Unit 49 Elk! Who do I believe?

[koda]

I am sitting in no mans land in Colorado with Elk. 7 elk points. In most states I would be sitting pretty, but not Colorado. I am not willing to wait 20-30 years to draw the NW corner. I have been reading about 49. Extreme, rough terrain for a 300-320 bulls. Then the next person I talk to says 280 is the top end. Definitely can't get a straight answer from anyone. Just wondering what everyones thoughts on this unit was. Is it doable w/o horses? I love back country back pack hunting and will most likely be up there solo. Is this unit worth what little hype it has?

 

[Coloradoboy]

Go scout it and find out yourself. Produces one to two 350 inch bulls a year. Good place to kill a 300 plus bull IMO

 

[coloarcher]

I agree with Coloradoboy. 49 produces a few great bulls every year. It is a huge unit, but if you do your scouting, you can find a few studs. I killed a decent 5x5 a few archery seasons ago in 49. About 30 seconds after zipping my bull, a 330+ bull stepped out at 35 yards. I was a little sick, but happy with my bull none the less.

With 7 points you must be looking for a Muzz loader tag. With the point creep, you may or may not draw this year. Good luck!

 

[Cohntr62]

My son and I also have 7 PP and were looking at 49 for 2013, either ML or 1st rifle. We're not coming out this year. Like the OP said, 7 points or so is no-man's land in the Colorado PP landscape. How are the elk numbers compared to the Craig-Meeker area that I'm used to hunting?

 

[HillbillyNnevada]

I have a feeling that you won't be able to draw that unit with 7 points this year because of point creep. I have 7 points also and have been saving up for it for a a few years. There are tons of people like us in no man's land and I am afraid point creep is going to increase now that it was published.

I didn't get that magazine last year so I don't know if it was in there or not last year. Was it published last year?

I guess I will look elsewhere now. I have one more unit in mind and if it doesnt pan out, I will probably waste my points on a general season muzzleloader tag in the next year or so.

 

[pikemasterflex]

I did a bit of research between 49 and some other draw units(I have 3 resident PP's.) 49 was recommended over the surrounding draw only units like 48, 57/58. I talked to a taxidermy guy that says he sees several each year over 350 out of 49.

 

[mntman]

if this keeps up it will be another unit "76".... over hyped because colorado is lacking in "premium" easy to hunt units...

Mntman

"Hunting is where you prove yourself"

 

[HillbillyNnevada]

>if this keeps up it will
>be another unit "76".... over
>hyped because colorado is lacking
>in "premium" easy to hunt
>units...
>
>Mntman
>
>"Hunting is where you prove yourself"
>


+1

 

[Snuffy]

LAST EDITED ON Mar-08-12 AT 09:13PM (MST)[p]Do the 1st rifle hunt hard hunt deep and hire a packer if you are a DIY with no friends. 350+ are there.
Rick

 

[marley]

I have hunted this unit 5 times between me and a few friends. All together I have probably spent more than 60 days hunting or scouting that unit. I've been on the archery hunt once (my tag) and 4 1st rifle hunts. We hunt hard usually backpacking in and staying the duration of the hunt. I spent 11 straight days there on my archery hunt solo. I would dare say that there are very few people that know that unit as well as me and friends. According to the hunt odds on this site there were 852 total tags and every year a few 340-350 bulls are killed. my point is....don't go into this hunt with the expectations of a huge bull. in all my time on that unit I have seen 3 bulls over 310, one of those is dead, one left me a tuft of hair off his back and a birdee finger as he rounded the hill, and the other one.....that's a secret.

Expect......the most beautiful country, backpacking to 12000 feet, freezing temperatures and snow (even during the archery hunt), to see lots of elk above timberline, lots of rag horns, a few 280-300 bulls, very few over 320, and an extremely fun hunt.

Is it worth 7 points......NO, if you base the success of your hunt on a number. Yes, if you base your success off of seeing some awesome country, and just love chasing elk.

 

[nripepi]

LAST EDITED ON Mar-09-12 AT 01:48PM (MST)[p]Marley knows what he is talking about, that's for sure.

Both are probably right with regards to the 280 vs. 300-320. 280 might be actually realistic, but bigger ones definitely exist. If you would be happy with a 280 at the end of the hunt, you probably shouldn't be passing it up first day as you might not close the deal on a larger bull even though there are a few there. This is Colorado we are talking about still, lots of elk, not lots of size, but fun for sure!

 

[270Whatelse]

Wtih your 7 PP you are in no mans land and i think 49 would be your best option at this time IMO.

