Colorado GMU 97 Pronghorn Hunting
Logan, Washington and Morgan counties, northeast Colorado · 592 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 97 is like
Unit 97 covers 592 square miles across Logan, Washington, and Morgan counties in the northeastern corner of Colorado. The country is gentle and rolling throughout, with elevations ranging from 4,000 feet in the low spots to 4,800 feet at the high end, and a typical elevation around 4,400 feet. The terrain presents no significant climbing obstacles, and a hunter on foot can move across the unit without steep or rugged ground to contend with.
Nearly all of Unit 97 is private land. Only about 14 percent of the unit is publicly owned, consisting of Colorado State Trust Land whose hunting access depends on enrollment in CPW's Public Access Program—the specific parcels open to public hunting are not identified in advance and must be verified by the applicant. No Bureau of Land Management ground is present. The practical result is that legal public access is extremely limited, making this unit challenging for hunters without private-land permission.
Pronghorn occupy the unit across a broad mapped range. Winter Range covers 19 percent of the unit, and a Winter Concentration layer marking clustered pronghorn occupancy covers 3 percent. The concentration ground indicates that pronghorn do not spread evenly across winter range but gather in specific areas. Pronghorn are expected to be present in the unit from late fall through early spring as they transition into and occupy winter grounds, with distribution shifting toward and within the concentrated-use areas as the season progresses. The broader mapped range reflects the extent of pronghorn distribution across the year and does not indicate uniform presence.
The unit offers three limited seasons: Muzzleloader from September 21–29 for bucks, Rifle from October 3–11 for bucks, and Late Rifle from December 1–14 for does. The Muzzleloader season spans the primary rut and early post-rut recovery phase, when bucks are actively pursuing does. The October rifle season falls in the late post-rut recovery phase as bucks begin to group up. The December late rifle season occurs during fall grouping and winter transition, when does are joining herds moving toward winter grounds. Overall hunter pressure is low, and the draw difficulty for the easiest bull or either-sex hunt code is moderate, typically requiring 1–2 preference points in the primary draw.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 4,000–4,800 ft, typically around 4,400 ft
- Steepness
- Gentle — mean slope 2.1°
- Slope breakdown
- 100% gentle · 0% moderate · 0% steep · 0% rugged
- Ground you can count on
- ~0 sq mi, plus ~82 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 97.
Across the unit
- Grass and meadow67%
- Other cover31%
- Sagebrush1%
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 97 is public land a hunter can count on. A further 14% is State Trust Land, which is huntable only where CPW has enrolled it.
- BLM<1%
- State Trust Land14%
- Private86%
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 97 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 Range19%used in winter
- Winter Concentration3%where pronghorn bunch up in winter
Pronghorn seasons & weapons (2026)
| Season | Dates | Tags offered |
|---|---|---|
| Muzzleloader | September 21 – September 29 | Buck |
| Rifle | October 3 – October 11 | Buck |
| Late Rifle | December 1 – December 14 | 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 97 pronghorn hunting FAQ
How much of this unit can a hunter actually access for public hunting?
Only about 0 percent of Unit 97 is reliably open to public hunting. The remaining 14 percent of public land consists of Colorado State Trust Land whose access depends on individual enrollment in CPW's Public Access Program, meaning each parcel must be checked before hunting. The rest is private. Legal access, not terrain, is the primary limiting factor here.
When should a hunter apply for this unit if interested in hunting the rut?
The Muzzleloader season from September 21–29 is the only hunt that spans the primary rut phase when bucks are actively pursuing does. The October rifle season falls after the main rut but while bucks are still recovering and beginning to group. The late rifle season in December coincides with does joining winter herds and has no rut component.
Can someone with zero preference points draw a tag here?
Yes. The draw difficulty for the easiest unit-wide buck or either-sex hunt is moderate at 1–2 points, meaning applicants with no points sometimes draw, though those with 1–2 points draw more reliably. Additionally, Colorado's secondary draw in June is open to any applicant regardless of preference points, and the leftover list may offer tags after the primary draw.
Where do pronghorn concentrate in this unit during winter?
A Winter Concentration layer covers 3 percent of the unit, indicating pronghorn cluster in specific areas during winter rather than spreading evenly. The concentration layer identifies how much ground is concentrated-use but does not specify which parts of the unit those areas occupy.
Is the terrain walkable for a hunter on foot?
Yes. The unit is entirely gentle and rolling with no steep or rugged ground, making it easy to move across on foot. The real challenge is legal access—private ownership and limited State Trust Land enrollment mean most ground cannot be hunted regardless of how walkable it is.
Does the unit offer an archery season?
The season list provided does not include a limited archery season, but this data does not indicate whether archery pronghorn tags are sold over the counter in this unit. An applicant should verify the current archery status directly with CPW before applying.
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.