Colorado Elk — GMU 82
Colorado GMU 82 covers 697,042 acres and lies 29 miles north of Alamosa and 48 miles south-west of Cañon City. 64% of it is public land, mostly national park (20%) and national forest (19%). In 2024, 2,297 people hunted elk here and took 521 — 23% of them killed something. The 2026 draw put up 170 tags here for 4 first-choice applicants.
Tags (2026):937
Nonresident share:capped at 25%
Applicants:207
Hunter success (2024):23%
Public land:64%
Size:697,042 acres
Your chance of drawing here
Every elk license type on offer in GMU 82, 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-
EE082O1M elk either-sex muzzleloader season 1 GMU 82 [82 public lands only] 41 tags · 46 applicants · needed 0 pts · Standard74% Real chance 0% as 2nd choice
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EE082O1M elk either-sex muzzleloader season 1 GMU 82 [82 public lands only] 3 tags · 1 applicants · needed 0 pts · Youth100% Undersubscribed 0% as 2nd choice
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100% Undersubscribed 24% as 2nd choice
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100% Undersubscribed 80% as 2nd choice
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100% Undersubscribed 57% as 2nd choice
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100% Undersubscribed
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EE082V1A elk either-sex archery nonresident-only GMU 82 [82 (public lands only)] 112 tags · 53 applicants · Standard100% Undersubscribed 40% as 2nd choice
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EE082V1A elk either-sex archery nonresident-only GMU 82 [82 (public lands only)] 170 tags · 4 applicants · Youth100% Undersubscribed
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EF082O1M elk female muzzleloader season 1 GMU 82 [82 public lands only] 23 tags · 0 applicants · Standard— Undersubscribed
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100% Undersubscribed 22% as 2nd choice
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100% Undersubscribed 23% as 2nd choice
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100% Undersubscribed
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100% Undersubscribed 50% as 2nd choice
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100% No first-choice applicants 100% as 2nd choice
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100% Undersubscribed 0% as 2nd choice
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EF082V1A elk female archery nonresident-only GMU 82 [82(public lands only)] 10 tags · 0 applicants · Standard— Undersubscribed
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EF682O1M elk female muzzleloader season 1 GMU 682 [682, 791, that portion of 79 south and east of Colo 112, and 82 private land only] 4 tags · 0 applicants · Standard— Cut level
| Hunt | Your odds (0 pts) | As 2nd choice | Points needed | Tags / applicants | License | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EE082O1M ↗ elk either-sex muzzleloader season 1 GMU 82 [82 public lands only] Muzzleloader | 74% Real chance | 0% | 0 steady since 2021 | 41 / 46 | Standard | Sep 12–20, 2026 |
| EE082O1M ↗ elk either-sex muzzleloader season 1 GMU 82 [82 public lands only] Muzzleloader | 100% Undersubscribed | 0% | 0 steady since 2022 | 3 / 1 undersubscribed | Youth | Sep 12–20, 2026 |
| EE082O1R ↗ elk either-sex rifle season 1 GMU 82 Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | 24% | — | 82 / 67 undersubscribed | Standard | Oct 14–18, 2026 |
| EE082O1R ↗ elk either-sex rifle season 1 GMU 82 Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | 80% | — steady since 2021 | 12 / 3 undersubscribed | Youth | Oct 14–18, 2026 |
| EE082O4R ↗ elk either-sex rifle season 4 GMU 82 Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | 57% | — | 24 / 19 undersubscribed | Standard | Nov 18–22, 2026 |
| EE082O4R ↗ elk either-sex rifle season 4 GMU 82 Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | — | 0 steady since 2021 | 4 / 1 undersubscribed | Youth | Nov 18–22, 2026 |
| EE082V1A ↗ elk either-sex archery nonresident-only GMU 82 [82 (public lands only)] Archery | 100% Undersubscribed | 40% | — | 112 / 53 undersubscribed | Standard | Sep 2–30, 2026 |
| EE082V1A ↗ elk either-sex archery nonresident-only GMU 82 [82 (public lands only)] Archery | 100% Undersubscribed | — | — | 170 / 4 undersubscribed | Youth | Sep 2–30, 2026 |
| EF082O1M ↗ elk female muzzleloader season 1 GMU 82 [82 public lands only] Muzzleloader | — Undersubscribed | — | — | 23 / 0 undersubscribed | Standard | Sep 12–20, 2026 |
| EF082O1R ↗ elk female rifle season 1 GMU 82 Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | 22% | — −1 since 2022 | 21 / 1 undersubscribed | Standard | Oct 14–18, 2026 |
| EF082O2R ↗ elk female rifle season 2 GMU 82 [82 public lands only] Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | 23% | — | 85 / 7 undersubscribed | Standard | Oct 24 – Nov 1, 2026 |
| EF082O2R ↗ elk female rifle season 2 GMU 82 [82 public lands only] Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | — | — | 75 / 3 undersubscribed | Youth | Oct 24 – Nov 1, 2026 |
| EF082O3R ↗ elk female rifle season 3 GMU 82 [82 public lands only] Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | 50% | — | 123 / 1 undersubscribed | Standard | Nov 7–15, 2026 |
| EF082O3R ↗ elk female rifle season 3 GMU 82 [82 public lands only] Rifle | 100% No first-choice applicants | 100% | — | 121 / 0 | Youth | Nov 7–15, 2026 |
| EF082O4R ↗ elk female rifle season 4 GMU 82 Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | 0% | — | 27 / 1 undersubscribed | Standard | Nov 18–22, 2026 |
| EF082V1A ↗ elk female archery nonresident-only GMU 82 [82(public lands only)] Archery | — Undersubscribed | — | — | 10 / 0 undersubscribed | Standard | Sep 2–30, 2026 |
| EF682O1M ↗ elk female muzzleloader season 1 GMU 682 [682, 791, that portion of 79 south and east of Colo 112, and 82 private land only] Muzzleloader | — Cut level | — | — | 4 / 0 | Standard | 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.
Who owns the ground
- Private 251,577 ac · 36%
- National Park Service 136,732 ac · 20%
- National Forest 131,960 ac · 19%
- National Wildlife Refuge 85,456 ac · 12%
- BLM 69,840 ac · 10%
- State land 12,303 ac · 2%
- County or city land 9,171 ac · 1%
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 | 2,297 | 521 | 23% |
| 2023 | 2,588 | 567 | 22% |
| 2022 | 2,565 | 595 | 23% |
| 2021 | 2,551 | 546 | 21% |
What people carried (2024 harvest)
- Rifle 466 · 89% · 1,706 hunters, 27% success
- Archery 39 · 7% · 485 hunters, 8% success
- Muzzleloader 16 · 3% · 106 hunters, 15% success
Boundary: CPW GMU Boundary (Big Game)
Harvest: 2024 Statewide Elk Harvest
Harvest: 2023 Statewide Elk Hunting Harvest Estimates
Harvest: 2022 Statewide Elk Harvest