Colorado Unit 42 Elk Hunting Guide

Colorado Unit 42 is a limited-quota elk unit in the northwest part of the state, spanning 387,358 acres of terrain that ranges from 4,771 feet up to 11,098 feet in elevation. With 57% public land, DIY hunters have a solid base of accessible country to work with, though a meaningful chunk of the unit remains in private ownership — worth keeping in mind when planning access points and camp locations. There is no wilderness designation in this unit, which means no special access restrictions and no guide requirements for nonresidents.

Unlike many Colorado elk units that combine over-the-counter opportunity with limited draw tags, Unit 42 runs entirely on a limited-quota basis. Every hunt here — including hunts for antlered and either-sex animals — requires a successful draw. There's no general season fallback in this unit, so hunters need to plan their application strategy accordingly rather than assuming they can show up with an OTC tag.

The elevation spread here is significant, running from below 5,000 feet near the lower drainages to over 11,000 feet at the unit's high points. That range gives elk plenty of room to move seasonally, and it also means hunters drawing tags with different timing can expect very different conditions and elk distribution depending on where in that elevation band the animals are sitting.

HuntPilot Analysis: Is Unit 42 Worth Applying For?

Unit 42 presents a mixed but honest picture. Harvest success has been consistent in the 20-22% range across the last four years of data — 20% in 2025, 21% in 2024, 20% in 2023, and 22% in 2022. That's a respectable success rate for a Western elk unit, and the consistency year-over-year suggests a stable elk population and a hunt structure that isn't wildly overrun or undersubscribed.

What stands out is the hunter volume: this unit pulled in 4,652 hunters in 2025 and as many as 6,358 in 2023, with harvest totals ranging from 700 to 1,318 animals depending on the year. That's a lot of pressure moving through the unit each season, and forum chatter about crowded camping areas and heavy hunter traffic in spots like Divide Creek and Garfield Creek State Wildlife Area backs that up qualitatively. Hunters should expect company, particularly in accessible drainages near public land boundaries.

The bull:cow ratio, based on six survey years from 2018 through 2024, averages 28:100. That's on the lower end for elk herds and points to a unit that's more heavily weighted toward cow harvest opportunity than trophy bull production. This aligns with the forum discussion in the provided context, which is dominated by hunters chasing cow elk tags rather than trophy bull talk. A 28:100 ratio doesn't mean bulls aren't present, but it does suggest bull numbers relative to cows are on the thinner side, which typically translates to lower odds of encountering mature, older-age-class bulls compared to units with healthier ratios.

Trophy history for the counties overlapping this unit shows a moderate track record — there's some trophy production in the area's history, but it isn't among Colorado's standout trophy units. Hunters chasing a genuine record-class bull should treat Unit 42 as a possibility rather than a primary target, and should weigh that moderate trophy signal against the unit's clear strength: consistent harvest opportunity, particularly for hunters willing to fill a cow tag.

Given all of this, Unit 42 is worth applying for if the goal is a solid chance at putting elk in the freezer, especially on cow tags, and hunters are comfortable sharing public ground with meaningful hunter pressure. It is a less compelling choice for hunters whose primary objective is a big bull, given the modest bull:cow ratio and moderate trophy history. HuntPilot's data shows this unit performs as an opportunity unit more than a trophy unit, and hunters should set expectations accordingly.

Harvest Success Rates

Recent harvest data for Unit 42 shows a unit that delivers dependable, if unspectacular, success rates:

• 2025: 4,652 hunters, 909 harvested, 20% success
• 2024: 6,185 hunters, 1,318 harvested, 21% success
• 2023: 6,358 hunters, 1,302 harvested, 20% success
• 2022: 3,237 hunters, 700 harvested, 22% success

The success rate has held in a tight band between 20% and 22% across four consecutive years, which is a meaningful signal of stability. Even as hunter numbers nearly doubled between 2022 and 2023 (3,237 to 6,358), the success rate barely moved — evidence that the unit's elk population and hunt structure can absorb higher pressure without success rates collapsing. That said, hunters should note this is unit-wide harvest data covering all hunt codes and both antlered and antlerless opportunity combined, so individual hunt-specific success will vary depending on which draw hunt a hunter pulls.

Trophy Quality

Trophy records from the counties overlapping Unit 42 point to moderate trophy potential. There is some history of trophy-class bulls coming from this general area, but it isn't a unit with a deep or consistent record of producing elite, top-tier bulls. Combined with the below-average bull:cow ratio of 28:100, the data supports treating Unit 42 as a unit where mature bulls exist but are not abundant relative to the cow population.

Hunters targeting a genuine trophy-class bull should go in with realistic expectations — older, heavier-antlered bulls are present but likely represent a smaller slice of the bull population than in units with stronger bull:cow ratios and deeper trophy histories. This unit is better suited to hunters prioritizing opportunity and meat over the pursuit of a record-book animal. Note also that the county-level trophy data is shared with neighboring units in the same counties, so entries attributed to this general area could have originated from adjacent units as well — it's a regional signal, not a unit-exclusive one.

