CO unit 5 goat

Elkcrzy1 · Dec 11, 2008

Anyone hunted this area have any info for me ? I have max points and thinking about doing an archery hunt. pros ? cons ? Thanks Gary

ColoradoBob · Dec 11, 2008

mtn goats or antelope? CB

Elkcrzy1 · Dec 12, 2008

ColoradoOak · Dec 12, 2008

I don't have any personal experience with the unit. Access is relatively difficult, with the train being the easiest way to access the goat country. It is extremely rugged country. Success rates the last couple of years have been around 60% for archery hunters.

My personal opinion is that there are more accessible units with better success rates a lot closer to Ft. Collins. Don't rule out archery hunting a rifle season. Many, many people do it with great success, and some of the archery only tags are harder to draw than rifle tags.

Elkcrzy1 · Dec 12, 2008

Thanks Colorado how did ya know I was in Ft Collins ? Where ya from ? You have experience in any of the units?

ColoradoOak · Dec 12, 2008

Nope, no experience. Maybe next year...(said every year).

I looked at your profile. I'm in G. Junction. Good luck...

Squirrel · Dec 13, 2008

I drew 22 yrs. ago (and a couple times since) and the dow guy said "boy, do you know why I give 15 tags for that area??? Cause 10 of them take the train in, look where they have to go to and take the train right back to durango!" It is rough country to say the least. You'll either love it or leave swearing to never do that again. Many more civilized units with vehicle access to within a few miles- or even closer- of goat country. G-5 is a 10 mile hike to get to where you may see a goat... and it's not a flat hike.

Elkcrzy1 · Dec 13, 2008

Thats some good info guys thanks. You have some better ideas for me ? I was sending in for G1 but give me your thoughts ? Thanks

Squirrel · Dec 13, 2008

All the units south of I-70 to hoosier pass for easy access and close to home for your scouting trips, they used to hold huge goats till the dow decided to killl them all a few years ago Now a 10 " goat is nearly impossible to find but the genetics are there. You've got the rifle option if things don't work out also.

Elkcrzy1 · Dec 13, 2008

The DOW killed them all ? wtf ? Chronic wasting goats too ? Hows the Mt Evans area for goat hunting ? Every time I go up there I see a pile of them. Any good ones in that area ? Thanks, Gary

Squirrel · Dec 14, 2008

Not literrally all the goats, The history of the unit starts with many years of G-7 having 23 (+-) tags. Then they subdivided to 3 seasons EACH with 23 tags overshooting way to many in the easy to access basins of Greys and Tores peaks. Then they split up #7 and added 15+16 and added total cumulative tags with split seasons and eventually added a 4th season. Long story short they're KILLING ALL THE DAMN GOATS!!! When they had g7 with 23 tags there were lots of big goats mostly in the southern part of the unit I lived right up there with them in the upper Swann river, they were beautiful beasties the color of winter.Now they sell 60 tags for the same geographic area (last yrs #s) they have been as high as 75 or so at various times. These #s don't count a few token n/r tags for big $. They used to always kill at least a couple 10 " billies every year now the kill reports are dominated by 7"-8" babies. But the good news is the genetics and nutrition are there if the dow would just back off on printing the
"free money". Sorry so long winded it's a pet peeve as if that wasn't painfully obvious.

Elkcrzy1 · Dec 14, 2008

Thanks Squirrel I can understand that for sure.

jims · Dec 14, 2008

Hey Squirrel, I'm glad there is someone else out there that has seen the same tragic deal happen in the units along the Continental Divide. I have spent gobs of time in those units over the years and have shared a fair amount of my disappointment with the CDOW. Unfortunately it seems like they want to manage that area for hunter numbers rather than quality! There are also conflicts with mtn goat/bighorn sheep to the north and south and they don't want goats in those areas.

I used to be able to go out any day on a hike and view several bachelor groups of mature billies and now it may take a couple days to find a single mature (5+ year old) billy. It is really sad the CDOW hasn't been willing to try a few things differently rather than totally deplete the goat population in those units!

Just like you, this subject really raises the hackles on the back of my neck! If you want to draw a goat tag there are goats in those units but you may want to be willing to go home with a nanny or 2-3 year old billy!

Squirrel · Dec 15, 2008

I used to live under mt guyot and it was bachelor heaven with big boys ranging from there over to the north point of baldy. My old dog and I would hike up and hang out watching them all day, they are amazing animals. Hunter #s are another way of saying $$$$. I'm not a biologist but I "play one online" and do not agree that goats negatively effect other species. Sheep country and the goat country barely overlap. The sheep stop at the extreme stuff the goats thrive in. I'm not saying they have no impact just that it's minimal, when they are grazing on tundra ridges look at the vast acreage of whale mtn for example. If a goat charges a sheep he'll move over 1/2 mile and forget all about that onery goat. It would be interesting if we could take the financial motivation away from the dow and see how many tags would magically disappear (not just for exotics like sheep and goats ) Think how few bull elk would "need killin" by non- res if the tags were $5 each instead of 500. I haven't seen a goat I thought was 5 yrs old in that country for many seasons. The best chance to get a trophy is to hunt the later seasons and shoot an old nanny so their coat is pretty and some of them have some pretty decent horn legnths. Some day maybe grizzly gulch will have 10 billie groups with 7 over 9", but sadly not soon. They don't even realize they have a problem and after they do it will take a decade to rebuild (and probably take a decade to change the rules) gov't is known for quick response don't you know.