Colorado GMU 78 deer hunting: 2024 harvest and hunter numbers
Unit 78 covers about 763 square miles in Archuleta, Conejos, Mineral and Rio Grande counties.
In 2024, an estimated 1,138 deer hunters hunted Game Management Unit 78 across all seasons and took 567 deer, a success rate of 50%. The statewide rate that year was 43%.
That is 131 more hunters than 2023, when success was 58%.
2nd rifle was the busiest rifle season, with 463 hunters, about 61 for every 100 square miles of the unit.
Among the 138 units with at least 100 rifle deer hunters, unit 78 ranked 54 for rifle success and 103 for fewest rifle hunters per square mile.
2024 deer harvest in unit 78, by season
| Season | Hunters | Harvest | Bucks / Does / Fawns | Success 2024 | Success 2023 | Hunters per 100 sq mi | Days per hunter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2nd rifle | 463 | 281 | 274 / 7 / 0 | 61% | 66% | 61 | 4.4 |
| 3rd rifle | 294 | 126 | 122 / 0 / 3 | 43% | 63% | 39 | 3.8 |
| 4th rifle | 48 | 29 | 25 / 4 / 0 | 60% | 70% | 6 | 2.7 |
| All rifle seasons | 808 | 436 | 421 / 11 / 3 | 54% | 65% | 106 | 4.1 |
| Archery | 206 | 67 | 33 / 33 / 0 | 33% | 42% | 27 | 7.0 |
| Muzzleloader | 124 | 65 | 56 / 9 / 0 | 52% | 37% | 16 | 4.3 |
| All seasons and methods | 1,138 | 567 | 510 / 54 / 3 | 50% | 58% | 149 | 4.6 |
Hunters per 100 square miles uses the whole unit, private land included, so real crowding on public ground is higher. 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 78 is over-the-counter or limited depends on the hunt code: check the brochure before you buy.
Hunting unit 78 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.
Get a free plan for unit 78Nearby units
Unit 77 Unit 771 Unit 751 Unit 76 Unit 80 Unit 81 Unit 78 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.