Colorado Elk EF028P5R — EF028P5R

elk female rifle private-land-only GMU 28

What you may take
elk female rifle private-land-only GMU 28
Weapon
Rifle
Where
28, 37
Season (2026)
Sep 1 – Jan 31, 2027
Tags (2026)
10
for 10 first-choice applicants · nonresidents capped at 25%

Showing nonresident results (Standard class). Switch to resident · Standard Youth

Odds by point level — 2026 draw

Prior-draw probability for a first-choice nonresident applicant. 10 tags, 10 first-choice applicants. Source: 2026 Primary ELK Post Draw... · p. 472.

Points Your chance Applicants Drawn
0 0% 4 0
1 0% 2 0
2 0% 4 0
3–10 0% same chance at every one of these levels

Preference points, computed from published point-level pools. A dash means Colorado Parks and Wildlife did not publish a count for that level. How we compute these.

What it costs (2026 nonresident fees)

Cash to apply
$129.11
Out of pocket if unsuccessful
$129.11
Total if drawn
$974.27
Refunded if unsuccessful
$0
Nonresident limited-license application-processing fee (per species, per draw) · paid at application $11.49 source
Nonresident annual small game license (cheapest qualifying license to enter the draws; base $102.11 + surcharges) · paid at application $104.86 or $194.21 source
Colorado Wildlife Habitat Stamp (ages 18-64, once per license year, added automatically) · paid at application $12.76 source
Preference point fee, deer/elk/pronghorn (none until the 2028 draw) · only for a point bought without applying — an unsuccessful applicant gets the point free $0 source
Nonresident elk license (bull, either-sex or cow; includes annual fishing combo; base $842.41 + surcharges) - charged only if drawn · paid if drawn, refundable $845.16 source

Optional, not counted above: Hunt-code exchange fee (same species, quota remaining, before season starts) $5 and License refund processing fee (most refunds) $15.

Not applying this year? A point-only purchase costs $0 (Mar 1 – Apr 7, expected) and keeps you moving toward the 1-point cut.

Next application window: opens Mar 1, closes Apr 7, 2027 (expected) · results ~May 26. Last cycle's schedule rolled forward — confirm when the agency publishes.

Point creep & years to draw

Drew out at 0 → 0 → 1 points (2022–2024): +0.5 points/yr (range +0.0 to +1.0). Projecting that pace forward:

Your points nowYears until a sure thing
02 yrs (1–∞)
1now

A projection of the last five draws' median creep (capped at 2 points/yr), not a forecast. Random-pass odds still apply every year you're below the cut.

Seasons (2026)

Split 1: Sep 1 – Jan 31, 2027 p. 472

As a lower choice

2nd choice
0%

Tags issued to lower choices ÷ lower-choice applicants, as published. Points do not help a lower choice.

Year by year

The standard draw for nonresidents, one row per year. Colorado runs a second, random pass after the points pass; it is shown beside the year it belongs to.

Year Tags Applicants Applicants per tag Points needed Random pass Source
2026 10 10 1.0 2026 Primary ELK Post Draw... · p. 472
2024 10 6 0.6 1 2024 Primary ELK Post Draw... · p. 366
2023 125 15 0.1 0 2023 Primary ELK Post Draw... · p. 373
2022 185 12 0.1 0 5 tagsfrom 5 applications 2022 Primary ELK Post Draw... · p. 369
2021 229 14 0.1 4 tagsfrom 5 applications 2021 Primary Elk Post Draw... · p. 379

Earlier years, when this number was a different hunt

Colorado reassigns hunt numbers between years. In these years EF028P5R stood for another gmu or weapon, so they are listed here rather than counted as this hunt's history or in its point-creep trend.

Year · what it was Tags Applicants Applicants per tag Points needed Source
2025 · GMU 28 10 13 1.3 2025 Primary ELK Post Draw... · p. 401

Legal cartridges for elk in Colorado

From the Colorado hunting laws rules on file for a rifle. "Depends" means the rule turns on your specific load — check the state page.

.243 Winchester depends from $1.11/rd
.25-06 Remington
6.5 Creedmoor
6.5 Grendel
.270 Winchester from $0.16/rd
7mm-08 Remington
7mm Remington Magnum
.30-06 Springfield
.300 AAC Blackout from $0.56/rd
.300 Winchester Magnum from $1.25/rd
.30-30 Winchester
.308 Winchester
.338 Winchester Magnum
.350 Legend from $1.07/rd
.35 Whelen
.360 Buckhammer
.400 Legend
.444 Marlin
.450 Bushmaster from $2.00/rd
.45-70 Government from $1.97/rd
.50 Beowulf
Spot a data error on this page? Tell us.

Every report is checked against the agency source before we change anything.

How to read these numbers

Every percentage on this page is a prior-draw probability: the chance an applicant with that many points would have drawn in the draw year shown, computed from the agency's published results. It is not a forecast — quotas, applicant numbers, and point creep change every year. Every figure links to the agency document it came from. Where a state does not publish a number, we show a dash, never a zero. Hunts with fewer than five tags show counts instead of percentages. Fees show the fee year used. Read the methodology for the engine details.

Not an application service

This page is informational only. Draw rules, quotas, fees, and deadlines are set by the state agency and change by commission action — confirm everything on the agency's own site before you apply, and apply through the agency, not here. We disclaim all liability for reliance on this page.