How was your NW Colorado elk hunt?
Contributors to this thread:Elk
From: Aspen Ghost
15-Feb-24
We all heard a lot about last winter's severe winter kill in NW Colorado. Specifically the Bears Ears and White River DAUs were said to be very hard hit.
So how did your elk hunt go for any of you that hunted units within the Bears Ears and White River DAUs? Were elk numbers down significantly? No need to mention specific units. I'm just trying to get a feel for how the general elk population in the entire area was impacted.
From: Jaquomo
15-Feb-24
I can't speak to Bears Ears DAU but I hunted just across the border on the WY side, and the elk numbers were grim compared to past years. I kept in touch with several other experienced bowhunters who also hunted that area this season, who have hunted it several times in the past, and everyone had the same story.
I moved to a different area where the elk wintered north and east, and elk numbers seemed somewhat normal, although locals told me there was pretty good winterkill on that winter range as well.
From: cnelk
15-Feb-24
Just wait until the Regs come out and you'll see how much the numbers are down. No more OTC rifle for some units is on the way
From: cnelk
15-Feb-24
From: huntabsarokee
15-Feb-24
You saying a $2000 Wyoming special app was a bad idea for southern general region?
From: Orion
15-Feb-24
Wrong state huntabsarokee
From: Jaquomo
15-Feb-24
Absarokee, wasting a week last year in what used to be a great area with the "lower priced special was a bummer, because I believed I could find the elk. So did the other guys in the area. I did manage to have a good hunt in another area after I cashed in and left.
From: huntabsarokee
16-Feb-24
Thanks Jac, I have hunted both states but spots are close to each other. Understood May have to move away from the nw Colorado but this post is why I didn’t cash Colorado points and head back north of Steamboat.
From: wytex
16-Feb-24
pm sent Jac.
From: FORESTBOWS
17-Feb-24
We found no winter kill in our area.
From: Matte
17-Feb-24
Winter kill was so bad in an area I have hunted for two decades that are private hay fields. In the past Elk seen averaged between around 80. Last year 2 bulls 5 cows in 10 days.
From: FORESTBOWS
17-Feb-24
Where was that?
From: Bent arrow
17-Feb-24
Hunted 12,23,24. Saw 3 elk. Used to guide in this area. Worse i have ever seen. No sign. No animals. Should close down for couple seasons. Many disgruntled hunters.
From: Danbow
17-Feb-24
Also hunted 12 23 24 terrible! Talked to warden out of Meeker and he said 40 percent winter kill. Hunted same area's 4 years prior and it was . Elk we did find were low in oak brush.
From: Paul@thefort
17-Feb-24
Glad I did not draw 12-23-24 last year. Should draw this season with two PP. Will be interesting what I observe. I usually hunt all season way off the road and stay 10 days at a time, been successful 5 times. All it will takes is one bull , wait and see. Paul
From: Brun
17-Feb-24
I guided Pronghorn, Deer, and Elk for 10 weeks in units 3 and 4 from archery through 3rd rifle season. I feel the amount of time in the field by me and numerous guides I work with is a pretty big sample size for those areas. Our general feeling was that unsurprisingly Pronghorn numbers were hurt the worst. We felt that we were seeing approx. 25% of usual numbers. We felt that elk numbers were down by about 50%. We felt the deer were about 60% of previous years. This surprised me as I expected their situation to be worse due to their smaller size. The biggest surprise and only positive factor in an otherwise tough situation was fawn recruitment. Everyone I worked with reported seeing a high percentage of does with fawns and many with twins. This did not seem to be as positive a trend among the elk. We saw a decent amount of cows with calves, but I only saw one or two with twins.
From: welka
18-Feb-24
Any one hunt unit 22? Heard it wasn't as bad there?
From: Paul@thefort
18-Feb-24
Elk Management - MSU Extenison Animal and Range Science
Montana State University https://animalrangeextension.montana.edu › elk-mgmt A newborn calf weighs almost 30 pounds and is usually a single. The birth of twins occurs less than one percent of the time. Cow elk can be productive breeders ...
From: Grey Ghost
18-Feb-24
I ran across this video last April. I don't know exactly where in NW Colorado he was, but it looked pretty bleak. I didn't hunt my usual OTC spots up there last year after hearing similar reports from people I know who live up there.
From: Aspen Ghost
18-Feb-24
That's a sad video Matt. In the comments he says it was in unit 3 which makes sense because elk from a number of units winter in unit 3.
From: Billyvanness
18-Feb-24
I normally have about 30 cows and 4-6 bulls around my house just south of Steamboat in September. Windows open, bugling all night. There were 6 cows last fall and zero bulls. Never heard a bugle. It’ll be 5-7 years of easy winters before they recover.
From: >>>---WW---->
20-Feb-24
I usually have elk wintering close to my house in unit 4. So far this winter I have seen absolutely zero elk. It has been a fairly mild winter so far this year and what deer are left here are looking fat and healthy. Just not all that many of them. And as I said, not one single elk has showed up this year.
From: SlipShot
20-Feb-24
We hunt in an area in NW Colorado that is on the fringe of the winter kill area. Even in the fringe areas, the winter kill was severe. We did not see half as many elk as we usually do. The herds of elk we did see had smaller, immature bulls that in past years would not have had any cows. In 16 days of hunting, we only encountered elk a handful of times, and I only saw one mature bull elk. We're accustomed to seeing elk every day, sometimes several times in a day. The population of mature bulls definitely took a hit.
From: Orion
20-Feb-24
Yet CPW will sell every tag and offer re-issues for the ones returned
