Colorado Elk — GMU 431
Colorado GMU 431 covers 140,906 acres and lies 32 miles south of Gypsum and 52 miles south-east of Rifle. 73% of it is public land, mostly national forest (72%) and BLM (1%). In 2024, 244 people hunted elk here and took 47 — 19% of them killed something. The 2026 draw put up 394 tags here for 134 first-choice applicants.
Tags (2026):1,307
Nonresident share:capped at 25%
Applicants:395
Hunter success (2024):19%
Public land:73%
Size:140,906 acres
Your chance of drawing here
Every elk license type on offer in GMU 431, with the prior-draw chance for a first-choice nonresident applicant. Type your points in to see your own number.
Chances are from the 2026 draw (the most recent) for a first-choice nonresident. "Points needed" = the cut in the last draw.
Simple view Odds at every point level-
EE043O1R elk either-sex rifle season 1 GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] 84 tags · 97 applicants · needed 0 pts · Standard60% Real chance 0% as 2nd choice
-
EE043O1R elk either-sex rifle season 1 GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] 9 tags · 5 applicants · needed 0 pts · Youth25% Long shot 0% as 2nd choice
-
100% Undersubscribed 14% as 2nd choice
-
100% No first-choice applicants 0% as 2nd choice
-
EE043P1R elk either-sex rifle private-land-only GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] 11 tags · 1 applicants · needed 0 pts · Standard100% Undersubscribed
-
EE043V1A elk either-sex archery nonresident-only GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] 394 tags · 134 applicants · Standard100% Undersubscribed 38% as 2nd choice
-
EE043V1A elk either-sex archery nonresident-only GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] 259 tags · 1 applicants · Youth100% Undersubscribed 69% as 2nd choice
-
0% Point builder 4% as 2nd choice
-
EF043O1R elk female rifle season 1 GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] 1 tags · 1 applicants · needed 0 pts · Standard100% Undersubscribed 0% as 2nd choice
-
100% Undersubscribed 47% as 2nd choice
-
100% Undersubscribed 0% as 2nd choice
-
100% Undersubscribed 13% as 2nd choice
-
— Cut level
-
EF043P5R elk female rifle private-land-only GMU 43 [43, 431] 35 tags · 9 applicants · needed 1 pts · Standard0% Point builder 0% as 2nd choice
-
0% Point builder
-
100% Undersubscribed 21% as 2nd choice
-
100% No first-choice applicants 0% as 2nd choice
-
93% Likely draw 34% as 2nd choice
-
100% Likely draw 17% as 2nd choice
| Hunt | Your odds (0 pts) | As 2nd choice | Points needed | Tags / applicants | License | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EE043O1R ↗ elk either-sex rifle season 1 GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] Rifle | 60% Real chance | 0% | 0 steady since 2024 | 84 / 97 | Standard | Oct 14–18, 2026 |
| EE043O1R ↗ elk either-sex rifle season 1 GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] Rifle | 25% Long shot | 0% | 0 steady since 2024 | 9 / 5 | Youth | Oct 14–18, 2026 |
| EE043O4R ↗ elk either-sex rifle season 4 GMU 43 Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | 14% | — | 14 / 11 undersubscribed | Standard | Nov 18–22, 2026 |
| EE043O4R ↗ elk either-sex rifle season 4 GMU 43 Rifle | 100% No first-choice applicants | 0% | — | 75 / 0 | Youth | Nov 18–22, 2026 |
| EE043P1R ↗ elk either-sex rifle private-land-only GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | — | 0 steady since 2024 | 11 / 1 undersubscribed | Standard | Oct 14–18, 2026 |
| EE043V1A ↗ elk either-sex archery nonresident-only GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] Archery | 100% Undersubscribed | 38% | — | 394 / 134 undersubscribed | Standard | Sep 2–30, 2026 |
| EE043V1A ↗ elk either-sex archery nonresident-only GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] Archery | 100% Undersubscribed | 69% | — | 259 / 1 undersubscribed | Youth | Sep 2–30, 2026 |
| EF043O1M ↗ elk female muzzleloader season 1 GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] Muzzleloader | 0% Point builder | 4% | — | 2 / 2 | Standard | Sep 12–20, 2026 |
