Next year three of us are planning on going elk hunting. We want to do a self-guided archery hunt. Going to hunt public land.We are all in good shape and would like to get away from the heavily hunted areas. Is the archery season nearly as crowded as rifle season? Is mid September the best time to go?None of us have ever seen an elk so trophy caliber bulls are not of main concern.I have gone over the Colorado units and have a couple ideas but nothing set in stone. Any help choosing a unit for an unlimited license or specific site within a unit would be greatly appreciated.

From someone who went on their first elk hunt this season, let me give you my perspective. Three of us hunted on public land, it was a buddy's 2nd trip to this area and he missed a nice bull 2 years ago in this area. It was a self guided hunt and I found out after we arrived he was basing this trip on one wallow! We went the first season and it was unusually hot and dry. All the elk were on top, we had no horses, no fresh sign in our area, and due to a buddy's handicap, we didn't go nearly as high as I wanted(me and another guy didn't want to leave him by himself a few days). We would all have scored on black bear and perhaps on a couple of nice mulie bucks, but we had elk tags and that is what we were after. A large outfitter had base camps in a few places, but they never really hindered us. It was not crowded, but when and if I go back.......I will go later in the season, probably the 2nd week of September, although it will be more crowded at that time. If you want to get away from the crowds on public land.....be in the best shape you can be, take small two man tents, be ready to hike and hunt away from your base camp and camp right where you are at the end of the day unless prohibited. Unless you have horses, you will wear yourself out going back and forth instead of perhaps finding better elk territory, and motorized vehicles are prohibited past the trailheads.

Also, check, check, and check again the maps and units. On the public land where we were at, their were even some units that had to be drawn. We had over-the-counter tags and while we were fine, if we had ventured as deep as I had wanted too, we may have gotten into the drawn tag units. Make sure and bring a good rainsuit.....those popup showers can come up fast. It was 33-34 degrees in the early morning, and when the sun came out it was nearly 85 degrees during our stay! I learned a lot during my trip and will do a few things differently next time(hopefully). But I had the time of my life even though I never had a chance at elk!!! Good luck.