Colorado elk unit · GMU 76
Upper Rio Grande · Creede
94% public San Juan wilderness, capped tags, and CPW success rates that top the state — the prize you wait years to draw.
About GMU 76
Colorado Game Management Unit 76 sits in the Southern Colorado (San Juans), spanning Mineral, Hinsdale, Rio Grande, Saguache counties near Creede, South Fork. The terrain runs from 8,000 – 13,000+ ft, with the primary big game being Rocky Mountain Elk, Mule Deer.
Big, steep, high country — aspen and spruce-fir to alpine basins above 12,000 ft, with a large roadless Wilderness core.
Elk success rates (CPW 2024)
Published by Colorado Parks and Wildlife in the CPW 2024 Elk Harvest Estimates for the 2024 season — the percentage of hunters who harvested an elk. Success swings with weather and pressure year to year; this is the most recent published data.
| Season | Success |
|---|---|
| Archery | 43% |
| Muzzleloader | 39% |
| 1st rifle | 60% |
| 2nd rifle | 44% |
| 3rd rifle | 45% |
| 4th rifle | 36% |
| All seasons | 46% |
Tags & draw odds
Tag type: Limited draw (all seasons).
A premium trophy unit — fully limited draw, with nonresident point requirements broadly in the high teens to ~20s depending on season. A long point-building wait. Verify current-year odds with CPW.
Access & crowding
Backpack or horseback for the Wilderness core; some road-accessible margins. Physically demanding.
Genuinely uncrowded — every tag is drawn and capped (CPW recorded as few as 9 bull hunters in 3rd rifle, 2024).
Who GMU 76 is for
A trophy / quality unit managed for older-age bulls; a realistic 280–320" bull, occasionally larger (secondary estimate).
In a line: The patient point-builder chasing a high-country trophy bull in wilderness, willing to wait years and hunt hard once drawn.
Recent changes: Long-standing limited draw — unaffected by the OTC/limited shuffles.
Where Elk Glade fits in
Elk Glade Outfitters runs primarily in GMU 59, not this unit — but we know the surrounding country and the regional draw landscape. If you have a tag here or you’re building points toward one, get in touch and we’ll talk through the strategy. If you don’t draw, we may have a 59 slot.
Data sources: elk success rates from CPW Colorado Elk Harvest Estimates (year labeled above). Public-land percentages are approximate. Draw point requirements shift every year and are described as ranges only — always verify the current-year figures in the CPW big game brochure and draw recap before applying.
Plan a hunt
Need help with the 76draw, or want a 59 slot if it doesn’t come through?
Send us a note with what tag you’re applying for and your dates — we’ll walk through the draw strategy and let you know what’s open at Elk Glade.
