During the day, its also necessary to snack and nap. Elk move. Any OTC (over the counter) unit in the White River National Forest between Glenwoods Springs and Meeker. I left for Colorado at 3am on Sept 5th and arrived in Colorado the following morning. The public-land elk hunter has to have heart: heart to outwork others, heart to climb the next ridge even when the legs and the back ache horribly. Some units had higher success, but only had fewer than 18 bull elk harvested. Instead, expect sprawling sage flats, with a limited amount of juniper interspersed throughout the more broken terrain in the area's southernmost portion. Not only does it show exact public/private land boundaries, but it also provides topographical, aerial, and hybrid views of your hunting grounds. I grabbed my gear and took off for the top of the drainage. Perhaps one of the most recognized over-the-counter (OTC) opportunities in the west is for Colorado Elk. I'm not a good elk hunter, but I've seem to run into an equal number of elk in pretty much every unit I've been at in Coloradoboth ones with higher success rate and those with low success rate. Elk hunting is a grind like no other. Colorado Parks and Wildlife is great at collecting and presenting harvest data and a lot can be learned when putting that data to use. Nevada is over 80% public lands, Sanchez explained. Here, you'll find the Dixie National Forest and a plethora of BLM lands, but elk numbers tend to be lower. Jun 3, 2015 #3 Mudranger1 Well-known member. This equates to a 28% success rate. The top 25 units ranked by total elk harvest accounted for 64.1% of the total OTC Elk Archery harvest. Emily and Walla Walla Units). I can then cross-reference these numbers with other prospective units on my list. Elevations vary from 5,100 to 9,559 feet. Over the Counter Bull Elk Units-Colorado | Hunt Talk The Centennial State has more than 100 OTC GMUs available for nonresident hunters, and selecting the best from that lengthy list would be difficult. Of the 13 nonresident hunters carrying GMU 42 licenses in 2018, eight were successful, accounting for a 63% success rate. Of course, you also want to locate units with a good mix of national forest, wilderness access, and BLM ground. It includes a lack of physical preparation, inadequate gear, and research failure, among other things. I know Western sojourns are expensive, but you cant skimp on digital mapping. 18. Total hunter success for the 2015, 2016 and 2017 OTC 2nd rifle season was 9.4%, 8.6%% and 13.7% respectively. Colorado offers an unlimited quantity of over-the-counter (OTC) bull elk rifle licenses during the second- and third- rifle seasons because we have the largest elk herds in North America. I simply put $75 in a separate savings account every payday, The amount typically comes to $1,950. One of my favorite data points to look at on a season profile are some of the graphs located under the specific seasons, specifically the hunters surveyed and tag allocation graphs. I was committed to getting the meat off the mountain, but deep down inside, I was afraid the meat wasnt going to make it. It is a little far out however with E-Scouting and everything we will need as much time to prepare. Required fields are marked *. Being an East coast guy, I feel that there are many barriers that prevent people from going out west and fulfilling their dreams. I parked the car to review the area on my onX map. No. He then walked off with his cows. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. Nearly all the opportunities occur on public. FIND THE BEST COLORADO OTC ELK HUNTING UNITS. Overview of Colorado's elk hunting opportunities One thing to keep in mind when looking at success rates is the amount of public land.If a unit has 28% success but only 50% public land,you can have a decent idea where the most success comes from.Now if you take 20% and over 80% public,now you have my interest.Bull to cow ratio is also extremely important.Go back and look into some other variables other then success on the units your interested in.A call this winter to a biologist there will get you alot better answers then hoping someone on here will say "yeah,I hunt there and it's awesome".That's not normally going to happen.I've never elk hunted in any of your mentioned units so I can't help other then what I just gave you. There are too many elk hunters on public land in Colorado. Given spike-only regulations and varying success rates [the general metric for a 'good' OTC unit] among units, years and weapon types, it's difficult to assign the 'best' OTC Rocky Mountain elk unit. Elk Hunting Guide for a DIY fair-chase elk hunt on public land includes planning the hunt, state selection, hunting strategies, backcountry safety & more. The muzzleloader season has one permit available to out-of-staters. Keep going. Colorado OTC elk using Insider to narrow down choices. While that is still plenty of ground to roam, consider that some of the BLM chunks are landlocked by private lands. It offers OTC elk licenses across many units. Hunt Elk in Utah with Over-the-Counter Permits in 2020 Or, is it possible that this unit has great elk numbers but the terrain is tougher or more remote? Subscribe to our newsletter and get an extra 10% on your first purchase. Colorado Over The Counter (OTC) Unit Elk Hunting Table 1. Nearly all the opportunities occur on public. I also eliminated units that had less than 9.8% success. Public lands are abundant, with exception of Unit 10, which is dominated by private lands, Munig shared. Many days, I see other hunters at parking areas, and I hear them driving around on the roads, but I rarely see or hear hunters in the woods. Sanchez said that Nevada's elk habitat is mostly constricted to rolling features of high-elevation mountain ranges, much of which can be glassed from valleys or mountain bases. