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OTC Archery Elk Unit 18

Hello all. Newbie here. I am not a resident of Colorado. My family has a house in Fraser, Colorado. However we live in Texas. I just have some general questions about hunting unit 18. Im pretty familiar with the area and plan on hunting the Arapaho area west of 125. Anybody have any experience out there. I know there are going to be tons of hunters and i will have to go pretty deep im thinking like 6 miles in or further to get away from most. I will be archery hunting for elk and probably get a bear tag too. I see the success is not high in that area. because of the number of hunters. Im mainly looking to have a good time with my family and get the experience for future hunting this area. I'm not looking for anyones honey holes or anything like that. Just any tips or advice on the area anyone would like to give.

Welcome to the Bowsite, Anthony. In that unit, 6 miles in will often put you right in the middle of the second layer of hunters. The go-getter Sitka Army and the horse camps. Instead, look for places where others aren't hunting for one reason or another. If you can get up there a few times this summer and check out some spots that look positive on Google Earth or GAIA, you will have some options to bounce around during season. Be mobile. Don't tie yourself to a backpack camp unless you KNOW elk will be there, and not a bunch of other hunters. You can backpack in and spike camp after you find elk from a mobile camp.

Good luck and enjoy the adventure. Remember before you shoot one that you'll be butchering and packing out the equivalent of a horse from wherever it dies. It may be very warm, and elk quarters are heavy. So plan your hunt with that in mind. Good luck!

Alone, a couple miles is all the farther from the truck I want to be. About 1/2 mile is even better. Most elk are killed by guys who started from a road that morning. I've day hunted 18 a little but not enough to give any decent advise.

3 or 4 miles is about right. They'll be talkin, get away from the idiots that got a new bugle for their birthday. Theres an outfitter in the middle but theres plenty of country. Good luck!

Have you ever hunted and traversed thru beetle kill?

If not, you will in 18

It can be somewhat of a zoo with so many other fall recreationalists besides hunters. Especially on the Grand Lake side. If only going for one week, I'd avoid the smokepole season and just hunt the last week. It might take you a few years of hunting different access points, to figure out some areas holding elk but not as crowded. Those areas may or may not be in deep. Just my opinion but there are better OTC units than that one. I wonder if a lot of people look at a map and see RMNP bordering the east side of this unit, and assume they'll see a parade of monster bulls wandering in from the park. I suppose there could be some of that happening, but the historic success rates don't reflect it. One bonus to hunting there is you will likely see moose throughout the unit. Good luck.

Thank you all for your advice. Its exactly what im looking for. I picked 18 because it was OTC and having a house in Fraser a couple miles down the road made it easy. I will probably only camp for a couple days just to search deep and then do day trips from there. I also plan on checking out the north side of lost lake area and the east side of grand lake since we have a boat I could have my pops drop me off there. All just ideas for now. Its 8 months away and its all I can think about lol.

Wow......so well behaved and nice with the responses. Am I on BS??? LOL!

Good Luck Anthony!

There used to be a website called Elk Heaven.....John Lear maintained it. He had some pretty darn nice scouting reports for 18........but alas he gave it up and I can no longer find them. Or his pics. Sux. I recall the gist of most of his reports was....GO HIGH in 18 at least in the NSW.

Thanks Jordan. I was thinking the same thing. This is the nicest forum responses i've ever had lol.

Be careful the "east side of Grand Lake" is very close to the boarder to the RMNP. I lived on Lake Granby all through the 1990 and have hunted unit 18 a lot and was successful back then. Currently I have no comments on the hunting the unit except, I try to avoid the unit as much as possible.

sorry just reading BowSite to see what the news might be after this past weekends opener. I have had some success in Unit 18 just outside the RMNP. As the threads stated there are LOTS of hikers and nature lovers on all the trails coming out of the park. You really need to get off the trail a couple miles and look for areas that the day hikers/backpackers are passing by. There are lots of elk that use the park for feeding/breeding grounds then travel up the mountain and out of the park to bed down for the day. Keep after it and search out the wallows and water sources and you will find the elk. Good Luck and shoot straight!

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