# Colorado OTC Archery Elk 2020



## Chuck (Sep 24, 2000)

I would look at units farther north in Colorado. The South West regions are having a hard time with calf recruitment and numbers have been falling for the last 10 years.

Im 52 and will be 53 this year. Im not in the best shape of my life but we still cover 10 or more miles a day. Take it easy your first day there. Usually we get there around noon first day and set up camp. Then we hit the grocery store and drive around check all the spots we are thinking of hunting to see what the trail heads look like. If its a mad house or not. Then we might take a short hike just to loosen up from sitting in the truck for two days. Based on what we see we make a plan for the next morning on where to start. If there are a lot of horse trailers there I wouldnt worry about that since they are in deep. We usually start hiking off trail any where from a half mile to a mile in. Look for a steep nasty spot to go off in. Look for an area on google earth with lots of blow downs and steep country. Elk love to bed in those areas. We ook for open country after you go threw some hell to get there with water and food. Have more areas planned ot look at then you can hunt. Every day you will be hiking into new areas until you see elk, hear elk, smell elk, or see super fresh elk poop or tracks. Dosent matter how great the spot looks if there is no sign dont bother hunting it.

For working out I hike steep hills then transition to a pack with 30 pounds in it. Steep hill hiking is best training to me. You want to go up and down as much as possible off trail. You will be stepping over lots of blow downs so practicing on a found blow down on a steep hill works wonders. In the mountains you will rarely if ever be on flat ground. You cant train for lack of oxygen so stay hydrated. If your urine is yellow at all your dehydrated. You can die from being dehydrated in the mountains so dont mess with that at all. Just go slow and stop to catch your breath A LOT. Your not running a marathon in the mountains so go slow and listen A LoT. We have heard bugles starting right on the trail or right off the road and went after them.

We take lots of naps in the middle of day usually in the woods. The reason for this is we are up late or early bugling from the road. There is a lot of good elk hunting close to the road especially if your not hunting from a trail head. I had a buddy tell me if your not finding elk its because your sleeping to much lol.

I woulnt worry about any fancy gadgets or clothing on your first trip unless your thick with cash. You dont need it. You will see plenty of locals with cotton tshirts and blue jeans that kill elk. Merino is real nice but if you have white tail gear use that the first year if you have too if your truck camping. If you hike in 5+ miles from tail head then camp you will want lighter clothes that dry fast. It can take all day for a cotton shirt to dry and 1 hour or less for merino or poly. Merino still keeps you warm wet and I have had it dry while wearing it. In archery season I usualy wear a merino tshirt until evening when we set up. Then it gets chilly the rest of the time Im moving a Lot and sweating a lot. Camo fire is the best place to get merino. They will be having some good sales so keep a eye on it. Check it every day. They have game bags and all sorts of stuff to get your money.

Go have fun. The first time you hear a bull bugle echo off the canyon walls your gonna be hooked for life 

Oh ya you will need a pack that can handle around at least 90 pounds. A bone in back ham on a large bull is 80+ pounds. Plus you will need to carry water.

Bowsite elk forum is good, rokslide has a ton of info too. Some on archery talk forum.

Videos to watch are Coreys elk 101. He has a web site too and a elk class for beginners thats good info. Worth the money if you have it. Corey hunts a lot of otc

Randy Newburg has a free youtube how to elk hunt series very much worth watching.

Born and raised is good to they hunt a lot of otc too.

Spend as much time as you can google earth scouting, cal topo scouting, and colorado has an awesome online map with all kinds of features.

If you have a gps throw it in the trash and use your smart phone. There are a few apps depending on what phone you have that work better then a gps. Hard to beat having an awesome computer at your disposal with an awesome screen. I have Iphone so I use Gaia. I use it to seee where I am and where Im going then use a compass for navigation. Saves battery. You will want to carry a charger just to be safe.

Altitude sickness is no joke. Starts with a bad headache and if you progress to vomiting you need to get to a hospital now. If the headache persists and your queasy get lower in elevation take a break in town until you feel better.

Good luck and feel free to pm me any questions you have.


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## Pointerguy (May 22, 2006)

Chuck said:


> I would look at units farther north in Colorado. The South West regions are having a hard time with calf recruitment and numbers have been falling for the last 10 years.
> 
> Im 52 and will be 53 this year. Im not in the best shape of my life but we still cover 10 or more miles a day. Take it easy your first day there. Usually we get there around noon first day and set up camp. Then we hit the grocery store and drive around check all the spots we are thinking of hunting to see what the trail heads look like. If its a mad house or not. Then we might take a short hike just to loosen up from sitting in the truck for two days. Based on what we see we make a plan for the next morning on where to start. If there are a lot of horse trailers there I wouldnt worry about that since they are in deep. We usually start hiking off trail any where from a half mile to a mile in. Look for a steep nasty spot to go off in. Look for an area on google earth with lots of blow downs and steep country. Elk love to bed in those areas. We ook for open country after you go threw some hell to get there with water and food. Have more areas planned ot look at then you can hunt. Every day you will be hiking into new areas until you see elk, hear elk, smell elk, or see super fresh elk poop or tracks. Dosent matter how great the spot looks if there is no sign dont bother hunting it.
> 
> ...


