New Member- Planning 2014 Hunt.

[Big Tool]

Howdy All,

I've been hunting Wapiti since 2007. I've connected on a decent 5x5 a couple years ago and a mule deer buck. We had a great parcel of private land leased in South East Colorado and it really spoiled me starting out. We had 2,000 acres leased for all the seasons and were only paying $1,000 per person. Cabins, water, electricity, cell phone service, alfalfa fields, and some great elk and mule deer hunting.

Well that all came to a end in 2011.. We haven't had any luck finding a comparable property to lease, and we can't afford a guided trip....

So me and the other two young bucks of the group decided to go try the public land up around Meeker where their dads used to hunt for years.

First year blew my mind... Drove 20 miles down dirt rds into the forrest and then packed our gear in another 6 miles by atv to the end of nowhere... It was a long drive to that part of the state and alot of work getting back in there but we felt good about our odds. It was second season and There was only one other group camped in the valley. According to my buddies dad the elk were just across the ridge.


Opening morning we wake up to the sound of ATV's...... There were about 20 quads at the base of the ridge and it looked like a scene from 13th warrior with all the flashlights going over the mtn lol.... It's about a mile walk over the ridge and from there it's just a game of who can walk the furthest....

We kinda wrote off the valley across the ridge and decided to hunt off the 6 mile trail we came in on... No matter where we went there was Orange... We gave it a couple days got pissed and swore never to come back to that god forsaken hole....

We sat out 2012 and apparently forgot about the experience.

2013 We decided to go back and go big... My buddy talked all the old dudes into going back to their old stomping grounds, we improved our gear where needed and we even brought horses in hopes of getting away from the crowds....

2013 we felt pretty prepared, but mother nature decided to throw us a curve ball... It was Raining, Sleeting, and Snowing every dang day... We were also hunting 1st season this time and the valley we camp in had about 8 different camps set up...

We got there early and decided to do some scouting... We probably went 4 miles on the horses... Just when it seemed as though we had escaped the crowds, there sits a cluster of orange scouting the next ridge over...

Needless to say there were people everywhere on opening morning... The only elk that was seen was jumped by the horses coming back to camp... Somebody promptly blasted her lol....


Disgusted and disheartened we cut out early agin empty handed... Felt like a demoralized pansy, but none of the other groups were killing squat and weatherman was calling for heavy snow back in Meeker.

Again I swore I would never go back to that damn hole....

Yet here again we are contemplating going back... Probably the definition of crazy... We've researched leases with no luck for our price range *Sub 1500 per gun*--- We've researched other public land to hunt, but the prospect of striking out without knowing the area is overwhelming... Meeker is kinda the Devil we know vs the Devil we don't...


I'm interested if this would be considered typical hunting pressure for public land in Colorado?

I'm open to any advice.. Even if it's just "NUT UP & SHUT UP"

[Big Tool]

I always enjoy photos so here's our old place in South East Colorado...

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More Photos from SE CO

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My busted horn elk...

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MEEKER 2013....

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More Meeker 2013 Photos

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Meeker photos

[Indian Summer]

First of all welcome to Elknut Forums Jerry.. the premier elk hunting website. Glad to have you on board. I hope you don't vanish once you find a spot. We would love to hear a report after your hunt.

Not to laugh but do you realize how common your posts is? "We hunted Colorado. We thought we did our homework. We were overrun by other hunters, many on atvs."

I've seen the question a thousand times: Our area is pressured, how should we hunt it?" My answer is always the same: Get the hell out of there! The Rocky Mountains are bigger than big. There are hundreds of miles of elk country that never see a soul in Colorado and other states. If you are willing to go the extra mile and bring horses you can easily have places to call your own.

More than half my clients have hunted Colorado and were looking for somewhere else to go. I have clients who are Colorado residents and wanted a hunt plan for Montana for the same reasons as you. Less hunters and also a chance for bigger bulls. Where do you live? I realize that CO is the shortest drive for lots of hunters but I always say the longest drive possible is the one going home with no elk in the truck.

