Colorado GMU 591 Pronghorn Hunting
Pueblo, Fremont and El Paso counties, central Colorado · 216 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 591 is like
Unit 591 spans 216 square miles across Pueblo, Fremont and El Paso counties in the central region, covering elevations from 5,200 feet to 7,000 feet with a typical elevation near 5,800 feet. The terrain is gentle and rolling, with 84 percent of the unit in gentle terrain, 15 percent moderate, and 2 percent steep. The country is a mix of grassland and shrub, typical of Colorado's lower-elevation pronghorn range.
The unit is entirely private land. Approximately zero square miles of public land is open to pronghorn hunting here, and no public agencies own ground in Unit 591. Legal access is the controlling constraint on where a hunter can hunt, regardless of terrain or season.
The Overall Range layer covers 50 percent of the unit. The Winter Range layer is not mapped for this unit. Pronghorn presence and distribution follow the extent of mapped seasonal range, and seasonal movement is not indicated by available mapping for Unit 591.
Two pronghorn seasons are offered: a Muzzleloader season from September 21 to September 29 for either-sex harvest, and a Rifle season from October 3 to October 11 for either-sex harvest. The Muzzleloader season falls during the Primary Rut and Late Rut phases, while the Rifle season occurs in the Late Rut phase. Draw difficulty for the easiest unit-wide buck or either-sex hunt code is Easy, often drawing at zero preference points, though premium buck seasons in this unit require substantially more points. Other weapons, seasons and nonresident applicants can require substantially different draw difficulty.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 5,200–7,000 ft, typically around 5,800 ft
- Steepness
- Gentle — mean slope 5.7°
- Slope breakdown
- 84% gentle · 15% moderate · 2% steep · 0% rugged
- Ground you can count on
- ~0 sq mi
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 591.
Across the unit
- Grass and meadow52%
- Sagebrush28%
- Conifer11%
- Other cover7%
- Riparian2%
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 0% of GMU 591 is public land a hunter can count on.
- Unclassified ownership<1%
- Private100%
Where pronghorn live in the unit
Colorado Parks & Wildlife maps pronghorn seasonal ranges statewide. This is how much of GMU 591 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 Range50%the full extent of range CPW maps for pronghorn — near 100% on most units, and not a statement about when pronghorn are present
- Winter Range<1%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 |
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 591 pronghorn hunting FAQ
Is there any public land to hunt on in Unit 591?
No. The entire unit is private land, and approximately zero square miles is open to public hunting. Legal access to private ground is necessary to hunt here.
Can a hunter with no preference points draw the easiest pronghorn hunt in this unit?
Yes. The easiest unit-wide buck or either-sex hunt code draws reliably at zero points in the primary draw. This does not guarantee a draw — applicants below the reliable tier sometimes draw anyway, and other routes like the secondary draw and leftover list operate on different systems — but zero-point applicants are a regular part of the harvest.
What is the character of the terrain, and can a foot hunter cover much ground?
The unit is gentle and rolling, with 84 percent in gentle slopes and only 2 percent steep, making it walkable country on foot. The limiting factor is legal access rather than terrain; a hunter can only reach ground where permission is granted on private land.
When is the rut during the hunt seasons?
The Muzzleloader season from September 21 to 29 falls during the Primary Rut and Late Rut phases, capturing the peak of breeding activity. The Rifle season from October 3 to 11 occurs in the Late Rut phase, after the primary rut has ended.
Is archery pronghorn available in this unit?
This data does not specify whether the unit's archery season is over-the-counter or limited and drawn. Check CPW directly for whether archery pronghorn licences are unlimited (over-the-counter) or require a draw.
How much ground is concentrated pronghorn use?
The available mapping does not indicate a Winter Concentration or other concentration layer for this unit. The Overall Range covers 50 percent of the unit.
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.