Colorado GMU 133 Mule Deer Hunting
Huerfano, Las Animas and Pueblo counties, southeast Colorado · 576 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 133 is like
GMU 133 is a 576-square-mile unit in Huerfano, Las Animas, and Pueblo counties in the southeast corner of Colorado. The country is gentle and rolling, with elevations ranging from 4,800 feet to 6,600 feet and a mean slope of 3.1 degrees. The terrain is predominantly gentle or gentle-to-rolling across 95 percent of the unit, with only 4 percent moderate slopes and 1 percent steep terrain. This is open country that does not demand technical climbing or navigation.
Mule deer hunters in this unit face a significant access challenge: only about 8.1 percent of the unit, roughly 46 square miles, is dependably open to public hunting through State Wildlife Areas and BLM land. An additional 8.3 percent is Colorado State Trust Land, which may be huntable on parcels enrolled in CPW's Public Access Program, but enrollment is not certain. Nearly 76 percent of the unit is private land. About 8 percent of the unit ownership is unclassified. The gentle terrain makes walking easy once a hunter is on legal ground, but identifying and reaching that ground is the practical limiting factor on this unit.
Mule deer in this unit concentrate in winter, with 10 percent of the unit mapped as Winter Range and 2 percent as Winter Concentration. Summer Range is not mapped here, indicating that mule deer do not hold to this country through the peak summer months. The seasonal-range pattern suggests that hunters should expect mule deer to be present through the fall as movement and staging occur, with higher densities clustering on the 2 percent mapped as Winter Concentration ground as the season advances.
Three seasons are offered to public applicants: Archery runs September 2 through September 30 as an either-sex hunt during the velvet-shed phase; Muzzleloader runs September 12 through September 20 as a buck or doe hunt, also in the velvet-shed phase; and Plains Early Rifle runs October 24 through November 3 as a buck or doe hunt during the early fall migration and early pre-rut phases. The draw for this unit is easy, often available at zero preference points for the simplest unit-wide buck or either-sex code to adult Colorado residents.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 4,800–6,600 ft, typically around 6,000 ft
- Steepness
- Gentle — mean slope 3.1°
- Slope breakdown
- 95% gentle · 4% moderate · 1% steep · 0% rugged
- Ground you can count on
- ~46 sq mi, plus ~48 sq mi of State Trust Land where access depends on enrollment
Land & access
About 8% of GMU 133 is public land a hunter can count on — State Wildlife Areas and BLM. A further 8% is State Trust Land, which is huntable only where CPW has enrolled it.
- State Wildlife Area8%
- BLM<1%
- State Trust Land8%
- Unclassified ownership8%
- Private76%
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.
“Ownership unclassified” means the source dataset does not record an owner for that acreage. It is not known to be public or private.
Where mule deer live in the unit
Colorado Parks & Wildlife maps mule deer seasonal ranges statewide. This is how much of GMU 133 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 Range10%used in winter
- Winter Concentration2%where mule deer bunch up in winter
- Summer Range<1%used in summer
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 133 mule deer hunting FAQ
Can a hunter with zero preference points draw a public tag on GMU 133?
Yes. The easiest unit-wide buck or either-sex code for adult Colorado residents draws at zero preference points on average. Other seasons, weapons, and nonresident applicants can require more points.
Is most of the ground here actually huntable for someone without permission on private land?
No. Only about 8.1 percent of the unit is reliably open to public hunting, and that ground is split between State Wildlife Areas and small BLM parcels. An additional 8.3 percent is State Trust Land, but only portions enrolled in CPW's Public Access Program are open, and enrollment varies. The terrain is easy to walk once on legal ground, but access is the limiting factor.
Which season should a hunter plan for—archery, muzzleloader, or rifle?
All three seasons sit in September and October, when mule deer are in the velvet-shed phase, early fall migration, or early pre-rut staging—periods of active movement but not the rut itself. Archery and muzzleloader both occur in early fall; the rifle season (October 24–November 3) extends into pre-rut activity. Season choice depends on weapon preference and how much movement a hunter wants to encounter.
Will there be more mule deer present later in the fall?
Winter Range covers 10 percent of the unit and Winter Concentration covers 2 percent, suggesting that mule deer cluster on specific ground as winter approaches. Timing and density of that shift depend on weather and snow, but hunters should expect concentrations to form as the season advances from October into November.
Is the terrain on this unit manageable for a hunter on foot?
Yes. The unit is 95 percent gentle or rolling terrain with a mean slope of 3.1 degrees. Elevation ranges from 4,800 to 6,600 feet. Once a hunter has legal access to public ground, the terrain itself is not demanding.
Does hunter pressure here mean tags are hard to draw?
No. Draw difficulty and hunter pressure are separate. This unit draws at zero points for the easiest qualifying hunt, even though moderate hunter pressure exists. An easy draw does not mean the ground will be empty, but it does mean applicants without preference points can hunt it.
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.