Colorado Unit 61…

[utah400elk]

We dropped down the canyon to find the cow. We didn’t want to push the buck and hoped we might get another chance at him. The picture does not do him real justice but he was absolutely huge and I would guess north of 190. His fronts were even better than his backs.

Dropping about 600 vertical feet and about 3/4 of a mile, we quickly located his cow.

It was cold and his second shot had been perfect. The cow had only gone 25 yards after the second shot. I think they heard the elk rolling down a steep bank and thought it was running off.

 

[utah400elk]

We quickly began processing the cow and we taught him the gutless method…(warning for a bit of gore).

 

[utah400elk]

We were packed and out by 12:00. The elk was perfect and we didn’t loose any meat.

My friend and his son had to leave that day so I was solo for the rest of the week. I was extremely hopeful for the big bear to show up on the kill. The bear and the buck were my only focus for 2 1/2 days remaining.

 

[utah400elk]

I repeated the day for the next two and a half days. I would glass early for the buck then move to a spot about 250 yards away from the kill.

I visited the kill the first night to lock down the location and things looked awesome.

Clearly a bear had already been to the kill. And it was big!

This is my size 12 boot next to the track.

 

[utah400elk]

Just a spoiler to kill the suspense. I didn’t see the buck again and never saw the bear.

Two and a half days of glassing and waiting. There was some fun…

This doe fed to within 8 feet of me while I was waiting for the bear.

Several times I had deer come close but not the big buck or the bear. The size of the track kept me hoping but…no joy for me.

 

[utah400elk]

I saw a few more bucks in the 24 inch range but never the big buck. I passed on all of them holding out hope for the bigger buck or the bear.

 

[utah400elk]

I ended up eating tag soup but had a great time.

A few take away and a few more pics…

I was really shocked at how many elk I saw. They were literally in every canyon I looked into in 61.

I watched several herds move across the devide road and walk into 62. If I had the muzzleloader bull tag in 62 I could have shot three different bulls. That said, I would not bet on that strategy.

Quads and E Bikes were a real issue on this hunt. They were everywhere and we ran into E-Bike and tracks on most trails.

I was shocked at the lack of deer. Given the 13 points it took for me to draw, I would have thought we would see more deer. If I glassed all day, I bet I would see 25 deer. Given the size of the country and the quality of the habitat, I would expect to see a lot more. Also, even though I did see two good bucks (the one is great in my book). We mostly saw smallish 2X2s and 2X3s. It was a let down and not worth the points compared to other Colorado units.

There are a ton of bear and grouse in the unit. I plan on trying to go back for both.

This will probably be the last big western hunt for Christian and I for a few years. He had a blast and he really wants to keep hunting but with college, college sports and life, it will be almost impossible for him for the next few years.

It is shocking how fast time flies. He has had a ton of great adventures with me and I wouldn’t change them for the world. He has hunted UT, NM, CO (twice), TX, and FL (claiming two elk himself) He has deep sea fished off Kona and Kauai (catching Tuna and Ono with numerous Marlin strikes but none landed.



A little IN-N-OUT….for those who know, you know!

And a sunset on the hunt!



Good luck this fall everybody. Please be safe and enjoy!

 

[kansasdad]

A very fine adventure!

I enjoyed the story and photos

 

[brownbear932008]

Looks like you guys had a grand time successful hunts don't always end with a punched tag.

 

[ashersdad]

Way to stick it out and not settle. Looks like a great time was had and that's what matters.

 

[kiwi hunter]

That was a wicked buck, itll haunt you forever. Certainly nice easy country, just right for an old codger like me. Thanks for write up.

 

[gburk]

Great writeup and congrats on a great trip. Thanks for sharing.
Are there any good theories about the low deer numbers there?
Good call holding out for the big one IMO.

 

[accubond]

Really fun to follow, thanks for taking the time to share.

 

[utah400elk]

I believe it’s a combo of the bad winter (a couple years ago) and not prioritizing deer. The Game Warden told me they focus on the elk. It really is awesome deer country and there should be a lot more deer.

I really think they should do a special management type hunt for elk. I saw a lot of bulls with cows that nobody that waited the time it takes to draw would probably shoot. The one bigger bull I posted was a great example. There were a lot of bulls that were smaller pushing cows. Definitely sub 270 class and the elk density is really insane.

 

[BraidenR]

This was a fun recap, I didnt follow along but stumbled across it last night.

I am suprised by the man and 4 wheeler experience. The couple trips I have made to CO have only provided me with coming across genuinly nice and respectful folks.

 

[gburk]

I believe it’s a combo of the bad winter (a couple years ago) and not prioritizing deer. The Game Warden told me they focus on the elk. It really is awesome deer country and there should be a lot more deer.

I really think they should do a special management type hunt for elk. I saw a lot of bulls with cows that nobody that waited the time it takes to draw would probably shoot. The one bigger bull I posted was a great example. There were a lot of bulls that were smaller pushing cows. Definitely sub 270 class and the elk density is really insane.

Interesting - i wonder what “focus on elk” actually means besides recognizing the fact that they’re paying the bills...

We were there in like 2019 and saw low deer density too, fwiw. Admittedly the survey was somewhat unscientific

I recall we talked with some locals up on divide rd and they were shocked and amused that we drove all the way from Texas for a deer.

 

[accubond]

Interesting - i wonder what “focus on elk” actually means besides recognizing the fact that they’re paying the bills...

We were there in like 2019 and saw low deer density too, fwiw. Admittedly the survey was somewhat unscientific

I recall we talked with some locals up on divide rd and they were shocked and amused that we drove all the way from Texas for a deer.

Here is a chart of CO's deer and elk populations over the last 20ish years, this is far from just a unit 61 issue. When it comes to deer in CO the general rule of thumb is it takes twice the points for half the hunt with very few exceptions. The flip side to that, as seen in the chart, is it's the opposite for elk. My experience in the field in various units across CO in the same timeframe matches this chart perfectly.