Colorado GMU 78 elk 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 2,754 elk hunters hunted Game Management Unit 78 across all seasons and took 731 elk, a success rate of 27%. The statewide rate that year was 20%.
That is 125 fewer hunters than 2023, when success was 14%.
2nd rifle was the busiest rifle season, with 871 hunters, about 114 for every 100 square miles of the unit.
1st rifle had the highest rifle success at 32%.
Among the 130 units with at least 100 rifle elk hunters, unit 78 ranked 40 for rifle success and 88 for fewest rifle hunters per square mile.
2024 elk harvest in unit 78, by season
| Season | Hunters | Harvest | Bulls / Cows / Calves | Success 2024 | Success 2023 | Hunters per 100 sq mi | Days per hunter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st rifle | 359 | 115 | 112 / 1 / 2 | 32% | 25% | 47 | 3.5 |
| 2nd rifle | 871 | 240 | 235 / 4 / 0 | 28% | 13% | 114 | 5.0 |
| 3rd rifle | 588 | 171 | 163 / 5 / 3 | 29% | 5% | 77 | 4.3 |
| 4th rifle | 55 | 16 | 9 / 7 / 0 | 29% | 27% | 7 | 3.3 |
| All rifle seasons | 1,874 | 543 | 519 / 18 / 5 | 29% | 14% | 246 | 4.4 |
| Archery | 737 | 147 | 131 / 16 / 0 | 20% | 14% | 97 | 7.3 |
| Muzzleloader | 143 | 41 | 41 / 0 / 0 | 29% | 19% | 19 | 5.5 |
| All seasons and methods | 2,754 | 731 | 691 / 35 / 5 | 27% | 14% | 361 | 5.3 |
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
- 1st rifle: Oct 14-18
- 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.
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Unit 77 Unit 771 Unit 751 Unit 76 Unit 80 Unit 81 Unit 78 deer All elk 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 Elk Harvest Estimates and the 2023 report in the same series. They are estimates from a survey, not counts, and they cover the whole unit.