High-Country Elk Hunt in Colorado - 1st Rifle Season

[HardHunting16]

Lol. Yeah I’m new to the forum world. Figured we could just add on.

 

[chindits]

What poser said. And nobody is addressing the beetle kill behavior change and how last years drought changed elk behavior from this year. Times are a changing in that unit. The next 10 years maybe a very sobering change. I am not looking forward to it.

 

[Thomas11]

I do hunt high during first rifle, usually above 11,000 feet. That being said, don’t expect to see elk out feeding on the alpine tundra during daylight hours. Small, protected Meadows, narrow avalanche Chutes, and timber with undergrowth are good, but continuous open country is pretty much a waste of time after the first few days of archery season -might have some luck on the edge of treeline, though.

This is solid advice

 

[Lytro]

I last hunted 1st rifle season during the 2016 & 2017 seasons at 10,000-11,000 feet, and hunted the same unit both years. In 2016 we had only a couple inches of snow the week prior and I killed a bull on the first day. My hunting partner killed a bull on the morning of the 3rd day. In 2017 there was heavy snowfall the week before. Most of the snow melted from the open areas, but the timber still had up to 2 feet of snow in areas. The heavy snowfall pushed the elk lower and we ended up moving after 2 days of not seeing anything. 1st season can be pretty unpredictable. I'd start out high and have a back up plan or two for the weather.