 

[Kayak_to_hunt]

I may or may not be one of the folks that marley is talking about who knows the unit better than him and his friends ... 30+ years of history myself hunting 49 - my father and grand father did their time in 49. Good bulls in 49 but still not like back in the "good old days"... I also have access to a LO tags so we hunt it more than most. IMO if you want to do a backpack hunt you can have a great time in 49 but you wont find the biggest bulls in the unit on a backpack hunt.

Shoot me a pm if you want. A couple of the biggest bulls in 49 that the locals chase around got it last year but there are still some good and very good sheds being found this year. Like others have said it is not a easy hunt and you will have to work real hard to get a leg up on the locals who scout, know where the big boys are, and put in the time.

Coboy I hope your fathers archery hunt last year went well and Nripepi I never heard how your hunt went but hope yo had fun as well.

 

[hunterfisher]

Koda, I'm with Cboy on scouting it out yourself. What's wrong with traveling to this unit, getting your own take on it, and making your decision based off of first hand info? Remember this is not wyo and even a 300 bull is hard to come by in CO. All this talk of 340 and 350 bulls is foolish in any unit in CO. Every 2-3 years I might see one bull in the 320 to 330 range. Most herd bulls I see are 3yr olds (250")here in CO. I live in unit 62 and don't really hunt it for elk, but 2 yrs ago a 16 y.o kid shot a 384 bull. Does that make this unit the place to go? I can tell you that anyone in there right mind would never hunt this poor success rate/ overcrowded unit, but because one trophy animal was taken, it received a fair amount of internet hype. You can hunt a lot of otc units and have the same type of quality every year as long as you have really pinpointed the hidden spots. Case in point is when I had a 61 muzz elk tag 5 yrs ago: best bull spotted was 315, and the bull I ended up taking was just under 300. Two other bulls I harvested from otc units surpass my 61 bull. Anyhow good luck in your decision and your hunt.

 

[WatsonS]

I may or may not be one of the folks that marley is talking about who knows the unit better than him and his friends ... 30+ years of history myself hunting 49 - my father and grand father did their time in 49. Good bulls in 49 but still not like back in the "good old days"... I also have access to a LO tags so we hunt it more than most. IMO if you want to do a backpack hunt you can have a great time in 49 but you wont find the biggest bulls in the unit on a backpack hunt.

Shoot me a pm if you want. A couple of the biggest bulls in 49 that the locals chase around got it last year but there are still some good and very good sheds being found this year. Like others have said it is not a easy hunt and you will have to work real hard to get a leg up on the locals who scout, know where the big boys are, and put in the time.

Coboy I hope your fathers archery hunt last year went well and Nripepi I never heard how your hunt went but hope yo had fun as well.

Would you be willing to chat about the unit? I drew a 49 1st season bull tag and just got back from my first weekend on scouting the unit.

 

[FrontRange]

Best of luck to you Mr. Watson, my elementary observation is that you've revived a post that's over 10 years old. Maybe someone can provide you some updated info.

 

[WiscoKid]

Good to see Coloradoboy is still full of his piss and vinegar "go scout it yourself" attitude even 10 years later The best things never change

 

[HntHrdr]

If you can’t find elk in the summer in 49… you have some problems, good luck Watson seems like a decent tag, good for scouting on your own before asking the internet experts for help, “ on a unit you have never been to”

 

[The_Coloradoboy]

Good to see Coloradoboy is still full of his piss and vinegar "go scout it yourself" attitude even 10 years later The best things never change

Sometimes the best way to get a straight answer on how good a unit is, is to take yourself straight there and find out ??‍

 

[WiscoKid]

Sometimes the best way to get a straight answer on how good a unit is, is to take yourself straight there and find out ??‍

I've got plenty of room in the VW...where should I pick you up on the way

 

[The_Coloradoboy]

I've got plenty of room in the VW...where should I pick you up on the way

I’d consider it if it were a Subaru

 

[Trophchse]

I'm thinking about 49 after seeing the Meateater episode. I have 13 points and I'm thinking about 49 or 76 next season. I'm trying to figure out what area that was filmed in? I don't know anything about 49. I have been hunting around Gunnison if anyone wants to trade info. If anyone would be willing to share info on 49 please pm me.

 

[The_Coloradoboy]

I'm thinking about 49 after seeing the Meateater episode. I have 13 points and I'm thinking about 49 or 76 next season. I'm trying to figure out what area that was filmed in? I don't know anything about 49. I have been hunting around Gunnison if anyone wants to trade info. If anyone would be willing to share info on 49 please pm me.

