No preference points. No draw. No license lottery. This is a fully guided trophy bull elk hunt on a managed mountain ranch in Western Colorado where the tag comes with the hunt — written out for you when you arrive, legal with any weapon, any season, any state you call home. If you’ve spent years watching point requirements climb out of reach, this is the hunt that puts a giant six-point bull in front of you without waiting a decade for the chance.
The property sits at 8,500 feet on the south-facing slopes of the Grand Mesa — just under 1,000 acres of aspen stands, oak brush, and creek drainages that hunts like three times that. This is not a shooting pen. Bulls disappear into the brush, rub out, push cows, and act exactly like wild elk, and the terrain runs from 7,500 to 9,500 feet with a peak in the middle of it. There are days the guides can only turn up a fraction of the elk they know are on the ground. You still have to hunt them — the difference is that here, the opportunity is real every single day.
The Hunt
Hunts run four days and three nights. Day one is intentionally laid back: you’ll settle into the lodge, stretch out on the steel range (targets from 100 out to 700 yards), fling some arrows, fish the stocked trout pond, and glass for elk in the evening so your guide can build a plan. From day two you hunt hard — up before the sun, back for a big mid-morning brunch, then out again in the evening as the elk move. The schedule flexes around elk movement and around you: hunt it as a true spot-and-stalk mountain hunt that will test your legs, or take it at a relaxed pace from ground blinds set over wallows and crossings.
Early in the season expect shots from 100 to 250 yards; once the leaves drop and the elk get jumpy, longer opportunities from 400 to 600 yards open up for hunters who are up to it. Shooting sticks come along on every hunt, and the guides will get you steady before you ever squeeze off.
Any Weapon, Any Hunter
Because these bulls are privately managed, you don’t buy a state tag — which means you can hunt with a rifle, bow, or crossbow, whatever you shoot best, with no special permits. Start the week with your bow and finish with a rifle if you want the archery experience without going home empty. It also makes this one of the best first elk hunts anywhere: your guide will walk you through thermals, wind, calling, blood trailing, quartering, and packing — a full elk-hunting education you’ll carry onto public land for the rest of your life.
The relaxed terrain options make this hunt genuinely accessible. Combat veterans, hunters with limited mobility, youth hunters, and families have all taken trophy bulls here — the guides tailor the hunt to what your body allows without ever making it feel like a shortcut.
Pick Your Bull
Pricing is tiered by trophy class, so you decide exactly what you’re hunting before you ever book. Management bulls are heavy, mature 5×5 and 5×6 frames — the same bull you’d be thrilled with on a free-range hunt, at a fraction of a trophy-unit price. From there the tiers climb through true giants: solid 6×6 frames in the 300s, and top-end bulls pushing past 400 inches. Most hunters book the 350–390 class — the classic, heavy six-point Western bull everybody pictures.
The Lodge
You’ll stay in an off-grid two-story log lodge with sweeping views of the West Elk and San Juan ranges, real beds, Wi-Fi, and home-cooked meals from a full-time camp cook. The lodge holds a big group comfortably, and with the trout pond and rifle range on the property, non-hunting family members have plenty to do. A processor is close by, and your guides — including a former taxidermist — cape and skullcap your bull properly for the trip home.
Pricing
All-inclusive pricing by trophy class — guide, tag, lodging, and meals included. Rates are confirmed for your season when you book.
- Management bull (mature 5×5–5×6, under 300″): $10,500 USD
- 300″–340″ bull: $13,500 USD
- 340″–380″ bull: $15,500 USD
- 380″–400″ bull: $17,500 USD
- 400″–420″ bull: $19,500 USD
- 420″+ bulls: from $22,500 — ask your consultant
- Cow elk hunts: ask about seasonal availability
What’s Included
- 4-day, 3-night fully guided hunt
- Ranch tag provided — no draw, no points, no state license required
- Lodging in the log lodge with all meals from the camp cook
- All ranch transportation
- Trophy care — caping, skullcapping, and boning your elk for travel
- Use of the shooting range, archery targets, and stocked trout pond
- Shooting sticks and guide support on every stalk
What’s Not Included
- Travel to and from Western Colorado
- Meat processing and taxidermy (trusted processor located nearby)
- Guide gratuities
- Non-hunter guest fees, if applicable
If you’re holding a stack of preference points and want to burn them on a true free-range trophy unit instead, look at our Unit 40 & 421 elk and mule deer hunts with the same guide team, or browse the rest of our Colorado elk hunting options.
WO Trip Protection
For 5% of your trip cost, we guarantee your hunt. If the outfitter cancels, goes out of business, or a wildfire shuts down the area — we rebook you on a comparable hunt at no extra cost.
Ask your consultant about adding trip protection when you book.
Talk to a Consultant
