kbhillhunter
Active member
Hey all - heading out to Colorado for first rifle season next fall. We have settled on Unit 4, elkhead mountains of Routt National Forest. I've been desktop scouting for a few weeks now (Colorado Hunting Atlas, Google Earth). Looks like the majority of the unit is around 8500-9500 with a handful of mountains that peak around 10500/10800.
Is this elevation going to hold a lot of elk during the first rifle season? To me, it seems kind of low when I compare it to what I read, which suggests the elk tend to hangout much higher until a meaningful snowfall occurs. From what I have been reading, the past few years have had very mild-falls. The entire region falls within the summer concentration range (as per the Colorado Hunting Atlas) and the migration routes head towards the winter concentration areas which are in the private lands that completely surround the national forest boundary.
Judging by the 2015 harvest and herd data, there are for sure a lot of elk in there, but I am unsure how much of that harvest occurred on private lands, and what kind of movement to expect at those low elevations. I wont have a chance to get boots on the ground until a day or two before the hunt so trying to do what I can from the desk for now!
Is this elevation going to hold a lot of elk during the first rifle season? To me, it seems kind of low when I compare it to what I read, which suggests the elk tend to hangout much higher until a meaningful snowfall occurs. From what I have been reading, the past few years have had very mild-falls. The entire region falls within the summer concentration range (as per the Colorado Hunting Atlas) and the migration routes head towards the winter concentration areas which are in the private lands that completely surround the national forest boundary.
Judging by the 2015 harvest and herd data, there are for sure a lot of elk in there, but I am unsure how much of that harvest occurred on private lands, and what kind of movement to expect at those low elevations. I wont have a chance to get boots on the ground until a day or two before the hunt so trying to do what I can from the desk for now!