of elk. We had to resort to plan B our first time there (2 years ago) do to too many people. We were 6 miles in and still could not get away from people. Plan B was much better. We were into elk everyday and only saw 1 other hunter. Best advice is pick an area w minimal roads and you’ll be good. OnX has a nice map layer that shows roadless areas. Pack in a ways off the trailhead and hunt from there. Have multiple spots picked out. I wouldn’t spend more than 3 days in a spot if you don’t find elk within those 3 days. Good luck!

 

[Indian Summer]

Just remember that no matter what you are responsible for getting the meat out. If you are looking at a packer, figure how do you tell him when you have something down ( if he is out in field what happens ) and how far do have to go to get signal ( you have to hike out or does he/you use a garmin in reach ) and how long does it take for him to get there ( does he have to trailer horses over). If he bails what do you do. Always have a pack sturdy enough to get the job done on your own with plenty of ice lined up to cool the meat off. Start working now to get in shape for the potential of packing it out on your own and you will be in better shape for the hunt which will definitely not hurt your chances.

Priceless advice! Don’t depend on anybody for sure to get you out of a jam. You can make some tentative plans but be prepared to get it done on your own. Packers are busy and off grid during hunting season. Plus their number one priority is their own paying clients.

 

[jmez]

You think picking s unit is overwhelming, wait till you set foot in the mountains!

No one is going to give you a unit to hunt. If there are elk tags available then there are elk in the unit. Pick one and go hunting.

Your realistic odds of killing an elk will have little to nothing to do with the unit you choose.

First time elk hunter, archery season, I'd shoot a calf at 1st legal light first day if it were standing there.

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[WI in the west]

I just got done with my second season as an "elk hunter." what im liking to do now is finding those vantage points on google earth and just sitting and glassing. you just need a handful of meadows to glass to find elk. im starting to find personally i like getting that eye on the elk then make my move instead of going blind. obviously if you dont see anything pound ridges and try to turn up a bugle though. but say i made a play on something morning or mid day and it didnt pan out, i try to get to a vantage and bank on glassing till dark in hopes of having a direction in the morning. if you dont see any glass the morning to and make a plan on where to go for the afternoon after seeing or not seeing elk. Being from the east like you letting your glass do the walking just saves your body so when its time to go make it happen your ready to put some miles on. but again im not overly experienced but it seems to get me with in that striking distance where you have a chance almost daily. patience kills so give glassing a couple hours, but also dont wast multiple days in a spot if your not seeing elk, move on and find them. good luck

 

[Wrogers18]

You think picking s unit is overwhelming, wait till you set foot in the mountains!

No one is going to give you a unit to hunt. If there are elk tags available then there are elk in the unit. Pick one and go hunting.

Your realistic odds of killing an elk will have little to nothing to do with the unit you choose.

First time elk hunter, archery season, I'd shoot a calf at 1st legal light first day if it were standing there.

Sent from my moto z3 using Tapatalk

It never ceases to amaze me how small and flat a map can make something look. I do a ton of competitive bass fishing so map study is one thing I do a lot of and I get to areas on a lake where the map made it look like an island was super close and its 3 miles away. I wont quite go after a calf goal 1 is bull but if a cow gives me one of those golden opportunities I wont pass it up. Thanks for the info!

 

[DavePwns]

Pick a unit that will allow you to be mobile and have 7 or 8 back up plans for spots to check out and relocate, each unit has elk, it's your job to find them. Since it's your first year, just finding an elk on public land would make it a successful trip.

 

[Wrogers18]

I just got done with my second season as an "elk hunter." what im liking to do now is finding those vantage points on google earth and just sitting and glassing. you just need a handful of meadows to glass to find elk. im starting to find personally i like getting that eye on the elk then make my move instead of going blind. obviously if you dont see anything pound ridges and try to turn up a bugle though. but say i made a play on something morning or mid day and it didnt pan out, i try to get to a vantage and bank on glassing till dark in hopes of having a direction in the morning. if you dont see any glass the morning to and make a plan on where to go for the afternoon after seeing or not seeing elk. Being from the east like you letting your glass do the walking just saves your body so when its time to go make it happen your ready to put some miles on. but again im not overly experienced but it seems to get me with in that striking distance where you have a chance almost daily. patience kills so give glassing a couple hours, but also dont wast multiple days in a spot if your not seeing elk, move on and find them. good luck

Great stuff. Living through glass is something I have been doing here as of the last few years. It truly is amazing how much the naked eye can miss even at 50 yards! Thanks!

Pick a unit that will allow you to be mobile and have 7 or 8 back up plans for spots to check out and relocate, each unit has elk, it's your job to find them. Since it's your first year, just finding an elk on public land would make it a successful trip.

I agree with finding Elk. That's definetly my job. Success isn't always filling a tag for sure. Good point and thank you for putting that into perspective. Thanks

 

[fatlander]

The mountains are steeper than they look on the map or google earth.

It’s hard to really describe where you’re likely going to find elk until you find them, especially to someone that hasn’t ever been in elk country. Just laying eyes on elk is going to be a win. Make a bunch of plans before going. I’d suggest truck camping to be mobile. Keep going through your laundry list of
spots until you find the elk. Take notes of what you find and where, and also what you don’t find and where is important.

When you get home, hop back on google earth and the type of area where you found the elk is going to stick out in comparison to where you didn’t. At least it does to me.

Picking an otc unit is a crap shoot. Pick places that other people don’t want to go that has food, water, and cover. There will probably be elk there.


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[ahatclif]

I'll look into both of those. When you filter to non resident and archery OTC there's just so many units. But a couple hour shorter drive always helps! Great advice. Do you have any experience in either of these? Thank you.

Ive hunted those units the past 3years. I'm looking for somewhere else. I've killed nothing. The ratio of human bugle to elk bugles is probably 15:1. I've been within bow range of 1 elk and more than 50 humans. There are elk out there but I'd have a backup plan. It's the closest area for anyone driving I80 or coming from your direction so expect to see 100 vehicles before you get where you are going. Shoot the first thing you see. I know it's probably going to be bad everywhere but it is definitely bad there.

 

[Wrogers18]

The mountains are steeper than they look on the map or google earth.

It’s hard to really describe where you’re likely going to find elk until you find them, especially to someone that hasn’t ever been in elk country. Just laying eyes on elk is going to be a win. Make a bunch of plans before going. I’d suggest truck camping to be mobile. Keep going through your laundry list of
spots until you find the elk. Take notes of what you find and where, and also what you don’t find and where is important.

When you get home, hop back on google earth and the type of area where you found the elk is going to stick out in comparison to where you didn’t. At least it does to me.

Picking an otc unit is a crap shoot. Pick places that other people don’t want to go that has food, water, and cover. There will probably be elk there.


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Appreciate the tips. Rechecking google earth after hunting an area is something I do religiously. Thank you