Colorado Elk Hunting

[SNEAKYTHUNDERCAT]

Howdy beasts. I'm heading out to Colorado this year for a 3rd season rifle hunt in unit 18. First time heading out there and in need of some guidence. Kind of a long shot, but, not sure if anyone on the forum is familiar with the area. Will be camping right south of Rand, hunting around Sheep Mountain. from what I've gathered unit 18 has a ton of hunting pressure, but also has a lot of elk. Besides souting via google earth/OnX I don't know the area. I have somewhat of a game plan put together from watching Randy Newberg's E-series videos on Youtube. I've never been out there so I do not really know what to expect. Any info about the area, or tips on finding late season elk in the mountains would be much appreciated. Not looking for anybody's honey hole or anything, just wanting to get eyes on some elk, and to try and up my odds of bringing some meat home to Iowa to fill the freezer.

[First Sit]

3rd is one of my favorite seasons to hunt Elk in CO. Elk especially bulls will be mainly focused on sanctuary. They know the areas they can avoid people and will seek them out and spend the duration of hunting season in those areas unless they are bumped out by hunters. They typically do not move a lot in daylight especially outside of the timber or cover. Most of the older age class bulls will probably be solo or in a bachelor group. You might see a decent bull with a herd of cows but your most likely going to see raghorns and spikes. If you get fresh snow tracking is highly effective. In 3rd I glass, still hunt, and track depending on conditions and area I'm in. Don't get discouraged if you see a pile of hunters I've seen bulls out feeding 1/2 mi just out of sight of a road that had a 4 wheeler ripping down every 15 min. Most of those guys never saw an Elk. 10% of the hunters kill 90% of the elk you have to want it and be willing to work for it hunt smart and keep a positive attitude. Elk hunting is hard on your body and mind.

[Uncle Lou]

Listen to First Sit, he knows what he is talking about. I will just say good luck. The mountains can/will humble you, have fun, learn something, and hunt hard.

[SNEAKYTHUNDERCAT]

3rd is one of my favorite seasons to hunt Elk in CO. Elk especially bulls will be mainly focused on sanctuary. They know the areas they can avoid people and will seek them out and spend the duration of hunting season in those areas unless they are bumped out by hunters. They typically do not move a lot in daylight especially outside of the timber or cover. Most of the older age class bulls will probably be solo or in a bachelor group. You might see a decent bull with a herd of cows but your most likely going to see raghorns and spikes. If you get fresh snow tracking is highly effective. In 3rd I glass, still hunt, and track depending on conditions and area I'm in. Don't get discouraged if you see a pile of hunters I've seen bulls out feeding 1/2 mi just out of sight of a road that had a 4 wheeler ripping down every 15 min. Most of those guys never saw an Elk. 10% of the hunters kill 90% of the elk you have to want it and be willing to work for it hunt smart and keep a positive attitude. Elk hunting is hard on your body and mind.

do you typically just find a high spot and glass morning/evening? And what kind of terrain are youtypically looking for when you glass? Not super sure on what defines a sancturary besides somewhere where people dont usually go, and Im not confident in identifying those places. Ive been told to look for grassy areas and avalanch chutes, is there anything else i should keep an eye on?

[AfootTrack56]

3rd is one of my favorite seasons to hunt Elk in CO. Elk especially bulls will be mainly focused on sanctuary. They know the areas they can avoid people and will seek them out and spend the duration of hunting season in those areas unless they are bumped out by hunters. They typically do not move a lot in daylight especially outside of the timber or cover. Most of the older age class bulls will probably be solo or in a bachelor group. You might see a decent bull with a herd of cows but your most likely going to see raghorns and spikes. If you get fresh snow tracking is highly effective. In 3rd I glass, still hunt, and track depending on conditions and area I'm in. Don't get discouraged if you see a pile of hunters I've seen bulls out feeding 1/2 mi just out of sight of a road that had a 4 wheeler ripping down every 15 min. Most of those guys never saw an Elk. 10% of the hunters kill 90% of the elk you have to want it and be willing to work for it hunt smart and keep a positive attitude. Elk hunting is hard on your body and mind.

do you typically just find a high spot and glass morning/evening? And what kind of terrain are youtypically looking for when you glass? Not super sure on what defines a sancturary besides somewhere where people dont usually go, and Im not confident in identifying those places. Ive been told to look for grassy areas and avalanch chutes, is there anything else i should keep an eye on?

