Unit 114, Colorado

Flat to gently rolling shortgrass prairie with elevations ranging from approximately 4,470 to 5,602 feet above sea level. The terrain is predominantly plains, with no significant mountain ranges or drainages. The landscape is characterized by wide open visibility, gentle swales, and occasional low ridges typical of the High Plains.

GMU 114 is overwhelmingly private land (approximately 95% private, 5% public/state). The official unit boundaries are: north — Interstate 70; east — Flagler-Wildhorse Road (County Roads 5, G, 6, A [Kit Carson County line], GG, [Cheyenne County line], and 9); south and west — US Highway 40. Note: Hugo State Wildlife Area (2,240 acres, Lincoln County) is located in adjacent GMU 113, not GMU 114, and is not a public access option within this unit. Public access options within GMU 114 are limited to: (1) Colorado Walk-In Access (WIA) program properties in Cheyenne and Kit Carson counties — locations change annually and must be verified via the current CPW Walk-In Atlas or the interactive Hunting Atlas at ndismaps.nrel.colostate.edu, as properties must be posted with official WIA signs to be legally accessible; (2) scattered state trust lands. The vast majority of hunting requires prior landowner permission. Access for pronghorn is described by CPW as 'fair to good' and 'liberal' relative to other plains units; deer access is described as 'restricted but improving.' No wilderness areas, national forest, or BLM field office lands are present in the unit. No national forest ranger district applies to this unit.

Dominant cover type is shortgrass prairie (blue grama, buffalo grass) interspersed with large tracts of dryland wheat and other row crops. Sand sage and weedy/brushy field edges occur near fallow and cultivated fields. Riparian corridors along creek drainages support narrow bands of cottonwood and willow, which concentrate both white-tailed deer and Rio Grande wild turkey. There is no pinyon-juniper, aspen, oakbrush, or spruce-fir present; the unit is entirely plains grassland and agricultural.

Pronghorn (antelope) are the primary big-game species and are most numerous in the open shortgrass prairie portions of the unit. Mule deer occur throughout, while white-tailed deer are concentrated in riparian corridors and along agricultural edges, becoming increasingly common in this region. Elk are listed as huntable under OTC plains elk provisions east of I-25, but numbers are very low and sporadic — plains elk do not follow typical mountain migration patterns and are often resident or transient animals. Rio Grande wild turkey are present in riparian areas and cottonwood drainages. Black bear and mountain lion are legal game but extremely rare in this purely plains unit. Coyotes, prairie dogs, and raptors are abundant. No significant seasonal migration corridors have been documented; pronghorn move locally within the plains. Mule deer and white-tailed deer remain year-round near agricultural edges and creek bottoms.

CORRECTIONS FROM FACT-CHECK: (1) Hugo SWA is located in GMU 113, not GMU 114 — removed from public access listing; it is not a public land resource within this unit. (2) Hugo SWA hunting species per CPW: deer, dove, pronghorn, rabbit, waterfowl — turkey is NOT listed for Hugo SWA. (3) Spring turkey is largely OTC (not draw-only as originally drafted). (4) Mountain lion season corrected to Nov 23 start (not Nov 19). (5) PUBLIC LAND: 5% public/state per HuntScore; Hugo SWA removal makes this figure still valid for scattered state trust lands and WIA. (6) HARVEST STATS: No unit-specific species harvest numbers available; 2022 aggregate (399 hunters, 169 harvest, 27.7% success across all species) from HuntScore not species-specific — excluded from species_data. (7) TAG QUOTAS: Draw quota tables in Big Game Brochure PDF, not parseable — all null. (8) ELK OTC: Plains elk OTC east-of-I-25 provisions subject to annual change; verify GMU 114 eligibility in 2026 brochure before hunting. (9) Season dates sourced from multiple third-party summaries; official 2026 Big Game Brochure should be consulted for hunt-code-specific dates.