Colorado Unit 98 Pronghorn Antelope Hunting Guide

Colorado Unit 98 sits in the eastern plains country, a vast 1,146,236-acre block of pronghorn habitat that has one defining characteristic hunters need to understand before applying: this is a draw-only unit from top to bottom. There is no general season here. Every pronghorn hunt in Unit 98, including tags for antlered bucks, comes through Colorado's limited-quota draw system. For hunters researching Colorado Unit 98 pronghorn hunting, that single fact should shape every decision that follows — from how many points to budget for, to how much time to invest in pre-season scouting once a tag is in hand.

This is low-elevation, open-country pronghorn ground, with terrain running from 3,345 to 4,543 feet in elevation — a relatively modest elevation band that reflects the flat-to-rolling plains character typical of Colorado's eastern pronghorn units. The unit's sheer size, over 1.1 million acres, makes it one of the larger draw units in the state, but hunters need to pair that acreage figure with a much more sobering number: just 5% of Unit 98 is public land. The overwhelming majority of this unit is private property, and that reality drives nearly everything about how a hunt here actually plays out.

HuntPilot Analysis: Is Unit 98 Worth Applying For?

The honest answer is nuanced. Unit 98 is not a unit hunters should draw expecting to walk onto open public ground and start glassing. With only 5% public land across more than a million acres, DIY hunters without existing private land access or a landowner relationship will be working with a small and likely fragmented pool of huntable public ground. That reality is echoed in forum discussion of eastern Colorado pronghorn hunting broadly — hunters repeatedly note that some of these plains units carry limited public access and that private land arrangements, whether through personal connections or outfitted hunts, play an outsized role in tag success.

That said, the harvest numbers tell a more encouraging story than the public land percentage alone would suggest. Success rates in Unit 98 have been solid and, in the most recent data, trending upward. In the 2024 season, 62 hunters harvested 41 animals for a 66% success rate — a strong number for pronghorn hunting anywhere in the West. The 2025 season saw a jump in hunter volume to 156 hunters with 76 harvested, a 49% success rate. Going back further, 2023 produced a 45% success rate on 44 hunters, 2022 came in at 46% on 35 hunters, 2021 hit 55% on 44 hunters, and 2020 posted 43% on 35 hunters. Across six seasons, success rates have ranged from the low 40s up to 66%, which puts Unit 98 solidly in line with — and in some years above — what hunters typically see on productive Colorado pronghorn units.

The takeaway: hunters who draw a tag here and who have secured access, whether through private land permission or by locking down the limited public ground available, have a genuinely good chance of filling that tag. The limiting factor isn't pronghorn density or huntability — it's getting onto ground where animals can be hunted in the first place. This is a unit that rewards hunters who do their access homework well before the season starts, not hunters hoping to figure it out from the truck on opening morning.

Herd Health & Population Trends

Survey data collected across six years from 2018 through 2024 shows an average buck-to-doe ratio of 19:100 in Unit 98. This is a notably low ratio compared to many Colorado pronghorn units, and it's worth being direct about what that means: a 19:100 ratio indicates a herd structure skewed heavily toward does relative to bucks, which can translate into more competition for tags chasing a smaller available pool of mature bucks, and it may also reflect herd management priorities that favor doe harvest to control population levels in this part of the state.

Hunters should treat this ratio as a herd health indicator rather than a trophy indicator — a lower buck:doe ratio generally means hunters will encounter fewer bucks per doe group while glassing, which can make locating a shooter buck more time-consuming even in good habitat. This is also a useful data point when weighing Unit 98 against neighboring units during the application process. HuntPilot's data shows this ratio has held in a consistent range across the surveyed years rather than fluctuating wildly, which suggests it reflects an established herd structure in this part of the eastern plains rather than a one-off anomaly.

Access & Terrain

Access is the central challenge in Unit 98, and hunters need to plan around it rather than hope around it. With only 5% of the unit's 1,146,236 acres classified as public land, the vast majority of this unit — roughly 95% — is private property. That is well below the threshold where a unit can be considered DIY-friendly, and hunters should not expect to find extensive walk-in public tracts the way they might in units with 40% or 50% public land.

What this means practically: hunters who draw a tag here without already having private land access lined up should prioritize identifying the specific public parcels within the unit well in advance of the season, using mapping tools to pinpoint exactly where that 5% lies relative to roads and terrain features. HuntPilot's public land overlay is built for exactly this kind of unit-level scouting — hunters can use it to identify where the available public ground sits in relation to the unit boundary before investing time or money in a trip.

