2021 Colorado Archery Elk Hunting Recap

The 2021 archery season at Dark Timber Lodge delivered many of the ups and downs that chasing elk with a bow can bring. Notched tags and bloody hands. Having elk so close you can hear them breathe but no shot. Packs heavy with meat and buckling legs. Father/son moments that will likely never be forgotten by either. Good belly laughter retelling stories around a great meal back at camp. And of course, run-ins with other hunters that sometimes break your way and sometimes booger your hunt.

We had a lot of new and first-time elk hunters this season and they all did awesome.  Bowhunting elk can truly test your mental and physical resolve.  It will wear your patience thin.  The days are long.  The weather can be hot with swirling winds, further complicating an already difficult endeavor.  However, our hunters stuck with it and at the end of our hunts we had a 44% success rate and 89% opportunity.  Those are very solid numbers for an over-the-counter, public land hunt. 

Much more important than the numbers were some of the fantastic moments our hunters experienced.  One of the unique things about hunting is that some of the most memorable times are the ones that don’t result in a dead animal.  For example, watching a screaming bull come in from a long ways off in full view to rake and beat up a tree nine yards away but never offering a good shot.  Or, in one of the most unusual things I’ve witnessed a hunter do, they went to adjust their stance but their feet had apparently fallen asleep and they literally fell flat on their face.  Right in front of sparring spike bulls and a super-hot bull chasing a cow.  But they didn’t spook and he almost got the shot.

One hunter received his guided hunt as an anniversary gift from his wife.  The hunter took it seriously as he dropped over 30 pounds to get in shape for the hunt.  As fate would have it a beautiful 6-point bull came walking right into the spot he was sitting at high noon on the second day of the hunt and that was that.  Another highlight was watching a father and son spend quality time together with it culminating in the dad shooting a fat cow in the fading light of their last evening and his young son overcoming some fear about an unfamiliar hike out in the dark in unfamiliar country.  All of that ranks as pretty cool stuff in my book and we’re grateful for every moment.  A very sincere thank you to all of our hunters, our guides and chef.

Shifting gears, I’d also like to address a topic that deals with a somewhat touchy subject.  Namely, is it right for someone who’s formerly hunted with Dark Timber Outfitters (or any outfitter for that matter) on a guided hunt to come back and hunt the very same area(s) on their own?  Please note, I’m using the word “right” not “legal”.

Legally, the answer is simple.  It’s public land and therefore anyone can hunt where and when they choose provided they abide by all legal parameters set by Colorado Parks and Wildlife (proper license, unit, species, weapon, etc.).  However, just because something is legal doesn’t always equate to it being ethical or demonstrating good hunting etiquette.

This scenario played out several times this archery season which has resulted in me turning it over in my head a lot which is why I’m now delivering it in a mass email for all of you to consider on a personal basis.  There’s merit to both sides of this issue.  Since we’re not able to hold this discussion in person however, I’ll distill it down to the lens I see it through as a licensed outfitter in the state of Colorado working to deliver a quality service and experience to folks. 

As an outfitter, I can only operate in a permitted area designated by the permit officers working for the National Forest or BLM lands I guide in.  I can’t go anywhere else and operate commercially.  Unguided hunters can go wherever they like, again, provided they’re hunting in the correct area during the correct season, etc., etc.  And that’s the rub.  When a DIY hunter can hunt in an endless number of places and apply what they learned in their hunt with Dark Timber, is it right for them to go back to the very same places they hunted with us?  Literally the same innocuous parking spot, same nondescript trailhead or spot within a specific small creek?  To play this scenario out, imagine if even half of our former hunters decided that was OK to do.  Think about a hunt you’ve had with Dark Timber or with another outfitter and imagine if there were 10 or more additional hunters bugling and cow calling, sitting water holes and moving through the woods on top of the hunters already in there.  And they were all former guided hunters with the outfitter you’re currently hunting with.  Another way to look at it is by imagining if you showed a friend one of your favorite hunting spots.  Then, the next season, you show up to hunt your spot and your friend is already there AND he’s brought two or three of his friends to your spot without so much as a word to you. 

Again, legally there’s absolutely nothing wrong with this.  We’re talking about ethics though.  Ethically speaking, it’s not right.  Particularly when a “DIY hunter” shows up the following year or two after their guided hunt.  There’s a difference, albeit slight, when someone decides to hunt a spot they were guided in after several years have gone by.  If this is something you plan to do, I would offer this advice:  stop by the outfitter’s camp and say hello.  Maybe ask where the guide or outfitter is planning to hunt and you can share your plans as well.  No harm in that, it doesn’t take long, and it demonstrates good etiquette. 

At the end of the day however, you’ll gain a lot more out of your hunt when you’ve taken what you’ve learned from your guided experience, done your own research, discovered your own spot, learned how to hunt it over a few seasons and then ultimately find yourself packing meat on a legit DIY hunt.  Running into your guide from the previous season in a honey hole you were shown by that very same guide makes you look bad, results in a bitter taste for everyone involved and takes away from what should be a wonderful time spent pursuing elk.  As hunters, we’re continuously presented with unique situations that call into question something being legal but not necessarily ethical.  As often as possible, I hope you choose the path that aligns with both.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and, on a more inspiring note, rifle season is coming up and we’re ready!