Colorado GMU 124 Pronghorn Hunting
Crowley and Pueblo counties, southeast Colorado · 585 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 124 is like
GMU 124 sits in the southeastern Colorado plains at an elevation of 4,300 to 5,400 feet, with typical terrain around 4,700 feet. The unit spans 585 square miles of gentle and rolling country. At 100 percent gentle by area and a mean slope of 1.1 degrees, the terrain is walkable throughout.
The unit is almost entirely private land, at approximately 94 percent. Just over 1 percent, about 6 square miles, is BLM ground generally open to public hunting. An additional 5.3 percent, roughly 31 square miles, is Colorado State Trust Land, where hunting access depends on enrollment in CPW's Public Access Program—hunters must check which parcels are enrolled before planning a hunt here. Legal access is the constraining factor on this unit; terrain alone does not limit mobility.
Pronghorn occupy the unit across its full mapped range. Winter Range covers 23 percent of the unit and is scattered across the plains landscape. As the fall progresses, pronghorn concentrate on and move between seasonal ranges according to weather, forage and the rut cycle. The small BLM parcel and any enrolled State Trust Land will be interspersed with private ground; a hunter using public land here must know boundaries and access points beforehand.
The unit offers three pronghorn seasons: Muzzleloader from September 21 to September 29 for either-sex; Rifle from October 3 to October 11 for either-sex; and Late Rifle from December 1 to December 31 for doe only. Archery pronghorn licences for this unit are sold over the counter outside the draw system. Draw difficulty is easy—applicants often draw the earliest seasons with zero preference points—though overall hunter pressure on the unit is high. The two rifle seasons fall in different phases of the annual rut cycle: the October rifle hunt occurs during late rut and post-rut recovery, while the December late-rifle season takes place as pronghorn begin winter grouping and transition.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 4,300–5,400 ft, typically around 4,700 ft
- Steepness
- Gentle — mean slope 1.1°
- Slope breakdown
- 100% gentle · 0% moderate · 0% steep · 0% rugged
- Ground you can count on
- ~6 sq mi, plus ~31 sq mi of State Trust Land where access depends on enrollment
Habitat & cover
What actually grows here, by elevation. Each band adds to 100% on its own — these are shares of that band, not of GMU 124.
Across the unit
- Grass and meadow89%
- Sagebrush7%
- Other cover4%
Cover classes from the USGS National Land Cover Database, split into elevation bands. “Other cover” is the remainder of the classification — bare ground, water, agriculture and developed land — and is left unnamed rather than guessed at.
Land & access
About 1% of GMU 124 is public land a hunter can count on — BLM. A further 5% is State Trust Land, which is huntable only where CPW has enrolled it.
- BLM1%
- State Trust Land5%
- Unclassified ownership<1%
- Private94%
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 pronghorn live in the unit
Colorado Parks & Wildlife maps pronghorn seasonal ranges statewide. This is how much of GMU 124 each range covers — the single best clue to whether pronghorn 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 pronghorn — near 100% on most units, and not a statement about when pronghorn are present
- Winter Range23%used in winter
Pronghorn seasons & weapons (2026)
| Season | Dates | Tags offered |
|---|---|---|
| Muzzleloader | September 21 – September 29 | Doe, Buck |
| Rifle | October 3 – October 11 | Doe, Buck |
| Late Rifle | December 1 – December 31 | Doe |
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 124 pronghorn hunting FAQ
Is there any realistic ground for a public-land hunter in this unit?
Approximately 1.1 percent of the unit, about 6 square miles of BLM, is dependably open to public hunting. An additional 5.3 percent is State Trust Land where access depends on CPW enrollment—some parcels may be available, but a hunter must verify beforehand. The remaining 94 percent is private, so legal access is the primary constraint here, not the gentle terrain itself.
Will a hunter with zero points draw the Muzzleloader or early Rifle season?
The easiest unit-wide either-sex hunt draws reliably at zero points, so applicants with no preference points have a realistic chance at the Muzzleloader and early Rifle seasons. This applies to the primary draw only; applicants should also be aware of the secondary draw held in June and the leftover list after the primary draw concludes.
When do pronghorn rut in this unit, and how does that affect season choice?
The pronghorn primary rut runs from September 6 to September 25. The Muzzleloader season (September 21–29) overlaps the tail end of the primary rut and enters the post-rut recovery phase, while the early Rifle season (October 3–11) occurs entirely during late rut and post-rut recovery. The Late Rifle season (December 1–31) takes place as pronghorn shift into winter grouping and transition, well after the rut is complete.
How much ground can a hunter actually walk and hunt if they draw the BLM parcel?
The 6 square miles of BLM open ground is interspersed with private land across the rolling plains. Even though the terrain is walkable throughout, a hunter is legally confined to the public parcel itself and cannot roam beyond it. The small size and intermixed ownership mean a successful hunt here depends on understanding exact boundaries and where pronghorn are using that specific patch.
What does 'high hunter pressure' mean for this unit?
High hunter pressure means many hunters pursue pronghorn here, likely due to proximity to populated areas and an easy draw that attracts applicants with few or no preference points. Even though tags draw easily, crowded conditions on the small amount of public ground and adjacent private land are typical, and hunters should plan accordingly.
Can a hunter buy an over-the-counter pronghorn licence in this unit without drawing?
Yes, archery pronghorn licences are sold over the counter in GMU 124 outside the draw system. Archery is available 15 August through 20 September, with August restricted to bucks only and September allowing either-sex harvest. The Muzzleloader and Rifle seasons are limited and drawn, but archery remains an unlimited tag opportunity.
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 — Pronghorn 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
- USGS / MRLC — National Land Cover Database — habitat and cover classes by elevation band
- CPW — Maps and GIS (Species Activity Mapping) — pronghorn seasonal range
- CPW — State Trust Land Finder — which State Trust acreage is enrolled and open to public hunting
- USGS PAD-US — Protected Areas Database of the United States — land ownership and access
- Daymet daily climate, 1991–2020 (Oak Ridge National Laboratory) — 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 September 24, 2026.