Terrain-wise, Unit 98 sits at a relatively low elevation range of 3,345 to 4,543 feet, consistent with the open, rolling plains and prairie habitat typical of this region of Colorado. There is no wilderness acreage in this unit (0%), which means there are no wilderness-specific access restrictions to account for — the terrain is open country accessible by vehicle in most areas, a trait that is common to the pronghorn habitat of Colorado's eastern plains. Forum accounts from hunters who have pursued pronghorn in similar southeastern Colorado terrain describe open ground with minimal natural cover, often requiring hunters to use fence lines, low vegetation, or terrain folds to approach animals rather than relying on timber or broken country for concealment.

Harvest Success Rates

Looking at the full six-year harvest record gives a clearer picture of what hunters can realistically expect once they're in the field with a tag:

• 2025: 156 hunters, 76 harvested, 49% success
• 2024: 62 hunters, 41 harvested, 66% success
• 2023: 44 hunters, 20 harvested, 45% success
• 2022: 35 hunters, 16 harvested, 46% success
• 2021: 44 hunters, 24 harvested, 55% success
• 2020: 35 hunters, 15 harvested, 43% success

Two things stand out in this data. First, success rates have been remarkably consistent in the mid-40s to mid-50s range across most years, with 2024's 66% standing out as a clear outlier on the high end. Second, hunter volume has grown significantly in the most recent seasons — 2025's 156 hunters is more than double the hunter numbers seen in 2020 through 2023, suggesting either an increase in tag allocation or growing interest in this unit. Despite that volume increase, the 2025 success rate held at a respectable 49%, which suggests the unit's pronghorn population and huntable access held up reasonably well even under greater hunting pressure. Overall, hunters drawing a tag in Unit 98 are working with success rates that compare favorably to many Western pronghorn units, provided they've solved the access question beforehand.

How to Apply

Colorado pronghorn hunting operates on a preference point draw system, and Unit 98 is no exception — there is no general season here, so every hunter pursuing pronghorn in this unit, resident or nonresident, must apply through Colorado Parks and Wildlife's limited-quota draw. In Colorado's system, hunters accumulate preference points by applying and not drawing, and the state allocates tags based on highest point holders first, meaning the draw functions as a true preference system rather than a weighted lottery — a high enough point total has historically guaranteed a tag on competitive units.

Residents and nonresidents apply through separate pools, and nonresidents should expect this unit — like most sought-after Colorado pronghorn units — to require a multi-year point investment relative to resident applicants. Forum discussion among longtime Colorado pronghorn hunters reinforces this pattern broadly across the state: hunters with double-digit point totals describe being in a strong position to draw desirable units, while zero- or low-point applicants are generally advised to either target leftover tags, consider private land options, or commit to building points over several seasons rather than expecting to draw a quality unit immediately.

Because Unit 98 is entirely private-land dominated (95%), hunters should also factor land access into their application strategy from the start — drawing a tag here is only half the equation. Application structure, point requirements, and any fees change from cycle to cycle, so for the current deadlines, point costs, and draw odds specific to Unit 98, hunters should consult HuntPilot's Colorado state page at /states/CO, which reflects the live, current-year numbers rather than historical figures that can go stale.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the terrain like in Colorado Unit 98? Unit 98 is low-elevation plains and prairie country, ranging from 3,345 to 4,543 feet in elevation across a massive 1,146,236-acre footprint. There is no wilderness acreage in the unit, and the landscape is generally open and rolling, typical of eastern Colorado pronghorn habitat, with minimal natural cover for stalking.

What is harvest success like in Unit 98? Success rates have ranged from 43% to 66% over the past six seasons (2020–2025), with most years landing in the mid-40s to mid-50s percent range. The 2024 season posted the strongest result at 66% success on 62 hunters, while 2025 saw a larger pool of 156 hunters still post a solid 49% success rate.

Is Colorado Unit 98 worth applying for? It depends heavily on access. The harvest data supports Unit 98 as a productive pronghorn unit with consistently decent-to-strong success rates. However, with only 5% public land, hunters without a private land connection will face a real access challenge. This unit is best suited to hunters who can secure land access — whether through personal relationships, leased ground, or guided arrangements — before they apply, rather than hunters planning to hunt it purely DIY on public ground.

How many preference points does it take to draw Unit 98? HuntPilot does not include current draw odds data for Unit 98 in this overview, and draw requirements shift every cycle. Hunters should check HuntPilot's Colorado unit page for Unit 98's current point requirements and draw statistics before applying.

What is the buck-to-doe ratio in Unit 98, and what does it tell hunters? Survey data from 2018–2024 shows an average buck:doe ratio of 19:100, a relatively low ratio that suggests a doe-heavy herd structure in this unit. Hunters should expect fewer bucks per doe group while glassing compared to units with higher ratios, and should budget extra scouting time to locate mature bucks once a tag is secured.