With an estimated 280,000 elk, Colorado is home to the largest population in the United States. That equates to a ton of hunting opportunities. Yes, there are several great OTC Colorado elk hunting units (GMUs 4, 13, 22, 85 and 421 come to mind) but for non-resident hunters looking to harvest a trophy bull an over-the-counter tag may not suit their needs. If you’re a Hunts Plus member, you already know that we’re all about limited entry hunts, and have more than 4.5 million points of data within our system at your fingertips. In this article we’re going to cover some of the limited entry units I consider to be the very best Colorado has to offer.

“Best” is a subjective term. Lets start off by clarifying what -to me- makes a unit truly unique. I see a unit as exceptional when it provides hunters abundant access to public land, has been managed for at least 10 years for trophy potential and and a high hunter success rate. The population of the unit needs to have stayed the same or grown over the past 5 years, and a few B&C or P&Y entries sprinkled in there helps. In the charts below the information provided is for the early rifle season unless otherwise stated. When talking to members about these units, the vast majority express interest in that season, so I’m using early rifle data to cater to the broadest audience. If you’re a member, you can find odds for all seasons and all GMUs by clicking here.

If you’re not yet a member of Hunts Plus, please consider joining. While this article will have quite a bit of information regarding the units discussed, it doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of what’s available to members. Plus, you’ll have access to our Professional Hunt Advisors who will help you develop a custom application strategy tailored to your specific goals. It also helps us continue to provide exceptional content for hunters of all skill levels.