Colorado GMU 112 Mule Deer Hunting
Lincoln County, northeast Colorado · 296 sq mi
Based on the EASIEST unit-wide buck or either-sex hunt code available to adult Colorado residents in the 2026 primary draw — the lowest preference-point tier that drew reliably. Private-land-only and Ranching for Wildlife hunts are excluded because neither is a unit-wide public-land opportunity — NOT because the public cannot draw them. A private-land-only license requires the hunter's own permission to hunt private ground; a Ranching for Wildlife license is valid on the participating ranches enrolled in that program. They are separate systems. Other weapons, seasons and nonresident applicants can require substantially more points. The band is a floor, not a target: even the easiest qualifying hunt here sits in that range.
What hunting GMU 112 is like
Unit 112 occupies 296 square miles across the lower-elevation plains of Lincoln County in Colorado's northeast region. Terrain is gentle and rolling throughout, with a mean slope of 1.5 degrees and no ground classified as steep or rugged. Elevation ranges from a low of 4,900 feet to a high of 5,600 feet, with typical elevations around 5,300 feet. The unit's low elevation and modest topography make it accessible on foot, though legal access is the binding constraint.
Only approximately 0% of the unit is generally open to public hunting. The unit is roughly 87% privately owned. An additional 13% is Colorado State Trust Land that may be huntable only on parcels enrolled in CPW's Public Access Program; hunters must verify enrollment status before hunting this ground. With virtually no dependably open public land, access to this unit depends almost entirely on private permission or successful enrollment checks on State Trust Land parcels.
Mule deer occupy portions of this unit as winter habitat. Winter Range and Winter Concentration each cover 29% of the unit. Mule deer cluster in winter concentration areas during the post-rut recovery phase from January through mid-March. Outside the winter concentration mapping, the Overall Range layer extends across the full unit, but this does not indicate uniform occupancy or year-round use—mule deer presence varies seasonally and concentrates in mapped winter-use areas rather than spreading evenly across available ground.
The unit offers three seasons: Archery from September 2–September 30 (either-sex), Muzzleloader from September 12–September 20 (doe/buck), and Plains Early Rifle from October 24–November 3 (doe/buck). The archery and muzzleloader hunts fall during the velvet-shed and early-fall transition phase, when bucks are shedding velvet and behavior shifts toward fall patterns. The rifle season straddles two phases—early fall migration and nocturnal buck behavior followed by early pre-rut staging—as mule deer begin moving and bucks become more active in preparation for the rut. Draw difficulty for the easiest unit-wide hunts is easy, often requiring zero preference points for an adult Colorado resident pursuing either-sex opportunities. Hunter pressure on the unit is extreme.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 4,900–5,600 ft, typically around 5,300 ft
- Steepness
- Gentle — mean slope 1.5°
- Slope breakdown
- 100% gentle · 0% moderate · 0% steep · 0% rugged
- Ground you can count on
- ~0 sq mi, plus ~39 sq mi of State Trust Land where access depends on enrollment
Land & access
About 0% of GMU 112 is public land a hunter can count on. A further 13% is State Trust Land, which is huntable only where CPW has enrolled it.
- State Trust Land13%
- Private87%
Colorado State Trust Land is open to public hunting only where it is enrolled in CPW's Public Access Program. Check current enrollment before planning around it.
Where mule deer live in the unit
Colorado Parks & Wildlife maps mule deer seasonal ranges statewide. This is how much of GMU 112 each range covers — the single best clue to whether mule deer are here in September, in November, or only passing through. The layers overlap, so they do not add to 100%.
- Overall Range100%the full extent of range CPW maps for mule deer — near 100% on most units, and not a statement about when mule deer are present
- Winter Range29%used in winter
- Winter Concentration29%where mule deer bunch up in winter
Mule Deer seasons & weapons (2026)
| Season | Dates | Tags offered |
|---|---|---|
| Archery | September 2 – September 30 | Either-sex, Doe |
| Muzzleloader | September 12 – September 20 | Doe, Buck |
| Plains Early Rifle | October 24 – November 3 | Doe, Buck |
Dates span every hunt code of that type in this unit and can differ by code. Confirm the current brochure with Colorado Parks & Wildlife before applying.
GMU 112 mule deer hunting FAQ
Can a hunter with no preference points draw a tag on this unit?
Yes. The easiest unit-wide hunts on this unit—the either-sex archery and either-sex rifle tags—draw reliably at zero points for adult Colorado residents, making this an accessible draw for applicants with no preference-point history.
How much public land can actually be hunted here?
Approximately 0% of the unit is generally open to public hunting. An additional 13% is Colorado State Trust Land, but only parcels enrolled in CPW's Public Access Program are huntable; status must be verified before hunting. With nearly all ground in private ownership, access depends on private landowner permission or successful enrollment confirmation on State Trust Land.
When do mule deer concentrate on this unit?
Mule deer concentrate in mapped areas during the winter period from January through mid-March, when they occupy winter concentration grounds that represent 29% of the unit. Outside winter concentration mapping, deer presence on the broader winter range is more dispersed.
Which seasons fall during the rut?
Neither the archery nor muzzleloader season overlaps with the mule deer rut. Archery (September 2–30) and muzzleloader (September 12–20) both occur during velvet shed and early fall transition, before rut behavior begins. The rifle season (October 24–November 3) spans early fall migration and early pre-rut staging, preceding the primary November rut.
Is the terrain easy to walk but hard to access, or both?
The terrain is genuinely easy to walk—gentle, rolling country with minimal slope. Access, however, is the limiting factor: nearly all ground is private, making legal entry the real challenge regardless of how walkable the country is. A hunter must secure permission or verify State Trust Land enrollment before terrain ease matters.
Does this unit get crowded even though it draws easily?
Yes. An easy draw and extreme hunter pressure are separate issues. This unit draws at zero points for the easiest hunts, making tags highly available, yet the combination of low elevation, easy terrain, and proximity to populated areas brings very heavy hunting pressure to the limited public ground and accessible private parcels.
Data sources & methodology
- Colorado Parks & Wildlife — Big Game hunting — seasons, weapons, hunt codes and license types
- CPW — Primary Draw rules — how preference points and the hybrid draw work
- CPW — Deer statistics, draw recap and Drawn Out At reports — the point levels behind the draw-difficulty bands
- CPW — Secondary Draw — licenses remaining after the primary draw
- CPW — Maps and GIS (Species Activity Mapping) — mule deer seasonal range
- CPW — State Trust Land Finder — which State Trust acreage is enrolled and open to public hunting
- Federal and state land-ownership datasets — land ownership and access
- NOAA climate normals — fall weather
Draw difficulty is a qualitative band, not published odds — the note under the summary above states exactly which hunt code it describes. Land shares are separate, non-overlapping categories: publicly owned is not the same as open to hunting, and State Trust Land is huntable only where CPW has enrolled it. Unit data last updated August 31, 2026.