| EF043O1R ↗ elk female rifle season 1 GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | 0% | 0 steady since 2025 | 1 / 1 undersubscribed | Standard | Oct 14–18, 2026 |
| EF043O2R ↗ elk female rifle season 2 GMU 43 [43, 431] Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | 47% | — | 29 / 21 undersubscribed | Standard | Oct 24 – Nov 1, 2026 |
| EF043O2R ↗ elk female rifle season 2 GMU 43 [43, 431] Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | 0% | 0 | 215 / 1 undersubscribed | Youth | Oct 24 – Nov 1, 2026 |
| EF043O3R ↗ elk female rifle season 3 GMU 43 [43, 431] Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | 13% | — | 21 / 16 undersubscribed | Standard | Nov 7–15, 2026 |
| EF043O4R ↗ elk female rifle season 4 GMU 43 Rifle | — Cut level | — | — | 1 / 0 | Standard | Nov 18–22, 2026 |
| EF043P5R ↗ elk female rifle private-land-only GMU 43 [43, 431] Rifle | 0% Point builder | 0% | 1 +1 since 2025 | 35 / 9 | Standard | Aug 15 – Jan 15, 2027 |
| EF043P5R ↗ elk female rifle private-land-only GMU 43 [43, 431] Rifle | 0% Point builder | — | — | 35 / 1 | Youth | Aug 15 – Jan 15, 2027 |
| EF043V1A ↗ elk female archery nonresident-only GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] Archery | 100% Undersubscribed | 21% | — | 6 / 1 undersubscribed | Standard | Sep 2–30, 2026 |
| EF043V1A ↗ elk female archery nonresident-only GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] Archery | 100% No first-choice applicants | 0% | — | 5 / 0 | Youth | Sep 2–30, 2026 |
| EM043O1M ↗ elk male muzzleloader season 1 GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] Muzzleloader | 93% Likely draw | 34% | — | 100 / 92 | Standard | Sep 12–20, 2026 |
| EM043O1M ↗ elk male muzzleloader season 1 GMU 43 [43, 431, 471] Muzzleloader | 100% Likely draw | 17% | — | 11 / 2 | Youth | Sep 12–20, 2026 |
What these columns mean
- Your odds —
- the share of applicants at your point level who drew this tag in the 2026 draw. Not a forecast: quotas and demand move every year.
- The badge —
- plain language for that number. Likely draw 75% or better · Real chance 40%+ · Long shot 15%+ · Point builder below that, so you are applying mainly to bank a point · Undersubscribed means fewer first-choice applicants than tags, so everyone who applied drew.
- As 2nd choice —
- Colorado lets you name more than one hunt on the application. Miss on your first choice and you go into the pot for whatever tags are left, alongside everyone else's second choices. Points never help a lower choice, so this number is the same whatever you have banked — it is usually worth naming a hunt that goes undersubscribed.
- Points needed —
- the lowest point total that still got a tag in the 2026 draw, and how that cut has moved since the earliest draw we hold.
- Tags / applicants —
- tags on offer and first-choice applicants for them, as the agency published them. Under five tags we print counts instead of a percentage, because one applicant either way swings it.
What it costs to apply (2026 nonresident fees)
| License | Up front | Gone if you miss | If you draw |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard license | $129.11 | $129.11 | $974.27 |
| Youth license | $129.11 | $129.11 | $974.27 |
Application window: opens Mar 1, closes Apr 7, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.
The country
Zoomable USGS topo, aerial imagery and shaded relief, with the neighboring areas drawn on.
Boundaries are drawn for orientation only — the written boundary description in the regulations governs.
How the hunting has gone
What Colorado Parks and Wildlife publishes for this area after each season — harvest statistics for everyone who hunted it, not draw odds and not a forecast. Colorado's figures come from CPW's post-season hunter survey. CPW's 2025 report dropped the per-GMU table in favour of hunt-code rows, so the newest year shown here is 2024.
| Season | Hunters | Harvest | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 244 | 47 | 19% |
What people carried (2024 harvest)
- Rifle 44 · 94% · 150 hunters, 29% success
- Archery 3 · 6% · 71 hunters, 4% success
- Muzzleloader 0 · 0% · 23 hunters, 0% success
Boundary: CPW GMU Boundary (Big Game)
Harvest: 2024 Statewide Elk Harvest