This past fall I had the opportunity to hunt for elk with my bow in the state of Washington with one of my wifes family members. I think I praticing shooting my bow more in the last year than the last five years and read at least a half dozen books to introduce myself to hunting elk. (My wife was happy I lost 40 pounds gettign ready for the season too.) I did not bring home any meat, but it was a wonderful experience. Near the end of my week hunting I had a nice 5x5 and his herd 60 yards away on a game trail(too far for me). Needless to say I've got the elk-bow-hunting-bug.

I am planning to apply for an elk bow tag in either Colorado or Wyoming this year. These states are a little more practical to drive to from Michigan than Washington.

I intend to hunt without a guide on public property. I am not hung up on shooting a 300+ bull; for that matter I would be happy to harvest a cow with my bow. I guess the less time I have to spend in the field searching for an elk herd, the more time I have within a one-week excursion to learn in the field from my own mistakes and successes. However, I would prefer to accumulative a preference point towards one of the more sought after game management regions within one of these states.

I am looking for information to help with deciding which state and which game management units to apply for. How do I understand what public land is available to hunt in the specific areas? Are there some elk density maps available online for these states? What other things should I take into consideration before apply for a non-resident tag?