Colorado elk/GMU advice

[nwihunter]

Ok, so I went on my first western hunt this year. I hunted DIY archery the week after Labor Day in GMU 62. I live in Indiana and have chased white tails for 36 years and have always wanted to go try elk hunting and experience the mountains. The experience was incredible and would like to do this trip every year. I ended up going with a guy that I met on this forum. We never met before this trip. He is a good dude and put a ton of research into this area. I think we were as prepared as possible to hunt an area that we never set foot on before. Google earth. On x. Topo maps. And conversations with a local that hunts the area. We ended up coming home empty handed with basically zero encounters. I get that and don’t have a problem with that. The trip was not a waste. I had a blast, learned a lot, and basically got to live out my dream of hunting in the mountains. I question how I hunted and how I need to approach this hunt next time. Google earth is great but really did not give us an idea of how thick this area was. We went days without any sightings. Not really even a good vantage point to glass from. We resorted to sitting on water, more like white tail hunting tactics, and never saw a thing. The weather was hot and dry so we thought the water would pay off, but there ended up being more small pockets of water scattered around so elk didn’t need to come to some of these more obvious easy to get to spots. When did finally find a good glassing spot and we started finding elk on opposite hillside from us. Us, and the roads and trails were up high and the elk would move down to lower elevations for the day and to bed. We would try to drop down on these elk in the afternoon an wait for them to get out of their beds and move up. The problem was that it was so thick there was no way to drop down without blowing them out. I mean nasty thick stuff. My question is do I go back to this area again since I have an idea of where the elk are and how they move, or do I find another GMU that isn’t as thick. I don’t have an issue with putting on miles or climbing. It’s just this stuff was really almost impossible to hunt effectively. Ideally I would like to hunt the same area every year so I can learn it and have encounters regularly. I’m hunting on an either sex tag so I’m not really looking for areas with trophy potential. I’m just looking for elk in OTC areas. I’m not asking anyone where I should go, just how I should approach this. Also im thinking about jumping into the points game.im 48 years old and would like to buy points in one state until I turn 60. When I turn 60 and retire I want to treat myself to a guided hunt with good trophy potential I should have 12pts by then. I’m open to any state. Just wondering what state you guys with experience would choose In my situation. Looking forward to your responses. Also I am set up to bivy hunt which is what we did.

 

[RidgeRunner76]

Others will differ I'm sure. My honest opinion is stick where you are and learn the area with each trip out. The better you know an area the higher your odds get. I know a ton of guys with 20 years of hunting experience that waste most of their time chasing rumors and have empty walls/freezers to prove it. Just my humble opinion.

 

[nwihunter]

Others will differ I'm sure. My honest opinion is stick where you are and learn the area with each trip out. The better you know an area the higher your odds get. I know a ton of guys with 20 years of hunting experience that waste most of their time chasing rumors and have empty walls/freezers to prove it. Just my humble opinion.

That’s pretty much my way of thinking too. I’m only one hunt into this area though. It would be different if I glassed elk 2 miles away and was able to get to them. This spot is just so tough get through the brush. But I guess their are guys that figure out how to do it in 62.

 

[Muley_Stalker]

I agree completely. I believe so much in it that I have 6 decades on the same unit. There's nothing about the unit that I don't know and I always know where the elk are all year. Of course I ended up living in the unit too which helps, but I was a NR when I started hunting it.

 

[nwihunter]

Yeah that would be the ideal set up. Maybe I just to branch out in 62 and try to find areas that are not as thick. It’s a heavily hunted unit so it can’t all be the jungle I was hunting in. We never saw anybody off of the trails.

 

[CATAHOULA12]

Stick with the area you hunt each time. Obviously that’s a very tuff feat to accomplish as a NR. But really spend the time if you can..

 

[Clambdin]

Stick with your area! You accomplished more than many do on their first trip out there you seen elk,there is a way to get those elk you just need more time and experience to figure it out. I've been hunting elk for 30 years I can tell you most of the elk I've killed have been in the steepest thickest stuff you can find! Pay attention to the thermals in the spot you've found the elk will use them to their advantage!

 

[greentimber]

I don't think the unit you've chosen is the problem. Sounds like you have the opportunity to massively increase your knowledge of elk, their behavior, hunting tactics, etc...

Read, watch, and listen to every word Chris Roe has ever shared on elk hunting
Read, watch, and listen to every word Paul Medel has ever shared on elk hunting
Read, watch, and listen to every word Cory Jacobson has ever shared on elk hunting
And, of course, read, watch, and listen to every word Randy Newberg has ever shared on elk hunting

You don't need to see elk to find them the week after labor day. Good luck. It's worth the study.

 

[JohnCushman]

Not to be a downer, but 62 is one of the most hardest hunted units in the state due to it's close proximity to 61, which is a 'trophy' unit in Colorado. basically cross Divide road between 61 and 62 and you're hunting the same herd with an OTC tag. Keep at it and figure out where the elk go when they're pressured. It might not always be where you think they'd go. Elk are cagey creatures and do what they want when they want. Weather also plays a factor. I would say stick with it in your area until you've patterned them and given it hell.

 

[nrpate05]

Agreed! A friend shot his first elk (a nice 6x6 bull) on a 2nd season hunt in an OTC unit. In my mind this is one of the hardest hunts in the west to kill any elk, due to dates, pressure, etc. He said the only real reason it came together other than putting on tons of miles was that the guy he was hunting with had hunted that unit for more than a decade and came to know it like the back of his hand and got a feel for where the elk went when pressured and where there hidey holes are. Furthermore, I would say to stay mobile especially in your first few years hunting a unit. If you spend your whole hunt in one general area, you may get lucky, but you probably won't learn a ton about the area. If a place isn't working after a day or two, I like to pull the plug and try somewhere new. If nothing else, it can at least boost your morale. Enjoy!

 

[cmbbulldog]

Build points in AZ.

 

[mixedbag]

Go to the same unit 2 weeks later in the archery season and I bet you get a couple close encounters.They are so much easier to locate and formulate a plan for when they are talking alot

 

[Redman]

It is Colorado with the highest elk population in the country so any of the units hold elk. I have hunted one unit for several years and have had good years and bad years and most of it was weather related. Hot years were the bad years. This year I used 4 points to draw a mz tag and in a unit I have never hunted. Saw one bull and killed a cow on the last day. It was a very hot year. I would learn a area but not be afraid to try a new area after a few years.