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Colorado Draw Odds
Colorado game management unit · herd E-17

Unit 481 elk

Part of the Collegiate Range herd. 11 limited elk hunts in the 2026 draw, 10 of them drawable by residents with zero points. The toughest, E-M-481-O1-R, took 1 pt for residents.

Draw hunts
11
10 List A · 1 List B/C
Harvest success 2025
31%
523 hunters · 160 elk (draw hunts only)
Herd estimate 2025
3,470
+16% since 2019
Bulls per 100 cows
23
herd E-17, 2025

Over the counter in Unit 481

No over-the-counter elk licenses are valid in Unit 481 in 2026 — every license here comes through the draw or leftovers.

Draw hunts in Unit 481

Hunt codeHuntListLicensesResidents needNonres. needTrendSuccess
E-E-481-O1-A Either sex · Archery A 110 0 pts 2 pts → steady 21%
E-F-481-O1-M Cow · Muzzleloader A 35 2nd choice 2nd choice → steady 15%
E-M-481-O1-M Bull · Muzzleloader A 40 0 pts 3 pts → steady 29%
E-F-481-O2-R Cow · 2nd rifle A 80 2nd choice 2nd choice → steady 29%
E-F-481-O3-R Cow · 3rd rifle A 40 2nd choice 2nd choice → steady 8%
E-F-481-O4-R Cow · 4th rifle A 20 2nd choice No applicants → steady 0%
E-F-481-P5-R Cow · Private land only (5) rifle B 50 0 pts 1 pt → steady 53%
E-M-481-O1-R Bull · 1st rifle A 65 1 pt 5 pts → steady 57%
E-M-481-O2-R Bull · 2nd rifle A 85 0 pts 2 pts → steady 47%
E-M-481-O3-R Bull · 3rd rifle A 40 0 pts 0 pts → steady 20%
E-M-481-O4-R Bull · 4th rifle A 10 0 pts 2 pts → steady 20%

Harvest by year

2019 21% 572 hunters · 81 bulls · 37 cows
2020 19% 530 hunters · 71 bulls · 28 cows
2021 20% 503 hunters · 70 bulls · 25 cows
2022 28% 513 hunters · 89 bulls · 47 cows
2023 22% 493 hunters · 86 bulls · 20 cows
2024 36% 494 hunters · 112 bulls · 59 cows
2025 31% 523 hunters · 109 bulls · 51 cows

All seasons and weapons combined, from CPW harvest surveys. 2025 figures add up the hunt-code estimates CPW published, so they leave out over-the-counter hunters.