Colorado Ranching for Wildlife Suggestions

[kyoungs]

Hello everyone,

I’m looking for suggestions on a Colorado Ranching for Wildlife ranch. I’m hoping to find a ranch where my wife can consistently draw a cow tag with 0-1 preference points. A very entry level ranch with lots of vehicle access to avoid grueling hikes with heavy packs. Hopefully the kind of ranch where ranch mangers can point you in the direction of the elk. Thanks for your input!

 

[realunlucky]

Sounds like that's a ranch once shared on the interwebs won't be so easy to draw anymore

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[parshal]

Use CO's hunting statistics and look at the draw odds for 0-1 preference point. Find the contacts for those RFW ranches and call. They'll tell you exactly what the terrain is like. That's what I did when I had 9 points to burn. The ranches are very helpful. They want you to be successful and happy since they get tags from CPW based on successful RFW public hunters.

 

[wytx]

Deakins?
I hunted it and the elk folks had it pretty easy, roads and rolling terrain.
Not sure on draw odds though.
They are in a wintering area also if that helps, near Craig .

 

[fishslap]

Deakins?
I hunted it and the elk folks had it pretty easy, roads and rolling terrain.
Not sure on draw odds though.
They are in a wintering area also if that helps, near Craig .

I hunted it for deer several years ago and the ranch manager never showed up for the required check in on opening morning, which pretty much ruined the morning hunt opening day. Someone kept calling and finally woke him up to give us permission. I only hunted the earlier season they had for deer so no elk were seen. I’m assuming you hunted it for deer also. How’d you do?

 

[cnelk]

I’ve never hunted RFW but the way I remember how it all started was instead of compensating ranchers for wildlife destruction of property, they had to open up their properties to the public for a few tags.

From what information I’ve gotten, a RFW hunt is based on plenty of animals not so much a trophy hunt. You are directed on where you can hunt.
I think the ranches save the better locations for their paying clients.

 

[wytx]

I hunted it for deer several years ago and the ranch manager never showed up for the required check in on opening morning, which pretty much ruined the morning hunt opening day. Someone kept calling and finally woke him up to give us permission. I only hunted the earlier season they had for deer so no elk were seen. I’m assuming you hunted it for deer also. How’d you do?

It was quite a few years go for deer and pronghorn, I did outfitted for both at different times based on seasons.
Took an ok deer and decent pronghorn.
Hunted with who was then the director or the USDA, actually a real down to earth guy and his wife was along not hunting. They may have gotten me better treatment. He was hunting elk.
Def. could see where wintering animals need to be moving in to be successful.
Outfitter was good , not the ranch manager.
Had wintering elk on the place and had mule deer moving in for winter also.
Probably hunted better seasons since I was paying.
They also took me out to try for a pike on the Yampa.

Sounds like not so great for the public hunters which is too bad.
Also now that I think about it might be not so good due to winterkill last year.

 

[Ddubs20]

I think the days of zero point RFW tags are long gone. Just like anything else in CO, people catch on and most of these cow hunts take at least a point or two now.

 

[Hnthrdr]

Once again not a good place to have a conversation on an open forum… watch the “easy” to kill cow tags creep like everything else