Wow Chuck, lots of great information. I really appreciate you taking the time and helping me out. I did buy a Mystery Ranch Metcalf recently. Spent months researching backpacks. I wanted to buy a top quality pack and can use it for other hunting adventures. I will look into all the informative websites you mentioned. I have been going on Rockslide and have found it very informative. 
I am really hoping to still make this trip happen this fall. Worse case we go next year and will have more time to train and pick up more gear.
I have been doing 3-4 miles a day on the treadmill, but will look at what you mentioned as soon as things progress.
Thanks again and take it easy.


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## Mr Mom (Dec 21, 2009)

24 hour drive, then set up camp . That's 2 days.
Can't shoot an elk on the last day unless it is next to the truck because it takes time to haul it out. Then drive home 24 hours. 2 more days gone.
If there are two hunters more like 2 days haul out.

At a minimum 4-5 days of your vacation time is spent not hunting.


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## Martin Looker (Jul 16, 2015)

You are correct but I would do it again if my knees were up to it


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## Mr Mom (Dec 21, 2009)

Mr Mom said:


> 24 hour drive, then set up camp . That's 2 days.
> Can't shoot an elk on the last day unless it is next to the truck because it takes time to haul it out. Then drive home 24 hours. 2 more days gone.
> If there are two hunters more like 2 days haul out.
> 
> At a minimum 4-5 days of your vacation time is spent not hunting.




So you need to go for 2 weeks . Or 3 or 4


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## Lumberman (Sep 27, 2010)

After a few unsuccessful draws looks like we will be back in OTC Colorado for another archery hunt this year.

Here’s an interesting thought. I like the Vail-Aspen area. It’s taking a bunch of bad press lately because of reduced elk numbers. I’ve hunted it a couple of times and if you get away from the hipsters (weekend backpackers) we have seen a ton of elk. I believe the hipsters have pushed the elk away from camping tails. Go a couple miles away from trials and it can be good. 

Otherwise any unit in Colorado will have Elk. Just like anything else we hunt in Michigan. Find food, water, and cover. Hunting pressure is real. There will be guys everywhere. Picture state land opener of gun season. If you hunt pressured Michigan whitetail your experience will pay dividends out west.


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## shanny28757 (Feb 11, 2006)

Is it possible to get a couple miles away from a trail in most places in Colorado? Serious question. The area i hunted in 2018 i think if you hiked 1.5 miles from your trail you would end up closer to another trail. I spent quite a bit of computer time e-scouting that unit and surrounding units and this was overwhelmingly true. The unit i'm talking about is pretty well off the beaten path and not hear major travel corridors either.

Even in the areas with motorized travel restrictions, you still have to worry about horses and bikers. My experience in Co. is limited, but that's what I've seen.



Lumberman said:


> After a few unsuccessful draws looks like we will be back in OTC Colorado for another archery hunt this year.
> 
> Here’s an interesting thought. I like the Vail-Aspen area. It’s taking a bunch of bad press lately because of reduced elk numbers. I’ve hunted it a couple of times and if you get away from the hipsters (weekend backpackers) we have seen a ton of elk. I believe the hipsters have pushed the elk away from camping tails. Go a couple miles away from trials and it can be good.
> 
> Otherwise any unit in Colorado will have Elk. Just like anything else we hunt in Michigan. Find food, water, and cover. Hunting pressure is real. There will be guys everywhere. Picture state land opener of gun season. If you hunt pressured Michigan whitetail your experience will pay dividends out west.


 i


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## Lumberman (Sep 27, 2010)

shanny28757 said:


> Is it possible to get a couple miles away from a trail in most places in Colorado? Serious question. The area i hunted in 2018 i think if you hiked 1.5 miles from your trail you would end up closer to another trail. I spent quite a bit of computer time e-scouting that unit and surrounding units and this was overwhelmingly true. The unit i'm talking about is pretty well off the beaten path and not hear major travel corridors either.
> 
> Even in the areas with motorized travel restrictions, you still have to worry about horses and bikers. My experience in Co. is limited, but that's what I've seen.
> 
> ...


You can’t get away from horses and llamas. The new fad of everyone backpacking has really caught on as well. We were super deep last year 5+ miles back and ran into people everyday. Not to mention all the guided drop camps back there. 

The good news is most of the guys hunting that hard get it and are super cool. Ran into some other Michigan BHA members last year. 

In my opinion the only way to hunt Colorado elk alone is to go where there’s no elk.


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## Street (Nov 1, 2017)

Planning a road trip with the Mrs this fall and convinced her to let me sneak away for 5-6 days for archery OTC elk. Nice info on this thread.

Being from Michigan, there’s definitely a steep learning curve doing mainly e-scouting. Planning on having 6-10 spots to check off. Born and Raised cat road shuffle style.


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## Martin Looker (Jul 16, 2015)

We hunted the State Forest State Park in Colorado several years ago. It was Oct back then at least for bow hunting.


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## bwlacy (Jul 10, 2012)

For working out with a pack on. If you can't find any steep hills in your area, use your local football stands. I've done tons of stairs in the bleachers with a pack on, or a local ski hill if available.


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