Herd Health & Population Trends

The wildlife survey data available for Unit 42 covers six survey years between 2018 and 2024, with an average bull:cow ratio of 28:100. This ratio sits below what's typically considered a healthy, balanced bull:cow ratio for elk herds, and it suggests that cow numbers substantially outweigh bulls in this population. For hunters, that generally means better odds of encountering elk overall — cows are numerous — but a smaller proportion of those encounters will involve mature bulls.

This ratio is consistent with the unit's harvest character: heavy hunter volume, steady success rates in the low-20% range, and a hunt structure that leans on cow and either-sex tags to manage the herd. Hunters who prioritize simply seeing elk and having realistic harvest odds will find this data encouraging. Hunters specifically hoping for high bull encounter rates should treat the 28:100 average as a signal to temper expectations on that front.

Access & Terrain

Unit 42 covers 387,358 acres with 57% public land, giving DIY hunters a majority-public unit to work with, though private land inholdings and boundaries are common enough that hunters need to know property lines before setting up camp or glassing points. Elevation in the unit runs from 4,771 feet to 11,098 feet — a wide enough range that hunters can expect everything from lower sagebrush and pinon-juniper country to high-elevation timber and alpine basins, depending on where in the unit a hunt takes place.

There is no wilderness acreage in this unit, meaning no special wilderness access restrictions and no outfitter/guide requirement for nonresidents hunting here — Colorado does not impose Wyoming-style wilderness guide mandates in any case, but it's still worth noting that hunters have full access to plan and execute a DIY hunt without navigating wilderness permitting or stock-use rules.

Forum discussion around this unit repeatedly references popular public access points such as state wildlife areas and drainage bottoms near towns along the unit's western and southern boundaries, with hunters noting that these areas can get crowded and that camping space, especially for hunters trying to pull in a camper during colder-weather hunts, can be competitive. Hunters planning a trip should expect to scout multiple access options rather than count on a single spot, and should have a backup plan for camping given the reported crowding in popular drainages. HuntPilot's map tools can help hunters overlay public land boundaries and identify additional access points beyond the handful commonly discussed on hunting forums.

How to Apply

Because Unit 42 runs entirely on limited-quota draw hunts — with no general season fallback for any hunt type, including antlered and either-sex opportunities — hunters must apply and draw a tag to hunt elk here. There is no over-the-counter option in this unit.

Colorado's draw system uses a preference point structure where the highest point holders draw first, meaning a sufficiently high point total can effectively guarantee a tag on many hunts, depending on demand for that specific hunt code. This is true preference, not a weighted lottery — Colorado does not blend in random-draw elements the way some other states do. Residents and nonresidents apply through separate pools, and nonresidents should expect more competition for the same tags given Colorado's overall demand as a nonresident elk destination.

Hunters new to the Colorado system should understand that a successful draw consumes accumulated preference points for that species, meaning point totals reset and must be rebuilt for future applications. Given that Unit 42 offers no OTC fallback, hunters serious about hunting this specific unit should build a multi-year application strategy rather than assume a single-year application will succeed, particularly for the more sought-after either-sex or bull hunts.

Application dates and fees change every cycle. For the current deadlines, fees, and draw odds for Unit 42, see HuntPilot's Colorado page at /states/co.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the terrain like in Colorado Unit 42? Unit 42 spans a wide elevation range from 4,771 feet to 11,098 feet across 387,358 acres, meaning hunters can encounter everything from lower-elevation sagebrush and mixed shrub country to high alpine terrain depending on where they hunt within the unit. With 57% public land, there's a solid base of public access, though private land is common enough that hunters need to verify boundaries before setting up. There is no wilderness acreage in this unit, so there are no special wilderness access restrictions to plan around.

What is harvest success like in Unit 42? Harvest success has held steady between 20% and 22% over the last four recorded years (2022–2025), even as hunter numbers fluctuated significantly, from roughly 3,200 hunters in 2022 up to over 6,300 in 2023. This consistency suggests a stable elk population capable of supporting varying hunter pressure without a major shift in success rates.

How big are the elk in Unit 42? Trophy records from the counties overlapping this unit show moderate trophy potential — some trophy-class bulls have come from the broader area historically, but it isn't a unit known for consistently producing elite, record-caliber bulls. Combined with a below-average bull:cow ratio (28:100 average across six survey years), hunters should expect more opportunity for encountering elk in general, with mature trophy bulls representing a smaller share of the bull population than in units with stronger bull:cow ratios.

Is Unit 42 worth applying for? For hunters prioritizing a solid chance at harvesting an elk — particularly a cow — Unit 42 is a reasonable unit to apply for, backed by consistent 20-22% harvest success across recent years. For hunters chasing a trophy-class bull specifically, the moderate trophy history and lower bull:cow ratio suggest looking at units with stronger bull demographics first. Since every hunt here requires a draw, hunters should check current draw odds on HuntPilot's unit page before committing to an application strategy.

Does Unit 42 have an over-the-counter elk tag option? No. Every hunt in Unit 42 is limited-quota, including hunts for antlered and either-sex elk. There is no general season or OTC fallback tag available in this unit, so hunters must successfully draw a tag through Colorado's limited-quota application process to hunt elk here.