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) regulates elk hunting to maximize opportunity. You do have to take some of this info with a grain of salt as harvest success is also directly related to hunter effort, but still, with the amount of data CPW collects these are very solid numbers to base a hunt around. Next, go to YouTube and listen to top-tier callers like Rockieand Corey Jacobsen. While the unit doesn't have any OTC archery-bull licenses, it has OTC second- and third-season rifle hunts. It also depends what kind of experience you want to havewilderness, away from crowds or just purely want to have a best chance at an elk. These are the units in Colorado where the most elk are harvested and those that have the highest hunter success. Only 26% of the area is accessible to the public. That being said, considering two units as equal Ill almost always opt for the one with a better trophy potential, because why not? Our draw operates on a bonus-point system where every bonus point gives the hunter an extra chance at a low random number in the draw. I hunt for meat. Applicants should secure access before applying. Once getting my filters set in Filtering 2.0 I can begin to pick units off the map that are intriguing to me. For nonresidents, it requires 12 preference points for just a 15% chance of drawing. Elk have a way of getting to me emotionally. FIND THE BEST COLORADO OTC ELK HUNTING UNITS - Montana Decoy 2021 Colorado OTC Archery Elk | Hunt Talk 62 is one of the most popular units in the state in terms of number of hunters so may not be a wilderness type experience, but there must be elk there if that many people always go there. Oregon Public Land OTC Elk Hunting Oregon is home to two elk species: of elk - the Rocky Mountain elk in the eastern part of the state and the Roosevelt's elk near the Pacific Coast, in the Blue and Cascade Mountain ranges. As an example, during an archery hunt I may focus on heavily mountainous areas while a 3rd season rifle hunt may find me in transitional areas where private land can begin to become an issue. These areas tend to have minimal hunt pressure when compared to those with solid populations and decent hunter success rates. Five units (4, 13, 22, 85 and 421) were in the top units for both the 2nd and 3rd rifle seasons for both total Bull Elk harvest and for hunter success. For me, the best hunting unit has more to do with the quality of my outdoor camping, scouting and hunting experience, but I am also a numbers guy. It only takes one cooperative bull to turn a hunt around.. The OTC (over the counter) opportunities in Colorado are a thing of the past. I made excuse after excuse why I couldnt go. Although the Wenaha Unit takes many years to draw, hunters will be treated to abundant public lands. Colorado's Best Places for Over-The-Counter Bulls Este Apart - Top center, Sofia - Updated 2023 Prices - Booking.com To come are 10 tips tips you can trust and put to practice that might just help you come out of the woods with a meat-laden pack. It is also interesting to note that the top 25 units by total harvest had 55.6% of all OTC archery hunters and 57.3% of all hunter recreation days. The "best" unit is one that fits your hunting style, has plenty of elk, and doesn't get a ton of pressure (or at least pressure where you'll be hunting). GearJunkie Copyright 2013 2023. Pressure can be intense during all OTC Colorado elk hunts, so be prepared to hike deep into roadless areas to find secluded pockets of elk. . Harvest success is one of the most obvious filters to play with. Access in Area 122 is very challenging, especially when compared with Area 100. Missoula, MT. Deer licenses in Colorado are issued through the limited license drawing. Access isn't a problem in GMU 4, via the expansive Routt National Forest, two state parcels and plots of BLM lands. Be sure to stay hydrated throughout the day. elk Elk that are facing pressure will find nasty places to go hide. planning JavaScript is disabled. With an estimated population of around 280,000, the elk are spread out over millions of acres of private and public land. The current elk-population estimate in the Scappoose Unit is approximately 2,300 animals, Dion said. In general, the higher the better. Our OTC opportunities happen in all our available terrain high country/alpine, sagebrush steppe, prairie flatland and badlands/breaks country. Resident hunters commonly draw this tag in five to 10 years, and nonresidents can generally expect to wait 10 years or more, Sanchez continued. I was confident I could make the shot, and I sent arrow. But realistically speaking, it's much easier said than done, as so