Colorado unit 36

[Hunter_21]

I am planning a return trip to Colorado in 2008. I have hunted unit 36 before for elk, but I would like to give Mule deer a try with a bow or a muzzleloader. What caliber deer can I expect to see in this area? Will I need any preferance points to draw a deer tag here? I appreciate any info you are willing to share.

 

[ICMDEER]

I tried the muzzy hunt there a few years ago. Unit 36 was "crawling alive" with muzz elk hunters. We gave up and moved to 15 and 35. Fewer elk hunters, and not as crazy. Not sure what the drawing odds wil be in 07 since the DOW changed the alignment and now does not have unit 15 included there. Might make it tougher to draw, especially for the later licenses, but possibley for the earlier seasons as well.

It's good habitat and has some good bucks (like most Colorado areas), but all of the pressure can sure make them tough to find.

 

[zekers]

You should be able to draw an archery tag with 0 points. It gets tons of pressure. Get a map of every road and don't go near them. Plenty of 150 class p/y with occasionally bigger if you are willing to work for them.

 

[Hunter_21]

Thanks for the info ICMHUNTER and ZEKERS. Maybe if I hunt more to the west in the Eagle Nest Wilderness area, there would be fewer hunters to contend with. This unit is the only one I have hunted in and I live too far away to scout a new area. So staying away from the roads seems to be a good option. I am applying for a preferance point only this year so I will probably put in for the muzzleloader hunt as a first choice and the archery hunt as a second choice. Thanks again for the replies.

 

[Hunter_21]

Sorry for getting the name wrong ICMDEER. I have a lot on my mind thinking about the deer hunt even though it is 1 1/2 yrs out.

 

[ICMDEER]

No problem with the name. We hunted the Eagles Nest Wilderness andthat's where all the hunters were. We hiked in a few miles and ran into 5 camps. There was even a group that had (illegally) used a game cart to haul in their staff; others had horses. There were hunters all over in the wilderness. Not sure where to tell you to go. I saw 17 hunters and no bucks the opening morning in the wilderness. But the deer were there during scouting, just harassed by all of the crazy hunters.

 

[Squirrel]

A first timer here but since you are talking about my back yard I thought I'ld throw in my $.02 worth. There are some great bucks come out of that country onto the winter range, obviously if they were easy to find in season they wouldn't be so great. The beauty/curse of the Eagles nest is a good trail system. Take a trail up to the elevation you desire then work laterally into the rough stuff- and it's plenty rough- using spot and stalk techniques. Animals are heartily recomended for the on trail part although to get your animal to the trail you'll have to work unless your animals are pack-mountain goats.I realize "great bucks " leaves it open to interpretation let me clarify 170-185" bucks. I have pack llamas I rent out from my house if you are old and fat like me they can really help with the trail work.

 

[COjack]

squirrel
check your private messages

 

[Hunter_21]

I have look down into the eagles nest wilderness from chimney rock and it is beautiful. I didn't drop down into it and I'm glad I didn't waste my time, but I can understand why people want to hunt there. I do know of some pretty rugged areas that may hold bucks trying to hide from the hoards. Once again, thanks for the insights ICMDEER.

Squirrel,

I am a new to the forum also. Thanks a bunch for the info on the bucks in the wintering range. It gives me some hope that I might find a good buck in the area if I am willing to work hard enough. Is there access to the area from a lower road with a gaging station on it. (I saw it on a map.) I also saw a house down low toward the Piney river on one of my exploritory trips. It looks like there are a couple of small blocks of public land on the south side of the river. Probably no deer down that low during early season, but plenty of elk.

 

[Squirrel]

I'm not sure which gaging st you mean. There are tons of trailheads into the gore. Most of my personal experience is on the east side as that's where I live and play #371 is the unit. Make sure you know where you're at (re. deerking) the divide is painfully obvious in most places. One of the easiest accesses is Elliot ridge trail but this fact is not a secret if you get my drift. In my experience most people will not go more than 3 miles from the truck on a day hunt so you need to go further than that and set up a camp so you don't burn out on hiking. When I say it's rough there are places where the goats don't go. The winter range is up north towards St. Bridge and would be a valid destination for 3rd or 4th season rifle -even in 4th there is a hunter behind every sagebush it is after all colo. I personally would not waste my time up in the sage country in the early seasons, although obviously a good buck can be anywhere. The habitat I would key in on would be best described as sheep country, above the trees and below the goat cliffs in the tundra/rock stuff. Hope this helps if I gave you specific basins then I'ld have to kill ya and you seem like such a nice fella.

