Colorado road/trail info.

[sanders3663]

Hey everybody, first time posting on here. Hope everyone had a great season. I have a question about finding information on road/trail conditions. My son and I did our inaugural OTC/DIY Colorado elk hunt in September. Was not successful in taking an elk but we had fun and learned a lot. However, some the access roads were not quite what we were expecting (Probably put my truck in some places I shouldn't have) But anyway, is there anyone you can call to get any helpful information on this? Thanks, and we wll appreciate any answers you come up with.

 

[Gapmaster]

Check out the Colorado MVU maps. You can download them for any region. Find the area you are looking for, write down the road numbers and call the local NFS office. They are usually very helpful, if they don't know they will get back to you with the information. I do this when I'm in an area i'm not familiar with. You can also gain information on trails in the area, like when they were last worked by crews etc.

 

[Poser]

Download the COTREX app. It has some very useful info about what types of vehicles are allowed on any given road and closure dates.

Join any regional OHV FB groups for the area you are going to hunt. There are usually at least a few highly knowledge people who can answer questions about specific road conditions in relation to your vehicle’s capabilities. That info (from experienced OHV enthusiasts) is usually more reliable than what you’ll get from hunters.

 

[sanders3663]

Download the COTREX app. It has some very useful info about what types of vehicles are allowed on any given road and closure dates.

Join any regional OHV FB groups for the area you are going to hunt. There are usually at least a few highly knowledge people who can answer questions about specific road conditions in relation to your vehicle’s capabilities. That info (from experienced OHV enthusiasts) is usually more reliable than what you’ll get from hunters.

Thanks. That sounds good. Went through one section where one of those rock crawling machines would have been safer. Would definitely be nice to know ahead of time.

 

[sanders3663]

Check out the Colorado MVU maps. You can download them for any region. Find the area you are looking for, write down the road numbers and call the local NFS office. They are usually very helpful, if they don't know they will get back to you with the information. I do this when I'm in an area i'm not familiar with. You can also gain information on trails in the area, like when they were last worked by crews etc.

Thanks. Was wondering if CPW officers could help......Didn't think of the NFS.

 

[Dsnow9]

There are a lot of off-roading apps and forums that usually have the most up to date conditions on a lot of the roads. Hiking apps also have a wealth of knowledge too

 

[BCSojourner]

Hey everybody, first time posting on here. Hope everyone had a great season. I have a question about finding information on road/trail conditions. My son and I did our inaugural OTC/DIY Colorado elk hunt in September. Was not successful in taking an elk but we had fun and learned a lot. However, some the access roads were not quite what we were expecting (Probably put my truck in some places I shouldn't have) But anyway, is there anyone you can call to get any helpful information on this? Thanks, and we wll appreciate any answers you come up with.

If you know what USFS Ranger District or BLM Field Office manages the public lands where you plan to hunt, contact them or visit their website. A lot of these offices have travel management plans in place by now which will note which roads are open to OHV (Off Highway Vehicle which by definition is any public motorized vehicle designed for off-highway motorized use) use and which routes are closed to motorized use, and if there are any special restrictions such as single-track motorized, ATV, UTV, etc. Some may have seasonal limitations for OHV use although they would likely only apply to very late seasons. When you have everything narrowed down, a phone call to discuss any questions you may have with a local recreation staff person at the District or Field Office can also be very useful. Don't rely on just Google Earth to try and determine accessibility with your 4WD vehicle. Many roads on GE look fine when they are in fact really bad and full of deep potholes and huge rocks.

 

[sanders3663]

If you know what USFS Ranger District or BLM Field Office manages the public lands where you plan to hunt, contact them or visit their website. A lot of these offices have travel management plans in place by now which will note which roads are open to OHV (Off Highway Vehicle which by definition is any public motorized vehicle designed for off-highway motorized use) use and which routes are closed to motorized use, and if there are any special restrictions such as single-track motorized, ATV, UTV, etc. Some may have seasonal limitations for OHV use although they would likely only apply to very late seasons. When you have everything narrowed down, a phone call to discuss any questions you may have with a local recreation staff person at the District or Field Office can also be very useful. Don't rely on just Google Earth to try and determine accessibility with your 4WD vehicle. Many roads on GE look fine when they are in fact really bad and full of deep potholes and huge rocks.

Thanks for the info!