First Hunt. . . What GMU should I go to???

[turnbow82]

Whitetail hunter from Oklahoma here. Best bud is moving from Houston to Longmont, Co. We plan on beginning to hunt Elk during the early Archery season in September. I will be from out of state, whereas he will be a resident. I will be purchasing over the counter tags I assume? Anyway I was just wondering if any of you guys would offer up some advice to a novice on what are some good GMU's to hunt during that period. We will have the capability of hiking in and camping. Also, any help would be appreciated! Look forward to starting this experience and enjoying all the beauty in Colorado!

[Triplebhunters]

Welcome. I have been to Co three times and still consider myself nieve. To save you a lot of research. In upper right hand corner there is a draw odds section. Check it out good. Colorado has a hunt planner section read it as well. One good pointer is if you are going to purchase a OTC tag still buy a preference point. Call the parks and wildlife division, and ask for as much reading material as they have. Them people are awesome in Colorado. You will need to determine how rugged of terrain you desire to hunt in. How often you plan to hunt. Another pointer. Go to an area that you plan to go back to year after year. Reading this forum will be your best training tool. A lot of experienced elk hunters wanting to help each other and rookies with tips and tacticks. But you have to do your homework as well. Another pointer purchase ElkNuts playbook on cd. Enjoy your adventure.
Dave

[turnbow82]

Thanks Dave. I will give that advice a go. . .

[BMF11]

I would say to pick a certain GMU will be the easy decision. It's narrowing down that GMU to a general area (7 1/2 minute map) and then down to an actual drainage or two or three! As stated above, take advantage of all the literature and statistics that you can and start dissecting it piece by piece. Don't get discouraged. It's a fun part of the experience to try to figure it out on your own! Good luck and enjoy the process!