Colorado Unit 18/181 Muzzleloader

[Muzzyfool]

I drew a unit 18/181 muzzy tag. I'm planning a scouting trip for the first week of August so please hold the, (go scout and put in the legwork comments.) I know about the blow down and the heavy hunting pressure. Can anyone give me a place to start? I've done lots of escouting and have several places I want to check out. Trust me, I'm not lazy and put in the work, but 1st hand knowledge is always the best.

 

[Muzzyfool]

I will also have a bear tag if any can give me some pointers

 

[1shotgear]

Both of those units get a fair amount of hunting pressure during the muzzle loader season. There's a chunk of wilderness on the North section of 118 that is somewhat difficult to access and boarders some big chunks of private. That would be a good area to start at! The very North point where 18 and 118 meet looks glass-able and secluded which could make it easy to hunt!

 

[kfranco]

As has been said above, there is quite a bit of pressure in 18 in particular where I have been before but if you stay away from the trails you should be able to find some good pockets. When I last went, the outfitters that packed people in may have been deep but they were always very near the tail.

 

[spike camp]

I heard there’s a chunk of wilderness on the North section of 118 that is somewhat difficult to access and boarders some big chunks of private, but someone posted the info on the internet for thousands of hungry hunters to see, so that place got totally burned out.

 

[topdogjr2002]

How was your hunt last year?

 

[ndforbes]

You probably already know this, but a huge chunk of 18 was part of the East Troublesome fire last year, so any tips you get for that section are gonna be pretty useless. I think 181 was pretty much unscathed, so that's probably your better place to start. With the combined 18/181 tag, you will probably see a lot of the hunting pressure getting concentrated into a smaller geographic region. I'd say that hopefully the CPW recognized this and decreased the tag quota, but we all know the odds of something like that happening.

 

[topdogjr2002]

Thanks. I was hoping for a great story about last year's hunt. It's unfortunate about the fire and the destruction it caused to folks and their lives. I wish the best to all of them. After living through Hurricane Katrina and the rebuilding of our community, it can be a tough road but not one that can't be driven. I haven't seen the numbers on how many tags they issued for this year but not sure if they're out yet. My dad and I are looking forward to stomping around and having some fun. He'll be 71 on September 19th and is still in search of a bull. We've had a lot of close encounters over the past 10 years, but we've yet to be able to seal the deal on a bull for him. It's something we both can't wait to enjoy, whether we kill one or not. Thanks for note on the fire and good luck to you.

 

[Hunterbug]

I hunt there for deer during rifle season. As has been mentioned the East Troublesome fire burned most of 18 last year and most of it is still closed. I have no idea if it will open before season.

 

[TheViking]

I’m familiar with 181…it’s gotten extremely busy the last 5 years like most units. I have a feeling this year will be worse due to a lot of 18 being unhuntable…those hunters will probably look for a close 2nd option.

 

[squirrel]

Far from opening they are closing large chunks of access due to mud issues. This is going to be ugly for a long time.