 

[Lien2]

Hunter 21_
I don't mean to hijack, but can I ask how the elk hunting was? And how was the pressure? What time of year were you there?
Thanks.

Lien2

 

[Hunter_21]

No problem Lien2. I have had great luck bowhunting elk in this unit. I have bowhunted there 4 different years and killed 2 bulls, one 4 x 5 and one 5 x 6. Not huge bulls, but nice bulls for the area. I missed opportunities in the 2 years that I did not fill my tag, including missing one nice nontypical bull. I hunt the last 2 weeks of the season and see some people in there, but not crowded. It sounds like it is more crowded in the Eagles Nest wilderness area. I think most areas in Colorado have lots of elk.

I haven't been back since 1998 and I really miss the mountains of Colorado, so I am looking forward to going back.

 

[Hunter_21]

Thanks Squirrel. I'm not looking for specific basins. You guys work way to hard to give away your spots. The info you offered is exactly what I am looking for i.e. what type of bucks might be in the area and the general area I should be hunting (above treeline). I usually come in from the State Bridge side and cross private land to access the public land. It has been a while since I have been there. Do you know if the access through Piney Peak Ranch is still open? I would hate to get all the way out there and find out I can't get to the public land.

I am planning to be there the last 2 weeks of bow season, so I will study the maps of the higher country and look for those areas away from the road that might hold pockets of deer. A spike camp is a great idea. I have some places in mind that I have glassed from a distance. Now I just have to hike in there.

 

[Squirrel]

I haven't been to the piney ranch corner of the gore for quite a few years I 'm not sure of anything except what's shown on the map. My advice was based on typical weather if there is such a thing. The timberline deer are extremely sensitive to snow and cold the elk may hang for awhile to see if it melts but the deer hit the road quickly. Once they go down into no man's land of timber it's a needle in a haystack situation cause your optics are no good. If it were me I'ld be there for the opener or shortly thereafter to guarantee???? nice weather and hopefully have less hunter interference. The only good reasons to go later are the bucks will be hard-horned- usually around 9/10-9/15 they rub. And if you are comboing with elk the rut gets a lot better the last 2 wks. Most elk pressure will only get worse as the season progresses and m/l season hits. My experience is that once you screw up you won't see the big boys again so be patient and don't push a bad situation. For best results on big guys you'll have to get away from not only the roads but the trails -especially if you go later cause they've been bumped a few times sometimes inadvertantly by elk hunters but they don't differentiate between the two. Another reason to go early is as soon as they polish they start breaking up their bachelor groups and finding one is infinetly harder than a batch of 5-10- but they are easier to stalk as singles. The elk scamper down to the trees when the am. sun hits them even if it's a mile or more to the trees. The bucks just find a rock pocket or clump of willows and lay down sometimes they won't drop down into the treeline for a week or more at a time. Is it sept yet?? just typing about it makes me want to go but looking out my window it's still a wee bit white up there.

 

[Hunter_21]

I couldn't agree with you more. I still remember when I first laid eyes on the rich gold color of the aspens as they spilled through the dark timber as I traveled I70 West out of Denver.

I agree with you on the early season tatics for Mule Deer, but I am going to combine the deer hunt with an elk hunt. I have also found that the elk hunting is better at the end of the archery season. I only ran into a signifigant snowfall on one hunt during the mid-september time frame, so I will hope for the best.

I am planning on being out there for 2 weeks, so I should arrive around Sept. 8th which is only about a week after the opener. Most of the elk hunters will be much lower than the area I envision looking for the deer in.

Your comments about how to look for the deer are very helpful. I am used to chasing whitetails which is a very different game. Do you think a spike camp up high so I can glass promising areas at first light is a good tatic, or will my presence disturb the deer?