Why don't you have a look at my website at http://www.headinwest.net and see if my services are something you might be interested in. It's too late to get you hunting licenses in Wyoming but you can still get Montana elk tags and they are guaranteed. Interestingly 90% of my clients are not 1st timers. They are people with some experience looking for a better place to hunt. You have the gear and the experience to put my DIY hunt plans to good use. After you've checked the site out feel free to PM or email with any questions. Good luck to you! Joe

[ElkNut1]

Jerry, welcome aboard also bud! Great photos! Joe has a lot of experience in the elkwoods & like others has seen a lot of what happens once opening day hits! If his offer is one that appeals to you then I'd contact him for sure.

If you're one that desires to go at it on your own which means exploring country until you find elk without tons of pressure then consider your entrance & the type of country chosen by you & your buds. To have more of a secluded surrounding we generally look for areas with little to no easy access. If trails are used they are only done so to get us to drop off points where we branch off from there with no trails & head for country per-determined for the most part by the use of topo maps. We do our best to find areas no one wants to go into because of distance & ruggedness. We do this without bivy hunting, we generally hunt all day & back to camp come evenings or afternoons in many cases, a lot depends on elk in the area. But by hunting country where ATV's couldn't get to even if legal & most horse folks wouldn't think of going into this now separates you from most of those folks. True, there are areas where horses are an asset but unless you know the area well & the use it gets then it's a gamble. Look for those hard to get to areas & in doing so you'll probably come across a few hidden elky spots within a mile of dirt roads or trail heads that many hunters go right on by.

Here's a photo of elk country that we've taken bulls out of, it looks innocent enough but it's a burn area & littered with downfall & much steeper than it appears, it's impossible to get horses or ATV's into this country very far, it's foot only & no trails anywhere around it. In the photo I'm only a 1/2 mile off a dirt road but look at the country I'm seeing. I can also see well off to the right & well off to the left that's not in the photo. I've glassed for hours from this elevated spot & have seen & heard countless elk here. When spotted or heard this gives me a hopeful direction to head knowing that elk are there, it's up to us to put them down after that. Of course once an elk is down we now have to pack them out on our backs! This is all OTC Public Land too. Hope this helps some!

[Ghost]

Ive never hunted Colorado, but if I did, I wouldnt hunt any place to was open to ATVs, thats just a recipe for disappointment. What I would do is put my camp either on my back, horse or do a drop camp as far back into one of the wilderness areas as possible. The bottom line is that most people will not hump 60lbs of gear 4 miles or more miles, heck its been my experience in Idaho and Montana, that past a mile, you love 90 percent of the other hunters, as long as their limited to horse or foot power.


FYI, Im using Joes service this year!

[baddaddy]

Welcome Jerry. If you are going to hunt Meeker again get with DPW and get a map of the state wildlife areas. ATV's are not allowed in the state areas but horses are. This might be an option to get back in further from the foot crowds.

[Big Tool]

Thanks guys for the welcome. Info sent to Joe!

Wherever we go for 2014 I'm focusing on resetting my expectations and preparing mentally and physically for the challenge... Part of me wants to go the easy route and find another parcel of private land to hunt, but the other part wants to succeed in taking a bull on public land....

Either way I look forward to learning and contributing to the forum!

[zpd307]

welcome jerry! I wish I had more to add to this subject. the only thing I can add is, that is why I do archery or muzzleloader hunts. you have so much less pressure, even with a muzzleloader. as you can see, I am from flatland mn and it is the same thing with deer hunting over here..... I was hunting private land for elk in Utah when their rifle deer season opened up part way through the hunt. I was on this ridge, which was their property border, a day earlier watching a massive herd bull with his cows bugling with an unknown bull further up. the next day I looked over and it was nothing but orange. I knew that I could never spend that kind of money on a nonresident tag and fuel, it was 17 hours of a drive to where we went in Colorado, and such, to deal with the situations that you have. the guys here are very helpful!