8 days and counting. Hoping the critters stay on their routine. Will be in camp on the 26th for the weekend. Nice to only have to travel 2 hours to a elk hunting spot.
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Not going for 55 days I wasn't brave enough to try bow on my first trip to Colorado maybe next year. If you guys know anything about first rifle in GMU 4 I appreciate any help I can get.Comment
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You and I both though I'll be in 54. Except I'm packing in 4 days early to do my scouting since it's so far.Originally posted by ownels View PostComment
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4 is good. The crowd in rifle season is bad though. The area around the road heading up to black mountain is a good place to start.Originally posted by ownels View Post
I like to go up the trail from freeman reservoir. Go to the far east side of the loop of the camp spots. By the rest room, The trail head is there. (Also a great place to make camp, the fishing is good off the dam.) Follow it a couple hundred yards go through the green gate, Then about 3/4 mile up the trail it will T go right. a mile or so from the T is some beaver ponds. That is a pretty good area around that.
I would go up from there. Killed my first bull with a bow up there. Or keep going in further on trail we have killed a few bulls in that area.
Years ago I saw the biggest mule deer buck I have ever seen there. Good luck! After you deal with the crowds in rifle you will start liking the idea of bow hunting elk a lot more.
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Good general info for rifle hunting.Comment
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Does anyone have any info on rifle in GMU 12? I have been researching extensively and the consensus is to go further off the roads, get away from others, hunt in the stuff no one else wants to hunt in (deep and steep ravines and drainages, dark timber, etc.). I am also wondering on etiquette for camp, can we spike camp in say 2 miles anywhere? Will people mess with your vehicles at the trailhead? From what I have been reading the Elk need food, shelter, and water. If you can find where they have all three, you should be able to find elk. Any other recommendations or tips not already in this thread?Comment
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No experience in 12, but I personally have never had anyone mess with my gear, but I don't leave Yetis and bows laying around either. Go to the Colorado Hunting Atlas and look at areas that don't have trails. Then look at them via google earth to see what kind of vegetation and also glassing points. Depending on time frame of the year, glass glass and glass some more. I have only rifle hunted elk one time, it is a lot like mule deer hunting IMO. Good luck!Comment
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We won't be in this unit but will be in the unit the other videos came from.
Packing tomorrow, will leave around 5am Wednesday and crawl into a sleeping bag around 10pm in the mountains.Comment
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Awesome. We are a week behind you. Good luck George!!!!Originally posted by old killer View PostComment
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What are the rules for taking wild game meat into camp in CO? I was planning on taking up some axis meat and don't want to have a backstrap over the fire when the GW comes strolling up and him think I stuck one of those tempting muleys. I package my own stuff so there would just be an empty freezer bag. Any suggestions?Comment
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Ive hunted 12 twice. It has been several years ago, but took a 5x5 bull both trips. The last bull I killed with a rifle was there about 12 years ago.Originally posted by Big Ace View Post
We hunted in between yellow jacket pass and sleepy cat pass. Lots of elk there. Go hard the first day and stay out all day, it will be your best chance as the amount of hunters will have them running everywhere. It will probably sound like a war zone. The days after they will be harder to find. The first time I went I heard at least 40 shots opening morning. I shot a bull at about 10 o clock, he went down about 40 yards from another guys bull that morning. It was crazy. I saw one nice bull killed that went a little over 300" the rest I saw killed were from 230" - 280" and lots of them. I seen more dead elk in the back of trucks going down the second day than I thouhgt was possible. One of the trucks had 4 hunters with 4 bulls! That was first season rifle. We had 6 in our camp, but I was the only one to kill one.
I would go in early in the dark. They will use the drainage's as escape routes going down toward private land. They would come off the top as people move around up there. Get down in one where you can see a ways and wait.
If it snows a lot go to lower country.
The second time I went was third season rifle. We used Bar H outfitters for a drop camp. Good people and they set us up a great camp 14 miles in. It snowed 4 feet after we got to our drop camp. We were lucky to make it 500 yards from camp in that stuff. Sucked. Most of the elk moved down and we were stuck up high. After 5 days of that, they finally came with the horses and got us out. We hunted lower ground not far from their ranch house the last 2 days with about a foot and a half of snow and I was able to kill a bull on the last day a bout a mile and a half off the road. Again, out of 5 of us I was the only one in our group to get one.
I wouldn't mind going back there sometime for archery. It would be a fun hunt due to the high elk numbers, but big bulls are rare and it takes a few points to draw it. Now I had rather use my points where there may be less elk but the possibility of a big one. Good luck!
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I have never had a problem with that. No rules against it from my knowledge. I wouldn't worry about it.Originally posted by makotex View PostComment
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So three friends and I are going to make a trip next year. Want to do a drop camp. Gonna need to do a state that either sells OTC or has a pretty near guaranteed draw like Montana. I need some outfitter recommendations. Someone you or a person you personally know have hunted with. Looking at Two Bear Outfitters in Hamilton Montana but since I'm the point man on this I want to take the crew to a place where there are elk and the outfitter is legit.Comment
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this thought occurred to me as well. Glad it's not an issue.Originally posted by makotex View Post
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