You’re gonna be looking for areas that are hard to access, aren’t visible from the road, or thick areas you will have a hard time glassing in. If that has some feed for them, you’ll be on elk. Burn areas are a good source of food for elk, hunting the edges will get you in position to see em. Some bulls will stay higher up on the mountain later than you think. Wind blowing over high ridges will clear off some snow so they won’t have to work as hard for the food. If snow gets really deep, it’ll push them down. If you see an area that makes you doubt your sanity and willingness to pack a bull out, you are probably looking at a good place to hunt. The sooner you wrap your mind around the fact that it’s gonna be a lot of grunt work, the sooner you’ll find yourself on elk. Odds are, you’ll only be there for a week or so. Why not go all in and give it 100%. Even if you don’t tag one, you’ll know you gave it your full effort. Just have fun and soak it all in.

[SNEAKYTHUNDERCAT]

3rd is one of my favorite seasons to hunt Elk in CO. Elk especially bulls will be mainly focused on sanctuary. They know the areas they can avoid people and will seek them out and spend the duration of hunting season in those areas unless they are bumped out by hunters. They typically do not move a lot in daylight especially outside of the timber or cover. Most of the older age class bulls will probably be solo or in a bachelor group. You might see a decent bull with a herd of cows but your most likely going to see raghorns and spikes. If you get fresh snow tracking is highly effective. In 3rd I glass, still hunt, and track depending on conditions and area I'm in. Don't get discouraged if you see a pile of hunters I've seen bulls out feeding 1/2 mi just out of sight of a road that had a 4 wheeler ripping down every 15 min. Most of those guys never saw an Elk. 10% of the hunters kill 90% of the elk you have to want it and be willing to work for it hunt smart and keep a positive attitude. Elk hunting is hard on your body and mind.

do you typically just find a high spot and glass morning/evening? And what kind of terrain are youtypically looking for when you glass? Not super sure on what defines a sancturary besides somewhere where people dont usually go, and Im not confident in identifying those places. Ive been told to look for grassy areas and avalanch chutes, is there anything else i should keep an eye on?

You’re gonna be looking for areas that are hard to access, aren’t visible from the road, or thick areas you will have a hard time glassing in. If that has some feed for them, you’ll be on elk. Burn areas are a good source of food for elk, hunting the edges will get you in position to see em. Some bulls will stay higher up on the mountain later than you think. Wind blowing over high ridges will clear off some snow so they won’t have to work as hard for the food. If snow gets really deep, it’ll push them down. If you see an area that makes you doubt your sanity and willingness to pack a bull out, you are probably looking at a good place to hunt. The sooner you wrap your mind around the fact that it’s gonna be a lot of grunt work, the sooner you’ll find yourself on elk. Odds are, you’ll only be there for a week or so. Why not go all in and give it 100%. Even if you don’t tag one, you’ll know you gave it your full effort. Just have fun and soak it all in.

I’ve read burns are a good place to look. What about timber cuts? I’ve heard mixed things about them. There is only a small 6 acre burn in the area that I am going, but it’s always off the beaten path. Tons of timber cuts from 2-6 years ago. It is next to some farmland, lots of water around the cut areas, a fair amount of access, but there are some deep spots in there. Any recommendations?

[AfootTrack56]

Timber cuts too. Any disruption to the canopy. As long as it opens up the trees and lets sun in so grass can grow. Older timber cuts will be thicker but if it is close to a newer one with better feed, they may bed on the edges of the thick one and move to the nearby food. Don’t overlook the 6 acre burn. You only need one bull. He just may be using it. A lot of guys that like burns may just dismiss it cuz it’s so small. You can always walk around meadows and look for a set of tracks to follow. If you can stay on it, eventually he’ll lead you to his hideout. And maybe other bulls. If it’s close to farmland, you can bet they’ll use it. There will also be other hunters right along the fence. Smart bulls will be away from the fields long before shooting light. Look at the lay of the land and try to figure the best route from the farms to secluded pockets that a bull might want to hang out in. Set up on a high point overlooking the entrance into those secluded spots along the suspected travel route and glass. Also, If he’s traveling to the fields, he’ll be leaving tracks along his route. So multiple sets of big tracks back and forth in those areas could tell you he’s in there. That may be your ticket.

[WidowMaker77]

I went out This year to clerk Colorado which is unit 14 by Steamboat Springs overall it was a great time for me i talked to several other hunters that never heard a thing while me and two other guys we’re on bulls every single day for the five days hunting. we had four decent opportunities and overall it was a great time and we never went over a mile from the road
Day 1 called in a 5x5 to 12 yrds but wasn’t positioned correctly for a shot
Day 2 called a cow and spike in. I took a 35 yard shot straight on before she bolted and didn’t find 1 drop of blood. Grid searched for 4 hrs with no luck
Day 3 called in a 5x6 to 65 yards and no shot ( buddies using a recurve)
Day 4 chased bulls but never had encounter
Day 5 called bull into 38 yards and my buddy shot just under with his recurve.
Left day 6