much goes into the successful harvest of one of America's most coveted game animals. Despite the loss of meat, this hunt will go down as one of my best yet. Before diving into units that interest me I like to first get my Filtering filters set up so units I wouldnt be interested in are no longer on my radar. Hunting opportunities are afforded via general-season and limited-entry licenses. Also, be prepared to take any legal bull since this isn't a trophy hunt. Trophy Potential is one filter that is admittedly dont use a lot. Also, onX Hunt allows you to pre-mark areas you plan to hunt, save maps for offline use, track your movement as you hunt, and mark waypoints along the way. OTC branch-antlered Rocky Mountain bull hunting is available in the Selkirk population of northeast Washington, but elk numbers there are lower. research Lets start with the Over-the-counter (OTC) rifle hunts. It contains the best decoys to pack plus how and where to use them. That being said, GMU 16, which is divided into subunits A-E, has more high-demand hunts than most other units. Mark as many of these off-road locales as you can; this way you can bounce in and out of areas quickly. Each unit has varying draw odds. Even when it sucks, you just gotta keep putting one foot in front of the other,my hunting partner and hardcore elk nut J.C. Navarro once told me. You can unsubscribe at any time. South Elk Ridge: Good roads on mesa tops, limited access to rugged canyons, great area for pack-in hunts (Dark Canyon). Limited hunting pressure, good genetics and solid herd management all amount to some of the West's finest wapiti hunting. Beginner Guide to Reloading - What equipment did you upgrade early on. Here, elevations range from 2,200 to 9,200 feet. By removing the number of hunters that participate in cow elk hunts from the total, we get a more accurate estimate of OTC rifle hunters and harvest data, but have to assume the OTC Rifle Hunters hunt the same number of days as all hunters in the harvest report that lists all elk taken during the 2nd or 3rd rifle seasons. 10 Tips for a Better Over-the-Counter Elk Hunt | GearJunkie Let's dig in. Joined Jun 30, 2010 Messages 2,810. 2023 Jordan Outdoor Enterprises, Ltd. All rights reserved. by The top 23 units ranked by hunter success accounted for 37% of all Bull Elk Harvested for the last three OTC 2nd rifle seasons. You can research population estimates in the Herd Management Plans (DAU Reports AKA Data Analysis Units) or you can see how many elk were harvested in the past and see the hunter success and the amount of hunting pressure. GMU 16 A-E covers a large area of southwest New Mexico, he added. You Didn't Draw a Tag, Now What? Over-the-Counter Hunting - onX There are two types of OTC Archery Elk Tags; Either Sex or Bull Elk Only. For the first time, pre-draw and post-draw information, and license quotas have been combined into a single, easy to read layout. Sign up to receive GearJunkie content direct to your inbox. If you don't have access to GOHUNT Maps yet, you can either sign up for Insider or purchase our maps-only membership Explorer. I got to a wide spot in the road and realized I couldnt get any further. Are OTC licenses available for both deer and elk? One of the first things I like to look at on Unit Profiles is the actual written narrative. Top 3 States for Over the Counter Elk Hunting with Joe Griffin Western Hunting | 5 Key Prep Tips that Eastern Hunters Need to Know How to Find Better Big Game Hunting Spots with E-Scouting Backcountry Glassing | The Tools and Strategies for Western Hunting HuntWise: The Toolset for Western Hunters Hunter Bags Giant Elk in Colorado OTC Area - Bowhunting.com For hunter success (right side of Table 1), I limited units to those where bull elk were harvest averaged at least 18 for the unit. White Pine County is in the top three counties for Boone and Crockett record-book submissions, said Ashley Sanchez of Nevada's Department of Wildlife. Is it something obvious like a high hunter number or easy access? Terrains range from steep, rugged mountains with deep canyons to rolling grasslands and semidesert. You hunt unit 31? Here, hunters can anticipate mostly mountainous terrain and elevations ranging from 1,400 to 4,000 feet. I guess "best" unit was the wrong way to put it I was just curious if those would be good ones for a first time Elk Hunter. Hunt Elk in Colorado with Over-the-Counter Elk Tags in 2022 DIY Elk Hunting Guide - Everything You Need To Know Daryl Meints of the Idaho Department of Fish and Game said, We don't 'hot spot' hunting opportunities in Idaho because we still offer general OTC, unlimited hunting opportunities. It was a tough lesson learned and hopefully my story will help others to be better prepared when they find success on the mountain. The low cost of licenses, large herds, and a really incredible make Colorado the state where more elk hunters flock each year . GMU 36 annually has one of the highest success rates, said James Pitman, assistant chief of information with New Mexico's Department of Game and Fish. Notice the 13 hi-lighted units on both side of Table 2. Thread starter Ryan2388; Start date Jun 2, 2015; Jun 2, 2015 #1 Ryan2388 Member.
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