Unit 59, Colorado

Elevation ranges from approximately 4,600 feet near Pueblo to 14,115 feet atop Pikes Peak, making this one of the most vertically diverse GMUs in Colorado. Terrain transitions from level shortgrass prairies and rolling foothills in the east (Pueblo/El Paso county lowlands) through moderately steep foothills and plateaus in the middle (Florence/Cripple Creek corridor) to extremely steep, heavily forested mountains and rocky alpine terrain in the Teller County highlands. Granite ridges near Ute Pass and the mine-scarred foothills around Cripple Creek are distinctive features. The Pikes Peak massif dominates the northern portion.

Unit boundaries: north US-24 (Ute Pass corridor), east I-25, south US-50 (Canon City to Pueblo), west CO-67 and Phantom Canyon Road. Fort Carson Military Reservation is a carved-out enclave (stand-alone GMU 591) requiring separate access permits. Pike National Forest covers more than 200 square miles of the unit; managed by the Pike-San Isabel National Forests, Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands, with district offices in Colorado Springs and Canon City. BLM land is managed out of the Royal Gorge Field Office. Key access routes: Gold Camp Road (Forest Service Road 370, unpaved) runs from Colorado Springs west toward Cripple Creek and is the primary entry to Pike NF for hunters. Phantom Canyon Road (a scenic byway, unpaved/narrow, high-clearance recommended) heads north from US-50 east of Canon City and intersects county roads giving access to BLM land in the eastern foothills before reaching Victor. CO-115 (south of Colorado Springs) intersects county roads leading to Beaver Creek State Wildlife Area and Table Mountain State Trust Land (open to public hunting). State Wildlife Areas with public hunting access: Beaver Creek SWA, Pikes Peak SWA, Skaguay Reservoir SWA, Rosemont Reservoir SWA. Cheyenne Mountain State Park is within the unit but hunting is not permitted there. Private land is significant, particularly in the eastern prairies (pronghorn range is almost entirely private) and lower foothill drainages; checkerboard private/public patterns exist. Road access above 10,000 feet may be gated or snow-closed from mid-October onward.

Six distinct vegetation zones exist across the elevation gradient: (1) shortgrass prairie at lowest elevations (eastern edge along I-25 and south toward Pueblo); (2) pinon-juniper with sagebrush in the foothills transition zone; (3) ponderosa pine and Gambel oakbrush on mid-elevation slopes and canyon rims (dominant along the Phantom Canyon Road corridor and Gold Camp Road area); (4) lodgepole pine, aspen, and Douglas-fir in the montane zone (~8,000–10,500 ft); (5) Engelmann spruce and subalpine fir near and above timberline; (6) alpine tundra with grasses, sedges, lichens, and mosses above approximately 11,500 feet on Pikes Peak. Riparian corridors follow Fountain Creek and its tributaries.

Mule deer are the primary deer species; better populations and buck quality are generally found south of Gold Camp Road down to CO-115, with mature bucks observed above timberline in early season. Elk occupy the unit year-round; the Teller County (northwest) portion holds better numbers but terrain is extremely steep and heavily forested. The unit group containing GMU 59 (units 49/57/58/59 area) supported an estimated 3,780 elk with a 33:100 bull-to-cow ratio as of 2024 (GoHunt/CPW data). Early archery and muzzleloader seasons see elk above timberline, while rifle seasons push animals into the forested drainages. Pronghorn exist in very low numbers and are found almost exclusively on private land in the southeastern prairies — public-land pronghorn opportunity is negligible. Black bear inhabit the mid to upper elevation forested zones throughout the unit. Mountain lion occur throughout, concentrated in the rocky canyons and pinon-juniper foothills. Shiras moose have been recorded in the unit. Wild turkey are present along Gold Camp Road, in the Skaguay Reservoir area, and in pinon-oakbrush habitats. Blue (dusky) grouse occupy the northern high-elevation half. Scaled quail occur east of CO-115 in the lower prairies.