 

[Squirrel]

Unless you are a glutton for punishment a spike camp is the only way to go. Just be certain you are ready to pull out if the snow gets above your belt, getting out is usually easy it's down. Personally I like to camp on the nearest level spot to my glassing spot sometimes 10 ft. sometimes 2 miles depends on the country. For a combo hunt you are doing the right thing hunting late, there are some great bulls there by co. standards, Az. hunters would be unimpressed. There's always some 300-320 bulls come down for the winter. I have an unreal shed from the pre-historic days of that country... if we just didn't kill them all here it would be something. The key is to don't let your presence disturb the deer, no fires no talking no clanking of pots and pans etc. As I get older and more spoiled I tend to camp closer to the trail and have to hike further to the hunt because I have the llamas and it's nice to have marinated elk loin instead of rice-n- sauce. When you do that you don't have to be as careful on the disturbance but you have to work harder in the dark. When you can see 400 yds you should already be seated looking at your target area preferably with the sun at your back. Those early deer with their red coats really show up well when they are backlit by the rising sun.

 

[AspenAdventures]

I have held a tag for 36 as well. I would say that the bucks in the Nest are tough to come by. A buddy and I looked on 3 total seperate trips before we saw our first buck. They are very very very tough to hunt and possibly harder to spot.

Finding a buck over 160 would be a great buck. I can't imagine trying to hunt those bucks with a muzz. Good luck.

"One nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

 

[Lien2]

>No problem Lien2. I have
>had great luck bowhunting elk
>in this unit. I
>have bowhunted there 4 different
>years and killed 2 bulls,
>one 4 x 5 and
>one 5 x 6.
>Not huge bulls, but nice
>bulls for the area.
>I missed opportunities in
>the 2 years that I
>did not fill my tag,
>including missing one nice nontypical
>bull. I
>hunt the last 2 weeks
>of the season and see
>some people in there, but
>not crowded. It sounds
>like it is more crowded
>in the Eagles Nest wilderness
>area. I think most
>areas in Colorado have lots
>of elk.
>
>I haven't been back since 1998
>and I really miss the
>mountains of Colorado, so I
>am looking forward to going
>back.


Thanks! I plan on bowhunting in there this year, but during the second week of the season.
Good luck to you as well.

Lien2

 

[Hunter_21]

That type of hunt really appeals to me. What type of gear do you bring? I am thinking a small kelty tent, a thermarest pad, a sleeping bag, a small stove to cook on, and 3 days worth of food and water (or maybe MRE's and drop the stove).

I assume the idea is to spot a shooter buck, watch him bed, and execute a stalk to get within range. I have to re-read Mike Eastmans book High Country Mule Deer. More stuff to get me in the mood to chase deer.

I have what I think is the perfect place in mind. I guess I should start getting in shape. Winter has left me with a few extra pounds to deal with.

 

[Hunter_21]

Hi AspenAdventures,

Did you get high in the Eagles Nest? There are some awesome looking areas above horseshoe canyon. I have never dropped in there, but I have sat up high and glassed the area. The tag allows me to hunt in unit 35 and unit 45 also. I know nothing about these areas. I think my best bet is to work hard looking for a decent buck in the country that I am somewhat familiar with. I appreciate the opinions. It helps temper my enthusiasm and realize that it will probably be a challenging hunt. The reality is that the quality of the hunt is more important to me than filling my tag. I realize the odds for someone coming in cold and trying to find a decent muley buck are long. But I do love the country and will work hard and enjoy my time in the mountains.

 

[AspenAdventures]

Hunter21

The Nest is a place where you can find it. We both know this is because of it's ruggedness, remoteness, picturesque basins, and requirement of backpacks only. We both know this unit is for only the most fit of hunters. The peaks can top 14,000 feet and it rains like crazy up there.

There are obviously good bucks around. But that is true of most of Colorado and we both know there are better units with better odds and better bucks. But once you get hooked on the high country (and I mean super high) it's tough to give it up.

Yes I did get high. I got on top. You will have fun. You may not see much or you may see a lot. That's the beauty of the area and that's part of what makes this unit a challenge.

The previous poster was right. If you see a nice buck he will move down as soon as the weather hits. They don't wait for a foot of snow in this unit. As soon as it snows they will get down into the pines and head out. I never ended up harvesting a buck on this hunt. I am looking for a 170 pluss buck and they are hard to find. You will have a great experience. Good luck!

"One nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."