Oh Good Grief...

[bald9eagle]

I just looked at Google Earth for one of the areas I wanted to look at. Looks good...if you are after sheep or goat. It looks nothing like I thought it would looking at topo maps.

[Indian Summer]

Just drop down a notch and hunt the top of the timber. But if you blow elk out in places like that they can be gone for good.

[bald9eagle]

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The aforementioned lake is in upper right hand. Gotta pay attention to how close those lines are...lol

[bald9eagle]

I'll tell the spot now. It looks too steep for a rookie and I'm not sure if we want to attack it. This is Graham Peak in southern Colorado. Looking at sat pics it looks nice and green and gently sloping. Gently sloping in Rocky Mtn terms that is. The idea was to start here and move down the ridge until we stumbled upon something below us.

[bald9eagle]

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Plan B. I like the look of this bowl.

[Indian Summer]

In that top pic it looked greener over the top on the back side.

[bald9eagle]

And steep too.

[Heartwood]

We find elk in country like that every season. It usually is not as bad as it looks on GE. These darned elk can flat live anywhere they want to and sometimes it is with the Goats and Sheep. No crowds of hunters to be found in places like that. High, lonely places, they are.

[under H2O hunter]

I know the area a little as I spent all of last spring and summer living on Vallecito. I did a bunch of scouting and exploring around the area. It's steep big country but there are elk in the unit for sure. If you are looking for easier hiking it's certainly there but not in the area you have posted about. I would suggest working North from either Vallecito or Lemon Resv. There are some good back country hunting in the wilderness but there are certainly plenty of outfitters working the area as well. Good luck.

[bald9eagle]

The hiking and country doesn't scare me...yet. It just looked like a spot that wouldn't be good elk territory on GE. Since I'm going to be there I'm going to try it.

[jmez]

No way in hell would I go up into that country.

[Charina]

Here's what you need to do to get a more realistic "feel" for the country you are looking at: Go to Tools - Options, and in the middle of the options for 3D view, change the "Elevation Exaggeration" to a "2". I find that gives me a much more realistic view of areas I've hiked and confirmed how steep they are. Right now, your settings are way to flat to give you a feel for how incredibly rugged the area is. After adjusting the settings, look at the area in the first image and see if you want to climb up to that lake. I sure don't!!!

[longbowelk]

I would go up in that country for a hunt, but I would scout where I want to look at and also where to camp so i don't spend a lot of my time going up and down everyday for that can be where you get worn out the quickest if there is no sign of elk. I know that you are coming form Alabama bald to hunt elk in Colorado for the first time. Just be prepared the elevation can work a number on you more than you realize, the most important thing to keep in mind is maintaining adequate hydration.