Overall great time, weren’t to hot on cow calls but did respond to them just never came in. Really only came in when I challenge bugles them after they responded to cow calls

We went from sept 14-21 diy public land

[fishlips]

3rd is one of my favorite seasons to hunt Elk in CO. Elk especially bulls will be mainly focused on sanctuary. They know the areas they can avoid people and will seek them out and spend the duration of hunting season in those areas unless they are bumped out by hunters. They typically do not move a lot in daylight especially outside of the timber or cover. Most of the older age class bulls will probably be solo or in a bachelor group. You might see a decent bull with a herd of cows but your most likely going to see raghorns and spikes. If you get fresh snow tracking is highly effective. In 3rd I glass, still hunt, and track depending on conditions and area I'm in. Don't get discouraged if you see a pile of hunters I've seen bulls out feeding 1/2 mi just out of sight of a road that had a 4 wheeler ripping down every 15 min. Most of those guys never saw an Elk. 10% of the hunters kill 90% of the elk you have to want it and be willing to work for it hunt smart and keep a positive attitude. Elk hunting is hard on your body and mind.

do you typically just find a high spot and glass morning/evening? And what kind of terrain are youtypically looking for when you glass? Not super sure on what defines a sancturary besides somewhere where people dont usually go, and Im not confident in identifying those places. Ive been told to look for grassy areas and avalanch chutes, is there anything else i should keep an eye on?

I've hunted 1st and 2nd rifle season, but not 3rd. Glassing it helps to get in a good high vantage point. last time out the first elk I spotted were 2 miles out (learned the hard way that good glass would have been nice to have there). had to get a move on to get over to them.

Biggest bull i saw was running around with a rag horn and moving ar very first light. He was heading right into dark timber on a north facing slope. pretty common to read about these exact areas on other forums. didn't figure out how to hunt that stuff but they are in there.

[FRH]

I went out This year to clerk Colorado which is unit 14 by Steamboat Springs overall it was a great time for me i talked to several other hunters that never heard a thing while me and two other guys we’re on bulls every single day for the five days hunting. we had four decent opportunities and overall it was a great time and we never went over a mile from the road
Day 1 called in a 5x5 to 12 yrds but wasn’t positioned correctly for a shot
Day 2 called a cow and spike in. I took a 35 yard shot straight on before she bolted and didn’t find 1 drop of blood. Grid searched for 4 hrs with no luck
Day 3 called in a 5x6 to 65 yards and no shot ( buddies using a recurve)
Day 4 chased bulls but never had encounter
Day 5 called bull into 38 yards and my buddy shot just under with his recurve.
Left day 6

Overall great time, weren’t to hot on cow calls but did respond to them just never came in. Really only came in when I challenge bugles them after they responded to cow calls

We went from sept 14-21 diy public land

This was my first time elk hunting. Me and a buddy were also hunting out of Clark. Got into a couple cows and a bull 1 day but that was it for us. We were out there opening week. It was definitely a learning experience, and after stopping at the glen one night for dinner we got some tips from Chris which is how we ended up getting on the elk. Cool country and a fun hunt.

[FRH]

I went out This year to clerk Colorado which is unit 14 by Steamboat Springs overall it was a great time for me i talked to several other hunters that never heard a thing while me and two other guys we’re on bulls every single day for the five days hunting. we had four decent opportunities and overall it was a great time and we never went over a mile from the road
Day 1 called in a 5x5 to 12 yrds but wasn’t positioned correctly for a shot
Day 2 called a cow and spike in. I took a 35 yard shot straight on before she bolted and didn’t find 1 drop of blood. Grid searched for 4 hrs with no luck
Day 3 called in a 5x6 to 65 yards and no shot ( buddies using a recurve)
Day 4 chased bulls but never had encounter
Day 5 called bull into 38 yards and my buddy shot just under with his recurve.
Left day 6

Overall great time, weren’t to hot on cow calls but did respond to them just never came in. Really only came in when I challenge bugles them after they responded to cow calls

We went from sept 14-21 diy public land

This was my first time elk hunting. Me and a buddy were also hunting out of Clark. Got into a couple cows and a bull 1 day but that was it for us. We were out there opening week. It was definitely a learning experience, and after stopping at the glen one night for dinner we got some tips from Chris which is how we ended up getting on the elk. Cool country and a fun hunt.

