First Time Colorado Trip Elk HELP!

[AlphaHunter]

Hello Gents,

My buddy and I are looking to go Hunting elk for the first time. Expectations are low seeing would be great shooting one would be a Dream come true. with that in mind we are looking to find a good GMu near Breckenridge , if you have any good info please send it our way, or if you have hunted that GMU, did you see anything? where about were you? all that good stuff.

Thank you in advance.

 

[md126]

(Sigh) Here we go....

 

[Ryan Pent]

Hello Gents,

My buddy and I are looking to go Hunting elk for the first time. Expectations are low seeing would be great shooting one would be a Dream come true. with that in mind we are looking to find a good GMu near reckenbridge , if you have any good info please send it our way, or if you have hunted that GMU, did you see anything? where about were you? all that good stuff.

Thank you in advance.

I sent you a pm, unfortunately I don’t have any information for you about what you are looking for but just a warning about the reply’s you will get for this post. Good luck man and don’t worry about it, people wait for these posts and let them completely ruin their day.


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[3forks]

Hello Gents,

My buddy and I are looking to go Hunting elk for the first time. Expectations are low seeing would be great shooting one would be a Dream come true. with that in mind we are looking to find a good GMu near Breckenridge , if you have any good info please send it our way, or if you have hunted that GMU, did you see anything? where about were you? all that good stuff.

Thank you in advance.

Try this spot:
39°35'56"N 106°03'55"W

 

[Back Country Hunter 2]

Reckenbridge? Never heard of it. Once you clarify where it actually is that you are going, be aware that if people give you that information on an open forum then anyone who can use google can find the same info. Thus, increasing the traffic in that particular area. All of that good stuff you are talking about takes hard work. Using the Colorado Hunting Atlas would be a great place to start, along with a summer scouting trip or two. Good luck!

 

[Beendare]

Alpha, here's the deal. Those OTC units are all about the same IMO. I've hunted apx. 10 of them over the years always looking for one that is better.....here is what I always find; A total zoo at all of the main TH's...in fact some of those will have more traffic on opening day than Main Street in a small town....a bit of an exaggeration...but not by much.

So a guy hunting these main access points is going to bump into a lot of hunters....in every unit. Of course the elk know that too. So the key is finding the pockets where the hunting pressure is low....becuase the elk move to those spots. THATS what you are looking for. Hunting pressure is the #1 factor in Co OTC.

Typically it takes lacing up your boots and covering a lot of ground to find these spots- you can only do so much on GE...you have to get in there and sweat...maybe moving around to different access points to find the elk.

So now you can see why nobody is going to tell you their 'go to' spot.... they expended a lot of sweat and boot leather to find it. Those spots are in every unit in Co...so when you are plowing through canyon after canyon...if they ain't in there....then try the next one.

 

[AlphaHunter]

Alpha, here's the deal. Those OTC units are all about the same IMO. I've hunted apx. 10 of them over the years always looking for one that is better.....here is what I always find; A total zoo at all of the main TH's...in fact some of those will have more traffic on opening day than Main Street in a small town....a bit of an exaggeration...but not by much.

So a guy hunting these main access points is going to bump into a lot of hunters....in every unit. Of course the elk know that too. So the key is finding the pockets where the hunting pressure is low....becuase the elk move to those spots. THATS what you are looking for.

Typically it takes lacing up your boots and covering a lot of ground to find these spots...maybe moving around to different access points to find the elk.

So now you can see why nobody is going to tell you their 'go to' spot.... they expended a lot of sweat and boot leather to find it. Those spots are in every unit in Co...so when you are plowing through canyon after canyon...if they ain't in there....then try the next one.

Thank you Sir I appreciate its great Advise and we are going to hike a long shot and we know it.

 

[WoolyBugger]

Google best colorado units. Dont go to those units

 

[cmahoney]

Try this spot:
39°35'56"N 106°03'55"W

Hey thanks man! I’ve never hunted Colorado and this will be a good starting point.


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[ndbuck09]

Hi There Sir! a long time ago in 2010 I embarked to Colorado for my buddy and I's first elk hunt. Here's the thing about the West with all the public land that anyone can access; people don't give out area's to random folks. In the east and midwest as you know, the land is mostly all private so even if you know the good counties, etc. you can't just come in on top of someone and hunt their woodlot, farm, pasture, crop field etc.

In the West though, if I told you that the road through Evergreen, CO has x draw that always has a herd of elk in it, you'd at least heavily consider it and 5-10 other dudes who don't comment here will also see it and consider/ go to try to find that area too. Since it's all public land anyone could go to whatever spot. Thats what makes America amazing, awesome and the best country in the world for sure! But it also comes at the cost that we can't just spout off about good areas freely on the internet. Most people who have good spots on public land had to put in miles on their truck, miles on their boots, time in the areas during hunting season over multiple seasons, etc. This is a years and years long thing. So to simply even tell someone the unit that you've found over many years circumvents this and threatens all of that effort.

