Colorado sets big game season dates five years at a time. The Parks and Wildlife Commission adopted the current structure in June 2024, and it runs through 2029. So every 2027 season date on this page is already fixed. You can plan a 2027 hunt now.
What isn’t fixed that far out is the draw calendar. Application deadlines and the leftover sale are set each year. Those are further down, marked as projected, with our reasoning shown so you can judge it.
2027 at a glance
- Archery, elk & deer: September 2 – 30
- Muzzleloader: September 11 – 19
- 1st rifle (elk only): October 13 – 17
- 2nd rifle: October 23 – 31
- 3rd rifle: November 6 – 14
- 4th rifle: November 17 – 21
Deer and elk
Archery and muzzleloader dates apply west of I-25 and in GMU 140. That’s all of Northwest Colorado.
| Season | 2027 dates | How the date is set |
|---|---|---|
| Archery, deer & elk | Sept 2 – Sept 30 | Fixed. September 2 to September 30 every year. |
| Muzzleloader, deer & elk | Sept 11 – Sept 19 | Second Saturday of September, 9 days. |
| 1st rifle, elk only | Oct 13 – Oct 17 | 5 days, opening the first Wednesday after October 8. |
| 2nd rifle, deer & elk | Oct 23 – Oct 31 | 9 days. Opens Saturday, two full weekends. |
| 3rd rifle, deer & elk | Nov 6 – Nov 14 | 9 days. Opens Saturday. |
| 4th rifle, deer & elk | Nov 17 – Nov 21 | 5 days, right after 3rd season. |
Worth knowing. 1st rifle is elk only. 2nd is the busiest week of the Colorado year: two full weekends, which is exactly why it fills. Want elbow room? 4th season. Five days, cold, far fewer trucks at the trailhead.
Bear
| Season | 2027 dates | How the date is set |
|---|---|---|
| September rifle bear | Sept 2 – Sept 30 | Fixed. Same dates every year. |
| With rifle deer & elk | Oct 13–17 · Oct 23–31 Nov 6–14 · Nov 17–21 |
Runs alongside each rifle season. |
Moose and pronghorn
| Season | 2027 dates | How the date is set |
|---|---|---|
| Moose, rifle | Oct 1 – Oct 14 | Fixed. October 1–14 every year. |
| Pronghorn, muzzleloader | Sept 21 – Sept 29 | Fixed 9-day September season. |
| Pronghorn, 1st rifle | Oct 2 – Oct 10 | First Saturday in October, 9 days. |
| Pronghorn, 2nd rifle | Oct 16 – Oct 24 | Third Saturday in October, 9 days. |
Plains deer, east of I-25
| Season | 2027 dates | How the date is set |
|---|---|---|
| Plains muzzleloader deer | Oct 9 – Oct 17 | Second Saturday of October, 9 days. |
| Plains rifle deer | Oct 30 – Nov 9 | Saturday of the last full weekend in October, 11 days. |
Bighorn sheep and mountain goat seasons are set unit by unit each year. The 2027 dates aren’t out yet. We’ll add them when CPW publishes them.
2027 draw and license calendar
Projected, not confirmed. CPW sets these each year and hasn’t published 2027 yet. The pattern has held three years running: the primary draw deadline falls on the first Tuesday of April (April 2 in 2024, April 1 in 2025, April 7 in 2026), and the leftover sale on the first Tuesday of August (August 6, August 5, August 4). We’ll confirm every line when the 2027 brochure comes out, usually in February.
| Milestone | Projected 2027 | Confidence |
|---|---|---|
| Applications open, qualifying licenses on sale | March 1 | High. This date is fixed. |
| Primary draw deadline, 8:00 p.m. MT | April 6 | High. Three-year pattern. |
| Draw results, by species | Late May | Medium |
| Secondary draw window | Mid to late June | Medium |
| Leftover and OTC licenses on sale, 9:00 a.m. MT | August 3 | High. Three-year pattern. |
One rule that catches people: since 2026 you must already hold a current-year qualifying license before you can enter any big game draw. Buy it before you apply. Not after.
Hunting Northwest Colorado?
Steamboat sits in the middle of GMUs 14, 15, 131, 161, 211, 214 and 231. About 15,800 hunters work those seven units in a normal year. Three things worth knowing:
- Success rates swing between neighboring units. Units 211 and 214 have run roughly 25–26% on elk. Units 14, 15 and 161 have run 11–12%. Same country, very different odds.
- Access is the real limit, not tags. Unit 214 is only about a quarter public land. Check your maps before you commit to a camp.
- Lodging in Craig fills for the whole season, and it has lost rooms in recent years. More people camp than used to. Plan for it.
A guide for each of those units is in progress. The first one is up: GMU 14, Bear’s Ears country.
Start getting ready
- Game calls. Elk, predator and turkey.
- Game cameras. Scout before the season.
- Binoculars. Glass for open country.
- Rangefinders. Know the distance.
- Packs. Daypacks to frames that carry meat out.
- Boots. Don’t cheap out here.
Where these dates come from. Season dates and the rules behind them are from Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s 2025–2029 Big Game Season Structure, adopted June 2024. The draw calendar projections are ours, worked out from CPW’s published 2024, 2025 and 2026 calendars, and labeled as projections above. We check this page against CPW every February and after any Commission action. Spot something wrong? Tell us and we’ll fix it. Always confirm against the current CPW brochure before you buy a license or hunt.
Season alerts
Get the next guide first
One email when a new guide goes up. A note before each elk season opens. That’s it.
Elk Season checklist
