According to the Colorado regulations book, you can’t pack out a portion of an animal and put it in a cooler and drive with it in your possession to get more ice or drive home then come back and pack out the rest. According to the reg, you can’t drive away with any meat unless you have all of it together.
I called a wildlife officer on this topic and he had no clear answer. I have a local hunt I do where I drive each day and don’t camp. I’ve killed elk before so the only solution is to pack it all to the trailhead and leave it hanging until it’s all out. With the distance and being solo, it takes a few days. Can’t put the first loose meat load into a cooler and take it home until it’s all out. See last sentence below.
“If a carcass is cut in pieces or deboned, evidence of sex needs to be attached to a quarter or another major part of carcass. All portions must be trans-ported together.”