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The harvest ledger · Free & open

Colorado elk harvest data, unit by unit.

CPW publishes elk success rates as buried PDFs; the big hunting apps lock theirs behind a paywall. Here it is free and searchable — combined percent-success for 42 Colorado units, broken out by season. Filter, sort, and tap through to the full unit profile.

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What this is

The numbers, not a sales pitch.

Every figure below is Colorado Parks & Wildlife’s own combined percent-success (harvest divided by hunters) from their annual Elk Harvest Estimates — the same data the paywalled tools repackage. We’ve cleaned it up, labeled the survey year, dropped the thin-sample seasons that lie, and made it sortable. Read a high number as a hard tag and a low number as an easy one, and you’ll read this table the way a guide does.

Min. overall success

Showing 42 of 42 Colorado elk units with published CPW success data.

ArchMLR1R2R3R4Rifle tag
GMU 2Browns Park · Douglas MountainFar Northwest Colorado64%2024——————~91% publicLimited draw (trophy unit)
GMU 10Blue Mountain · RangelyFar Northwest Colorado58%2024——————~78% publicLimited draw (trophy unit)
GMU 61Uncompahgre Plateau · WestUncompahgre Plateau56%202467%58%56%49%66%42%~80% publicLimited draw (trophy unit, all seasons)
GMU 201Cold Springs MountainFar Northwest Colorado53%2024——————~92% publicLimited draw (trophy unit)
GMU 76Upper Rio Grande · CreedeSouthern Colorado (San Juans)46%202443%39%60%44%45%36%~94% publicLimited draw (all seasons)
GMU 13Williams Fork MountainsNorthwest Colorado (Yampa)41%202429%—28%39%56%42%~23% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle) — back to OTC for 2026
GMU 84Wet Mountains · GreenhornWet Mountains (south)38%202429%33%48%34%34%—~30% publicLimited draw (all seasons)
GMU 441California Park · Elkhead MountainsFar Northwest Colorado (Bears Ears)37%202420%—41%12%30%—~32% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle) — back to OTC for 2026
GMU 5Little Snake · Slater CreekFar Northwest Colorado (Bears Ears)36%202427%—39%19%10%—~60% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle) — back to OTC for 2026
GMU 57Upper Arkansas · Browns CanyonUpper Arkansas Valley34%202428%19%26%34%40%32%~77% publicLimited draw (either-sex tag valid in Units 57 & 58)
GMU 50Northern South ParkSouth Park32%202426%7%—30%25%58%~45% publicLimited draw (all seasons)
GMU 58Arkansas HillsUpper Arkansas Valley32%202431%33%28%24%33%33%~50% publicLimited draw (either-sex tag valid in Units 57 & 58)
GMU 500West South Park · Kenosha PassSouth Park30%202428%36%56%26%23%—~72% publicLimited draw (all seasons)
GMU 12Northwest Colorado · Craig / Flat Tops edgeNorthwest Colorado29%202426%27%27%33%31%26%~53% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle)
GMU 22Piceance Breaks · SW of MeekerNorthwest Colorado (White River)29%202422%23%31%25%23%40%~73% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle)
GMU 78South San Juan Wilderness · E of PagosaSouthern San Juans27%202420%29%32%28%29%28%~62% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle)
GMU 69Wet Mountains · WestcliffeWet Mountains (north)26%2024——————~38% publicLimited draw (all seasons)
GMU 214Wolf Mountain · ElkheadFar Northwest Colorado (Bears Ears)26%202413%—30%8%32%—~23% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle) — back to OTC for 2026
GMU 4Bears Ears · Upper YampaFar Northwest Colorado (Bears Ears)25%202423%27%24%13%17%—~50% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle) — back to OTC for 2026
GMU 11Danforth Hills · West of MeekerNorthwest Colorado (White River)25%202419%0%33%18%17%29%~67% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle) — back to OTC for 2026
GMU 211Danforth Hills · Axial BasinNorthwest Colorado (White River)25%202427%55%21%21%22%17%~43% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle) — back to OTC for 2026
GMU 23White River · east of MeekerNorthwest Colorado (White River)23%202426%20%32%6%13%22%~45% publicReturning to OTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle) for 2026
GMU 75Pine & Florida River · NE of DurangoSouthern San Juans23%202412%17%23%24%23%35%~45% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle)
GMU 54West Elk Wilderness · West GunnisonGunnison Basin22%202427%23%28%15%21%39%~75% publicLimited draw — OTC bull removed for 2026
GMU 74Hermosa · NW of DurangoSouthern San Juans21%202418%32%29%20%16%17%~86% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle)
GMU 77Piedra River · NW of PagosaSouthern San Juans21%202411%10%22%22%28%26%~83% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle)
GMU 421Grand Mesa · Plateau CreekWest-central Colorado (Grand Mesa)19%202413%16%24%13%19%26%~67% publicLimited draw
GMU 521West Elk · North Fork GunnisonWest-central Colorado (West Elks)19%2024——————~55% publicOTC / low-point bull (verify current year)
GMU 43Roaring Fork · Aspen high countryCentral Colorado (Roaring Fork)18%20248%19%18%19%28%32%~80% publicLimited draw
GMU 551Northern Gunnison BasinGunnison Basin16%202420%22%23%12%18%—~75% publicLimited draw — OTC bull removed for 2026
GMU 771Navajo River · SE of PagosaSouthern San Juans16%20246%—14%13%15%—Limited (much is Southern Ute land)OTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle) — but access-limited
GMU 16West North Park · Mount ZirkelNorth Park15%20247%15%22%6%18%29%~52% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle)
GMU 44Eagle · Holy CrossCentral Colorado (Eagle Valley)14%20247%12%20%17%14%21%~82% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle)
GMU 55Fossil Ridge · East GunnisonGunnison Basin14%202416%20%22%11%13%57%~75% publicLimited draw — OTC bull removed for 2026
GMU 24White River · Flat TopsNorthwest Colorado (Flat Tops)14%202412%16%24%5%5%20%~80% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle) — back to OTC for 2026
GMU 181Kremmling Bench · Middle ParkMiddle Park14%20243%0%21%8%17%20%~60% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle)
GMU 25Flat Tops · SouthNorthwest Colorado (Flat Tops)13%20246%0%7%11%11%30%~83% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle)
GMU 18Troublesome · Middle ParkMiddle Park13%20247%13%21%11%19%7%~88% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle)
GMU 14Upper Elk River · Hahns PeakFar Northwest Colorado (Park Range)12%20247%27%23%21%——~83% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle) — back to OTC for 2026
GMU 161North Park · Park Range FlankNorth Park11%202410%7%13%6%13%15%~72% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle) — antler-point restriction applies
GMU 6East North Park · Medicine BowNorth Park10%20246%6%7%8%15%25%~67% publicLimited draw (quality unit) — verify current status with CPW
GMU 28Byers & Vasquez Peaks · Winter ParkMiddle Park6%20244%7%14%4%5%11%~70% publicOTC bull (2nd & 3rd rifle)

