Colorado GMU 113 Mule Deer Hunting
Lincoln and Cheyenne counties, southeast Colorado · 211 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 113 is like
GMU 113 spans 211 square miles across low-elevation plains country in the southeast region, with terrain ranging from 4,600 to 5,200 feet and a mean slope of 1.6 degrees. The unit is gentle and rolling throughout, with no steep or rugged terrain. This is open-country mule deer habitat typical of the High Plains, where terrain presents no physical obstacle to foot travel.
Public hunting ground is scarce: only 1.7 percent of the unit, roughly 4 square miles, is State Wildlife Area managed for public access. An additional 5.7 percent is Colorado State Trust Land, available to hunt only where CPW has enrolled specific parcels in the Public Access Program; enrollment status varies by parcel and must be verified before hunting. The remaining 93 percent is private land. Legal access, not terrain, is the binding constraint on hunting this unit.
Mule deer occupy winter range across 30 percent of the unit and concentrate on 28 percent of it during the winter months. The unit's overall mapped range encompasses 100 percent of the area, but this reflects the full extent of deer use and does not indicate year-round presence everywhere. As the fall progresses from September into October and November, hunters should expect mule deer distribution to shift toward winter ground, though the timing and extent of that movement vary with weather and snow.
The unit offers three seasons in 2026: Archery September 2–September 30 (either-sex), Muzzleloader September 12–September 20 (doe or buck), and Plains Early Rifle October 24–November 3 (doe or buck). The draw is easy, often requiring zero preference points for the least-competitive unit-wide buck or either-sex opportunity available to adult Colorado residents. Hunter pressure on this unit is extreme.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 4,600–5,200 ft, typically around 4,900 ft
- Steepness
- Gentle — mean slope 1.6°
- Slope breakdown
- 100% gentle · 0% moderate · 0% steep · 0% rugged
- Ground you can count on
- ~4 sq mi, plus ~12 sq mi of State Trust Land where access depends on enrollment
Land & access
About 2% of GMU 113 is public land a hunter can count on — State Wildlife Areas. A further 6% is State Trust Land, which is huntable only where CPW has enrolled it.
- State Wildlife Area2%
- State Trust Land6%
- Private93%
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 113 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 Range30%used in winter
- Winter Concentration28%where mule deer bunch up in winter
Mule Deer seasons & weapons (2026)
| Season | Dates | Tags offered |
|---|---|---|
| Archery | September 2 – September 30 | Either-sex |
| 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 113 mule deer hunting FAQ
Is there enough public ground here to actually hunt if I draw?
Only 1.7 percent of the unit—roughly 4 square miles of State Wildlife Area—is reliably open to public hunting. An additional 5.7 percent is State Trust Land subject to CPW's Public Access Program enrollment, but not all parcels may be enrolled. A hunter should verify access by parcel before applying and expect the great majority of the unit to be private.
When should I hunt this unit—early season or late?
The Archery and Muzzleloader seasons run in early September, during the velvet-shed phase before the rut. The rifle season runs October 24–November 3, spanning the early pre-rut and early rut phases. Rifle season aligns with the rut better, though mule deer movement toward winter ground accelerates through fall, making late-season encounters more likely as the rifle hunt progresses.
Will I likely draw this unit?
The draw is easy for the least-competitive unit-wide buck or either-sex license available to adult Colorado residents, often at zero points. Other seasons, weapons, and applicant categories may require substantially more points.
Can I walk the terrain here without trouble?
Yes—the unit is gentle and rolling throughout, with no steep ground. Terrain is not a barrier to foot travel. Access to public ground is the real limitation, since over 93 percent of the unit is private land.
How crowded is this unit?
Hunter pressure on GMU 113 is extreme. Though tags are easy to draw, the combination of proximity to populated areas and scarcity of public ground means a hunter should expect many other hunters in the field during rifle season.
Do mule deer concentrate in one area, or spread across the unit?
Winter concentration ground comprises 28 percent of the unit, indicating mule deer cluster on roughly that share during the winter months. Deer are not evenly distributed across the unit, and hunting late in the rifle season should focus on winter-range areas where concentrations develop.
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.