With that said, I have only hunted Colorado 2 years and would easily imagine that the i70 corridor would not be the place I would start my map scouting/biologist calling/colorado wildlife data mining. A massive artery from the overpopulated Denver area to the Breckenridge area seems like it would simply be a zoo come elk season. Again I've never been there during hunting season but I can only imagine.

Good Luck and map scout and ask the biologist habitat questions about specifics you find on the topo/aerial maps.

 

[darcytribe]

Hey thanks man! I’ve never hunted Colorado and this will be a good starting point.

I believe what we have here is a thinly veiled jokester my friends. These always make me chuckle

 

[ndbuck09]

lol!

 

[sndmn11]

Hello Gents,

My buddy and I are looking to go Hunting elk for the first time. Expectations are low seeing would be great shooting one would be a Dream come true. with that in mind we are looking to find a good GMu near Breckenridge , if you have any good info please send it our way, or if you have hunted that GMU, did you see anything? where about were you? all that good stuff.

Thank you in advance.

How are you wanting to hunt?

 

[30338]

Getting advice on some units that take 10 or more points is actually doable on occasion since that person will not be back in over a decade. Getting advice on OTC units would be very rare. I'd do a draw unit that takes 0-1 points before hunting an OTC unit. So plan the hunt for 2020 in other words. And scout a spot this summer and next.

 

[chasewild]

I find the "alpha" in your handle ironic considering the nature of your inquiry.

Jokes aside, I'll save you a lecture -- one of which I've delivered probably a dozen times on this forum already -- and tell you to change your perspective. Pick a unit, pick a road, pick a mountain, and then go there. Get up early, got to bed late. Walk until your tired. If you get stuck in some down timber, keep walking. Enjoy the aspens. Hopefully you'll hear a bugle. It's magic.

Shortcuts are like handouts and handouts are bullshit. So, take the advice above and then own your hunt.

 

[cnelk]

Plenty of elk around the Breck area - just like every other otc unit west of I25.

My son is an electrician for a ski resort in that area and he takes pics of elk all the time.

Figure out where they are at and get after it.

 

[Newtosavage]

OP, I was a first time elk hunter in CO 4 seasons ago. I understand the need for help.

My first question is why that particular area? Elk hunting is an "all-in" proposition for us NR's and considering the time you will need to invest to have a decent chance, a few hours drive to a better area is a relatively small investment in the big scheme.

 

[Bandit141]

22 years ago I moved to Colorado from Oklahoma. My family was all from Delta Co but had moved east. I couldn't seem to find anyone who was willing to help me find an archery spot so I started scouting areas that were 9,000 feet and up that looked like a deep enough hole to keep most folks out. I actually learned some tricks like that from reading general books about elk hunting. If there was some north facing dark timber for staying cool and plenty of grass pockets for food with even a small bit of water nearby, I was amazed at the places I'd find elk. I was also surprised at the places I didn't.
It didn't take long before I was filling two OTC archery tags a year (either sex and cow only archery). I must say however, Google earth was my dear friend in finding good areas.
I started looking for two canyons very close together running north to south that tied into an east to west canyon (on the north end) with some good elevation changes, and that led me to finding the best OTC honey hole of a lifetime. Best part is, I did it on my own. It happens to be 12 miles into a wilderness area. My second best spot though is only 5/8 mile from a road you can drive a car on.
I also confirm some of my spots with the wildlife officer in the area that I'm hunting from time to time. If you've put boots on the ground and start mentioning specific areas, their pretty kind to tell you whether or not they think you'll see animals. I'd highly suggest using your first year as a scouting trip, while carrying your weapon of choice along with a tag, and if you get into elk it's going to be a bonus. High country basins often hold elk till the snow pushes them down and offers great opportunities to glass for miles and locate animals.
I often find elk during the rut by driving down the road from camp after dark a few miles, stopping every quarter mile or so and either cow calling or hitting the bugle and have heard elk and know where to go the next morning. That actually paid off for me last year with a cow elk.
Good luck

 

[RedMule]

I’m new here at the slide but not new to the world of elk. What I have noticed about Colorado is they “wildlife and parks”offer a hunt planner to talk to on their website and offices. Good place to start. Good luck.

 

[Jpugs]

call the biologist, he will send you where he sends the 50x other folks who call and ask where the best spot it.\... Spend hours researching and going over maps, you wont know till your boots hit the ground is what I've learned. Even if given great info, things can change majorly by the time you get there....