Success = CPW’s combined “Percent Success” (harvest ÷ hunters) for the labeled year; thin-sample seasons are omitted. Arch archery · ML muzzleloader · R1–R4rifle seasons 1–4. Public-land % is approximate; OTC status and draw points shift every year. Always verify current figures with Colorado Parks & Wildlife before you apply. Tap any unit for the full profile.

Common questions

Reading the harvest numbers.

What is the elk hunting success rate in Colorado by unit?

It varies enormously by unit and season. Per CPW's harvest estimates, the tightly-limited trophy units (like 2, 76, 10, and 201) run roughly 45–65% combined success, while heavily-pressured over-the-counter units often sit in the teens to low 30s. The table on this page lists CPW's combined percent-success (harvest ÷ hunters) for every Colorado elk unit we've researched, broken out by archery, muzzleloader, and the four rifle seasons. High success almost always means a hard-to-draw tag.

Where does Colorado publish elk harvest and success data?

Colorado Parks & Wildlife publishes annual Elk Harvest Estimates — hunters, harvest, and percent success by unit and season — as PDF and spreadsheet files on cpw.state.co.us. The numbers in this explorer are drawn from those CPW estimates and presented as one free, searchable table, with the survey year labeled on each unit. Always confirm the current year's figures with CPW before you apply.

Which Colorado elk units have the highest success rates?

The limited-entry units with the smallest tag quotas post the highest combined success because hunters are few, selective, and experienced — recent CPW data puts several northwest and San Juan trophy units in the 45–65% range. Over-the-counter units trade that for access: you can buy the tag, but success runs much lower under heavy pressure. Use the 'Min. overall success' and 'OTC vs limited' filters above to see the trade-off directly.

Is this Colorado elk harvest data free?

Yes. The major hunting-research platforms (GoHunt, onX, Eastmans) put their harvest and draw tools behind paid memberships. This explorer is free and open — the same CPW-sourced success data, cleaned up and made filterable, with a link to a full profile for each unit.

Sorted by goal

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Our home unit

GMU 59

Where Elk Glade guides — the full profile.