Id call Steve and ask him. But the San Juan mountains it mentions should be your give away

 

[HntHrdr]

it’s interesting how people get this idea that 49 is great because its 6+ points, I think it used to be better and there are lots of elk in there don’t get me wrong, but I think the class of mature bull isn’t better than a lot of 3 point units. But since the hype is there with the draw system people just blindly put in

 

[WiscoKid]

I'm thinking about 49 after seeing the Meateater episode. I have 13 points and I'm thinking about 49 or 76 next season. I'm trying to figure out what area that was filmed in? I don't know anything about 49. I have been hunting around Gunnison if anyone wants to trade info. If anyone would be willing to share info on 49 please pm me.

The problem with this is literally EVERYONE who watches meat eater (not me) has the same idea. And thus, will contribute to the point creep that everyone already hates...before you now it, it will be a 12 point unit. Over hyped, over hunted, disappointing

 

[pwrlineman]

The problem with this is literally EVERYONE who watches meat eater (not me) has the same idea. And thus, will contribute to the point creep that everyone already hates...before you now it, it will be a 12 point unit. Over hyped, over hunted, disappointing

My dad and I hunted 49 in 2012 and had a great hunt. It was a great hunt because it’s a limited quota unit and we never seen another hunter. During the two days leading up to opening day we spent our time glassing over 80 elk above timberline both mornings and evenings. During our hunt we saw one bull over 300 inches. We both shot small bulls and couldn’t have been more pleased. We probably should have held out for trophies, but It’s hard to beat the experience of a low pressure limited quota hunt.

 

[HntHrdr]

My dad and I hunted 49 in 2012 and had a great hunt. It was a great hunt because it’s a limited quota unit and we never seen another hunter. During the two days leading up to opening day we spent our time glassing over 80 elk above timberline both mornings and evenings. During our hunt we saw one bull over 300 inches. We both shot small bulls and couldn’t have been more pleased. We probably should have held out for trophies, but It’s hard to beat the experience of a low pressure limited quota hunt.

There are tons of units that don’t require the points 49’s takes to have the same experience, but I’m glad you enjoyed it. It is a good place to have an experience like you described

 

[cmbbulldog]

I'm thinking about 49 after seeing the Meateater episode. I have 13 points and I'm thinking about 49 or 76 next season. I'm trying to figure out what area that was filmed in? I don't know anything about 49. I have been hunting around Gunnison if anyone wants to trade info. If anyone would be willing to share info on 49 please pm me.

Hunted both, do 76... more of a cool elk experience IMO.

 

[pwrlineman]

There are tons of units that don’t require the points 49’s takes to have the same experience, but I’m glad you enjoyed it. It is a good place to have an experience like you described

Your correct but 49 didn’t require that many points 10 years ago.

 

[leonard]

How is unit 48 to the west? Looking at a 1st season rifle tag next fall. Please PM

 

[txhunter58]

Steep!

 

[PacificFork]

Lol Meateater destroys yet another unit. RIP 49, soon it’ll take the average joe 15 years to shoot a raghorn

 

[The_Coloradoboy]

Lol Meateater destroys yet another unit. RIP 49, soon it’ll take the average joe 15 years to shoot a raghorn

Meatbeater didn’t hunt 49…

 

[Kayak_to_hunt]

Well I don’t post much but guess I did post on this back in 012.

In the past decade the only thing getting bigger in 49 is pressure on quality animals and the points needed to draw. Quality has gone down as more guys who hunt hard, scout, and are focused are in there. Still a good bull taken here and there but the numbers on the biggest bulls are usually closer to 300 than 350 anymore…

Still a fun hunt I habe 3 friends w tags in there this year as well as my 78 yr old father. Good luck on your hunt.

 

[PacificFork]

Meatbeater didn’t hunt 49…

Yes they did 100%. I’m not going to take part in making it worse by posting the episode online again. But they specifically said the town they hunted south of and the NR points it took to draw 1st rifle. Everyone with a gohunt can figure it out in about 2 minutes.

 

[ORIONTHEHUNTER]

Meatbeater didn’t hunt 49…

It's an older episode I believe and I think that Janis guy was hunting

 

[SS!]

Meatbeater didn’t hunt 49…

Yeah he did.

 

[SS!]

Misinformation is still information

 

[The_Coloradoboy]

Yes they did 100%. I’m not going to take part in making it worse by posting the episode online again. But they specifically said the town they hunted south of and the NR points it took to draw 1st rifle. Everyone with a gohunt can figure it out in about 2 minutes.

??‍

 

[cmbbulldog]

I watched that video and knew it was 49. What part of that video would make people want to hunt that unit. After that video, there is no way I would spend points for that. Lots of other units you can kill meat bulls for far less points.