Colorado hunting laws for a new resident

[VA_Transplant]

Hello all. There's a good chance my job is moving from Virginia to Colorado (Denver area). I'm an avid bow and rifle hunter in VA. VA laws are really straightforward- I don't need a license to hunt on my own land, and I can hunt whitetail (in season, according to bag limits), right from my front yard without a license. I recently picked up a hunting booklet at a Walmart in Denver and I'm trying to go through what appears to be some really strict rules for private landowners in Colorado. Can someone please explain the regulations for hunting deer from your own property? Is hunting in your own backyard allowed? Is a license required? Tags?
Appreciate any help!

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

Colorado's big game are managed by unit. The state is divided up into what are called GMU's (game management units) and the units have their own tags (their are some statewide tags too) and bag limits and tags available. there are some landowner tags, but requirements are pretty strict as to how much land you have to own to qualify. Unless there are local regulations (city/county) or covenants on the land, you can hunt on your own property. You need license & tags.

We generally have an archery season, muzzle loader season and 4 different seasons for deer & elk. Deer hunting is totally limited with only a certain number of tags available. there are 2 unlimited elk seasons 2nd & 3rd) where over the counter tags are sold in an unlimited number.

There are lots of smaller type hunts that do not follow the general seasons (eg. plains , whitetail only.).
A license (fishing, small game, etc) is required also.
I'm sure others will add to what I've posted.

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

A few suggestions.

I moved to Colorado 21 years ago and faced the same thing you are looking at. As soon as you relocate, get you driver's license. You need to live in Colorado 6 months before you are considered a "resident" for hunting & fishing licenses. They go by when your drivers license was issued.

If you think you are relocating, buy points now, eventually you will need them.

Go to the Parks and Wildlife website and look at the various tutorials about planning your hunt and others they have online, they will answer a lot of your questions. Wait till after hunting seasons are over and call P & W and ask a customer service rep about questions you have. They are pretty busy right now, thats why I suggested waiting until after hunting season to call them,.

This forum is also a great place for information.

 

[JimP]

CC has it pretty well covered.

For any animal you need a license and a tag even if you are hunting on private property.

If you are just moving here to Colorado you will be out of the resident draw this coming year since the application period ends in the first of April, so you would need to be a resident by then. But you can still purchase points for the upcoming draws in 2023, however you will need to purchase a non resident small game license to do so.

But the above will not stop you from purchasing a over the counter bull elk tag or a either sex elk archery tag once you have your 6 months in. Or even picking up a resident draw tag that has been turned back in once your residency requirement is fulfilled.

One big thing that Colorado does that a lot of other states don't is that they require the hunter/fishermen to know where they are at as far as private property is concerned. The property does not need to be marked in any way. Fishing from a raft as it floats through private is OK but you can not get out of the boat and touch the bottom of the river.

You will also need a hunter safety certificate to purchase a hunting license if you were born after 1949. If you have one already I would purchase my first license from a CP&W office where they will then verify the certificate and label your license with it that it has been verified. That way you will not need to pack the certificate with your while hunting.

Other than the above there is the requirement that you need to be a certain distance from a building, even if it is your own property. I can't remember off of the top of my head just what that is.

 

[Winchester]

From the Colorado Big Game Brochure (which is available on line): https://cpw.state.co.us/Documents/RulesRegs/Brochure/BigGame/biggame.pdf

Landowner preference program (LPP) vouchers:
The LPP encourages private landowners to provide habitat for the benefit of wildlife populations and to relieve hunting pressure on public lands. Deer, elk and pronghorn vouchers are allocated to landowners who meet certain qualifications. Applications are drawn during the primary draw, and successful landowners receive a voucher for each winning hunt code. The voucher is transferred directly to a hunter, who then purchases a license to hunt. See page 7 and cpw.state.co.us/bg/landowner.

FOR LANDOWNERS:
1. Deer, elk and pronghorn licenses (in units that are totally limited for all rifle licenses) are allocated to deeded landowners who own at least 160 contiguous acres of private agricultural land. Further qualifications apply: cpw.state.co.us/bg/landowner.

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

This forum is also a great place for information.

See what I mean about getting great information here!

 

[ScottR]

I would also encourage you to buy a TagHub membership for researching CO. It will help you determine what is what in very short order, plus the guys here will verify information. Especially that dude who goes by @Winchester...

 

[Winchester]

Yep.
I help out on Eastman’s TagHub Team and I live in Colorado. There’s a TON of info in TagHub on CO and all the other western states. PM me if you want to discuss CO.