Unit 16, Colorado

North Park's valley floor sits at approximately 7,880–8,000 feet of elevation in open, rolling sagebrush-grassland. Elevations rise rapidly on the western edge along the Continental Divide to roughly 12,180 feet at Mount Zirkel and to approximately 11,932–12,951 feet on the higher peaks; the eastern fringe climbs into the Medicine Bow Mountains. The unit contains flat prairie, foothills, buttes, long draws, deep canyons, ridges, and high mountain valleys. About 80% of terrain slope is rated moderate or gentler. Total unit area is approximately 320 square miles (roughly 204,857 acres). The unit is generally windy and colder than most of western Colorado; expect snow during any rifle season. Four-wheel drive with chains is advisable.

Primary highways: Colorado State Highway 14 (Poudre Canyon Road) forms a key eastern corridor; U.S. Highway 40 provides southern access through Steamboat Springs to the unit boundary. Walden is the main service town. Routt National Forest / Mount Zirkel Wilderness: County Road 24 south of Walden connects with CR 45 and CR 47, providing vehicle access toward the forest boundary; the Mount Zirkel Wilderness (159,935 acres, Routt and Jackson counties) is non-motorized — motorized equipment including motorcycles, chain saws, and bicycles is prohibited, group size limited to 12 people and livestock combined. Wilderness trailheads include Buffalo Pass (heavily used), North Lake, Seven Lakes, Slavonia, Newcomb Creek, and Beaver Creek trailheads along the Park Range front. Buffalo Pass Road (CR 60, off US 40 west of Walden) is the primary motorized corridor into high-country Routt NF terrain. BLM land: County Road 12W southwest of Walden leads to CR 5, a few miles west of the North Platte River; heading south from there accesses the BLM parcels. Delaney Butte Lakes State Wildlife Area (2,620 acres, elevation 8,111–9,311 ft) is located on CR 5 southwest of Walden — valid hunting or fishing license OR SWA pass required for ages 16+; big game, small game, and waterfowl hunting permitted. State Trust Lands (~9,000 acres): southwest of Walden via CR 12W to CR 18, then approximately 4.5 miles west to CR 5. Non-motorized access only. Private land checkerboard: Approximately 48% of the unit is private, heavily concentrated on the valley floor — hay meadows and ranches along the North Platte corridor block through-access in places. Trespass is a significant access consideration for lower-elevation sagebrush hunting. Wilderness notes: Mount Zirkel Wilderness (159,935 acres) straddles the Continental Divide in Routt and Jackson counties. Never Summer Wilderness (21,090 acres, Arapaho National Forest, Jackson and Grand counties) is located to the southeast and is similarly non-motorized.

Valley floor and lower benches: open sagebrush-grassland, hay meadows (many privately held), and willow-lined stream corridors (prime moose habitat) along the North Platte River and its tributaries. Mid-elevations on the mountain flanks: aspen stands, lodgepole pine, ponderosa pine, and oakbrush. Upper mountain slopes: Engelmann spruce and subalpine fir forest transitioning to alpine tundra above treeline near the Continental Divide. Riparian corridors (cottonwoods and willows) trace the drainages crossing private and state lands. Numerous small wetland ponds and marshes are scattered across the park floor.

Elk: Distributed throughout the unit; bulls occupy dark timber during daylight, moving to open parks at dawn and dusk. The rut typically begins the first week of September and runs approximately one month. Herds remain in coniferous timber until late-season snow and hunting pressure push animals to lower elevations. An antler-point restriction applies in GMU 16 (bull must have 4 or more points on one antler, or a brow tine of at least 5 inches). Mule Deer: Present across the unit; bucks with trophy potential for patient hunters. High buck-to-doe ratios observed in January surveys. An early 9-day deer-only archery/rifle season typically opens in late September. Pronghorn: Found on the sagebrush flats of North Park. CPW increased pronghorn doe tag numbers and added a second rifle doe hunt for GMU grouping 6/16/17/161/171 starting in 2026. Shiras Moose: A substantial population; extensive willow-lined stream corridors are core habitat. Moose bulls reach Pope and Young and Boone and Crockett minimums. Hunters must be certain of target identification given the moose population density. Black Bear: Present in the forested mountain portions of the unit. Mountain Lion: Present in the rougher terrain and timbered ridges. Turkey: Present; considered a bonus species. Elk and deer summer in the high-country Routt NF and wilderness alpine zones and migrate down toward the valley-floor sagebrush and private hay fields in late fall as snow accumulates. Moose remain year-round in willow drainages.

1. Public land percentage (52%) from HuntScore unit profile (unit-specific figure); the broader claim that 'over two-thirds of North Park is public land' applies to the multi-GMU North Park basin, not GMU 16 alone. 2. Overall hunter success rate of 29% from HuntScore 2022 aggregate data across all species/hunters (2,237 hunters, 336 total harvest); not elk-specific. 3. Rifle 3rd season corrected to Nov 7–17 (10 days) per 2025-2029 Big Game Season Structure; draft erroneously listed Nov 7–15. 4. Nonresident archery elk OTC eliminated west of I-25 and GMU 140 as of 2026 — confirmed via Bear Creek Archery / CPW. 5. Elk OTC status for 2nd/3rd rifle: GMU 16 is presumed to remain OTC (only GMUs 54/55/551 moved to limited in 2026); confirm against current CPW Big Game Brochure. 6. Pronghorn second rifle doe hunt for GMU grouping 6/16/17/161/171 confirmed for 2026. 7. Antler point restriction for GMU 16 confirmed (4+ points on one antler or brow tine 5+ inches). 8. Emerald Mountain public access claim removed — no CPW confirmation found. 9. Mount Zirkel Wilderness group size is 12 people and livestock combined (not simply 12 people). 10. Never Summer Wilderness (21,090 acres) confirmed in Jackson and Grand counties per USFS and Wikipedia. 11. Tag quotas for all species unavailable without CPW draw recap reports.