[WidowMaker77]

I went out This year to clerk Colorado which is unit 14 by Steamboat Springs overall it was a great time for me i talked to several other hunters that never heard a thing while me and two other guys we’re on bulls every single day for the five days hunting. we had four decent opportunities and overall it was a great time and we never went over a mile from the road
Day 1 called in a 5x5 to 12 yrds but wasn’t positioned correctly for a shot
Day 2 called a cow and spike in. I took a 35 yard shot straight on before she bolted and didn’t find 1 drop of blood. Grid searched for 4 hrs with no luck
Day 3 called in a 5x6 to 65 yards and no shot ( buddies using a recurve)
Day 4 chased bulls but never had encounter
Day 5 called bull into 38 yards and my buddy shot just under with his recurve.
Left day 6

Overall great time, weren’t to hot on cow calls but did respond to them just never came in. Really only came in when I challenge bugles them after they responded to cow calls

We went from sept 14-21 diy public land

This was my first time elk hunting. Me and a buddy were also hunting out of Clark. Got into a couple cows and a bull 1 day but that was it for us. We were out there opening week. It was definitely a learning experience, and after stopping at the glen one night for dinner we got some tips from Chris which is how we ended up getting on the elk. Cool country and a fun hunt.

Ya It' quite the experience. I'm going To try and go back soon. We literally just found parks, glassed, and thought of all the overlooked spots hunting wern't trying. And that's how we ending up on them. Were you off seedhouse?

[FRH]

I went out This year to clerk Colorado which is unit 14 by Steamboat Springs overall it was a great time for me i talked to several other hunters that never heard a thing while me and two other guys we’re on bulls every single day for the five days hunting. we had four decent opportunities and overall it was a great time and we never went over a mile from the road
Day 1 called in a 5x5 to 12 yrds but wasn’t positioned correctly for a shot
Day 2 called a cow and spike in. I took a 35 yard shot straight on before she bolted and didn’t find 1 drop of blood. Grid searched for 4 hrs with no luck
Day 3 called in a 5x6 to 65 yards and no shot ( buddies using a recurve)
Day 4 chased bulls but never had encounter
Day 5 called bull into 38 yards and my buddy shot just under with his recurve.
Left day 6

Overall great time, weren’t to hot on cow calls but did respond to them just never came in. Really only came in when I challenge bugles them after they responded to cow calls

We went from sept 14-21 diy public land

This was my first time elk hunting. Me and a buddy were also hunting out of Clark. Got into a couple cows and a bull 1 day but that was it for us. We were out there opening week. It was definitely a learning experience, and after stopping at the glen one night for dinner we got some tips from Chris which is how we ended up getting on the elk. Cool country and a fun hunt.

Ya It' quite the experience. I'm going To try and go back soon. We literally just found parks, glassed, and thought of all the overlooked spots hunting wern't trying. And that's how we ending up on them. Were you off seedhouse?

Yeah, we camped off of 440 but there were cattle everywhere so we tried a couple days around seedhouse but we also drove over to sand mountain area and hunted there a couple days.

[WidowMaker77]

I went out This year to clerk Colorado which is unit 14 by Steamboat Springs overall it was a great time for me i talked to several other hunters that never heard a thing while me and two other guys we’re on bulls every single day for the five days hunting. we had four decent opportunities and overall it was a great time and we never went over a mile from the road
Day 1 called in a 5x5 to 12 yrds but wasn’t positioned correctly for a shot
Day 2 called a cow and spike in. I took a 35 yard shot straight on before she bolted and didn’t find 1 drop of blood. Grid searched for 4 hrs with no luck
Day 3 called in a 5x6 to 65 yards and no shot ( buddies using a recurve)
Day 4 chased bulls but never had encounter
Day 5 called bull into 38 yards and my buddy shot just under with his recurve.
Left day 6

Overall great time, weren’t to hot on cow calls but did respond to them just never came in. Really only came in when I challenge bugles them after they responded to cow calls

We went from sept 14-21 diy public land

This was my first time elk hunting. Me and a buddy were also hunting out of Clark. Got into a couple cows and a bull 1 day but that was it for us. We were out there opening week. It was definitely a learning experience, and after stopping at the glen one night for dinner we got some tips from Chris which is how we ended up getting on the elk. Cool country and a fun hunt.

Ya It' quite the experience. I'm going To try and go back soon. We literally just found parks, glassed, and thought of all the overlooked spots hunting wern't trying. And that's how we ending up on them. Were you off seedhouse?

Yeah, we camped off of 440 but there were cattle everywhere so we tried a couple days around seedhouse but we also drove over to sand mountain area and hunted there a couple days.

I only ran into cattle maybe 1 day, and a total of a 2 guys while walking to our hunting spots but overall it was a blast, sucks to have tag soup on such an expensive tag.

[SNEAKYTHUNDERCAT]

Thanks for the info boys. I leave in a few days ti head out to scout before season starts. Have a handful of spots I plan to look. Will post back and let you guys know if I’m successful! Thanks again!