SteelWool
Member
Drew 54 Muzzleloader elk and any advice on hunting North side by Crested Butte or South end by Gunnison?
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I’ve been in that unit twice, and I must warn you! Get yourself some excellent snake boots! That unit has gotta be the rattlesnake capital of the world! I thought the first time it was just weird but after the second trip I’m convinced! I’d never think of camping in that unit again it’s infested with freaking rattlers! Good luck, get your elk shot, and get the hell outta there!
Man I better just no go.I’ve been in that unit twice, and I must warn you! Get yourself some excellent snake boots! That unit has gotta be the rattlesnake capital of the world! I thought the first time it was just weird but after the second trip I’m convinced! I’d never think of camping in that unit again it’s infested with freaking rattlers! Good luck, get your elk shot, and get the hell outta there!
Never trust a man who says trust me.Trust me I was once a world champion rattle snake tamer, I know a rattlesnake when I see one!!!! Good Luck my man!
I hunted it once. Never saw a snake and the weather was nice. The unit gets a fair amount of pressure and there's a pretty decent outfitter presence that can affect your locations (learn those spots where the outfitters stay). Get in shape. That's one heckuva beautiful unit, but between the elevation and the terrain, you'll want to be in good shape. Have fun!
All, hoping to start up another Colorado gmu 54 thread For 2020 - rather than start new I thought I would revive one. I think I have read most of the previous threads on 54 And have so far spent a decent amount of time e scouting. Most threads from the last 4 years aren’t overly positive on the unit - hoping that’s to my advantage.
I drew a first rifle bull elk tag and will be going with a buddy that drew a cow tag. We are both adult onset hunters and haven’t succeeded in harvesting an elk yet - but each year we get more motivated and learn more - definitely didn’t deserve to get one the first few years we tried! We have hunted different areas each year which doesn’t help and I have never been to 54. (Last year we hunted 64 first rifle and 371 later season and a few others in prior years) In any case we are rather motivated and willing (Prefer in fact) to go places that are gnarly and steep. But I am worried there’s so much advice out there to go where other people won’t that everyone is gonna do that! Plus 54 is big and I will probably only manage to finagle 3 full hunt days and a day before season scout from the wife and kids. Any first hand intel thats from the last few years would be GREATLY appreciated! Please shoot me a pm if you would be willing to offer any specifics.
My experience in that unit is that finding the elk isn't necessarily the issue, it's getting in a position to make a shot. On multiple occasions I ended up with either a 500 yard cross canyon shot or was forced to sneak in really close, which ,in that country could take hours. Certainly doesn't make it easy. Glad to hear you enjoyed it!Came home empty handed, but it was a very enjoyable, and grueling hunt! We saw plenty of elk and a few excellent bulls. I'd camped out about 1000 yards out from a big fellow the night before opener - he kept me up with his bugling. But I started my stalk in AFTER glassing light to check if there were any cows between that I might blow out, and on my way in another guy, that I didn't know was in the area, shot that one.
We got on another nice bull later in the hunt but just weren't quite able to connect. He was in some super gnarly stuff (gnarly even for that area) had cliffs at his back and the approach was hard to manage. By the last stalk I was so wiped out that I had no business shooting an elk at that point. There's a lot of people in that unit, so even though it's big and steep, we still saw plenty of other people in places I wouldn't have expected to see anyone.
Yeah, there is some rough country there. When I hunted it, I found that there were places that I had planned on checking out, that I just ruled out completely, in person, between the terrain and the elevation. Some very rough country in 54, but the scenery is just amazing!My experience in that unit is that finding the elk isn't necessarily the issue, it's getting in a position to make a shot. On multiple occasions I ended up with either a 500 yard cross canyon shot or was forced to sneak in really close, which ,in that country could take hours. Certainly doesn't make it easy. Glad to hear you enjoyed it!