Colorado GMU 501 deer hunting: 2024 harvest and hunter numbers
Unit 501 covers about 501 square miles in Park and Jefferson counties.
In 2024, an estimated 368 deer hunters hunted Game Management Unit 501 across all seasons and took 216 deer, a success rate of 59%. The statewide rate that year was 43%.
That is 154 fewer hunters than 2023, when success was 46%.
2nd rifle was the busiest rifle season, with 119 hunters, about 24 for every 100 square miles of the unit.
Among the 138 units with at least 100 rifle deer hunters, unit 501 ranked 13 for rifle success and 53 for fewest rifle hunters per square mile.
2024 deer harvest in unit 501, by season
| Season | Hunters | Harvest | Bucks / Does / Fawns | Success 2024 | Success 2023 | Hunters per 100 sq mi | Days per hunter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2nd rifle | 119 | 82 | 65 / 18 / 0 | 69% | 54% | 24 | 3.8 |
| 3rd rifle | 107 | 71 | 50 / 16 / 5 | 66% | 63% | 21 | 3.4 |
| 4th rifle | 27 | 27 | 27 / 0 / 0 | 100% | 100% | 5 | 3.0 |
| All rifle seasons | 253 | 181 | 142 / 34 / 5 | 72% | 61% | 50 | 3.6 |
| Archery | 81 | 28 | 19 / 9 / 0 | 35% | 12% | 16 | 8.8 |
| Muzzleloader | 34 | 6 | 5 / 1 / 0 | 18% | 20% | 7 | 4.0 |
| All seasons and methods | 368 | 216 | 166 / 44 / 5 | 59% | 46% | 73 | 4.8 |
These figures cover the whole unit, private land included. On public land, crowding is higher and success is usually lower than the unit number. Season rows include limited and over-the-counter licenses together.
2026 rifle season dates
- 2nd rifle: Oct 24-Nov 1
- 3rd rifle: Nov 7-15
- 4th rifle: Nov 18-22
Dates are from the 2026 Colorado Big Game brochure. Whether a license for unit 501 is over-the-counter or limited depends on the hunt code: check the brochure before you buy.
Hunting unit 501 this fall?
Numbers tell you how busy a unit is. They do not tell you where to park, camp and sit. FilledTag builds one exact plan for your tag, with every pin checked against public land and road rules. It is free for 25 testers this season.
Unit 501 is ready: a plan can be built for it now.
Nearby units
Unit 50 Unit 46 Unit 461 Unit 51 Unit 500 Unit 511 Unit 501 elk All deer units
Where these numbers come from
Colorado Parks and Wildlife surveys license holders after each season and publishes estimates of hunters, harvest and days hunted for every unit. This page uses the 2024 Colorado Deer Harvest Estimates and the 2023 report in the same series. They are estimates from a survey, not counts, and they cover the whole unit.