Unit 751, Colorado

Elevation ranges from approximately 6,500 feet near the southern foothills to over 14,000 feet at high peaks within the Weminuche Wilderness (Windom Peak reaches 14,093 ft). The lower elevations feature rolling hills and shallow creek valleys; mid-elevations transition into steep, heavily forested canyon drainages and talus slopes; upper zones are glacially carved (horns, aretes, cirques, U-shaped valleys) with high alpine basins topped by rocky ridges and talus. Roughly 80 percent of public land within the unit has slopes of 31 degrees or less, but significant steep and blown-down-timber terrain exists, particularly in the Pine River drainage north of the reservoir.

Primary vehicle access is via County Road 501 north from Durango (via Florida Road/CR 240) or north from Bayfield (approximately 22 miles). CR 501 follows the east shore of Vallecito Reservoir and connects to Forest Road 602, which leads to Pine River Campground and the Pine River Trailhead (Trail 523) — the main staging area for the Weminuche Wilderness northern section of the unit. The Columbine Ranger District of San Juan National Forest (Durango headquarters, (970) 247-4874) manages the majority of public land. Additional wilderness access is available via the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad train drop-offs at Needleton and Elk Park for the Animas River corridor along the western boundary. The northern and central portions of the unit lie entirely within the Weminuche Wilderness, where no mechanized vehicles or bicycles are permitted; horse packing and backpacking are the only entry methods. Productive elk terrain in the Pine River and Weminuche corridor typically requires traveling at least 10-12 miles from the trailhead. The southern portion of the unit (south of US 160) contains the most private land and road access; a Private Land Only antlerless elk license (EF751P5R, 25 tags, Dec 1 to Jan 15) exists specifically for that area. Snow typically closes higher forest roads by October-November. Private land is concentrated near the southern boundary and along lower drainages near Vallecito Reservoir.

Low-elevation sagebrush parks and pinyon-juniper woodlands with Gambel oak (oakbrush) thickets characterize the southern portions. Mid-elevations support dense montane forest of ponderosa pine and Douglas-fir transitioning to steep spruce-fir and aspen stands. Subalpine forest of Engelmann spruce and subalpine fir covers the bulk of the unit; large areas of spruce-fir have been impacted by spruce beetle die-off since the late 1990s, creating openings. Riparian willow corridors follow the Pine River and smaller drainages. Above treeline (approximately 11,500 ft) alpine tundra dominated by grasses, forbs, sedges, and extensive willow thickets prevails.

Elk are the primary big game species; unit 751 is part of the San Juan herd (DAU 31, covering GMUs 75, 751, 77, 771, and 78), which carried an estimated post-hunt population of 29,370 animals in 2023 with a bull-to-cow ratio of 14 bulls per 100 cows. Elk summer throughout the unit's high alpine basins and migrate to lower mid-elevation spruce-fir and aspen habitat during the rifle seasons in October-November; the rut begins as early as the first week of September. Mule deer occupy all elevation zones; bucks use high-country basins in summer and transition to mid and lower-elevation oakbrush and sagebrush as winter approaches. Black bears are widespread. Mountain lions are present year-round in the unit's rugged terrain. Shiras moose are established in the Weminuche Wilderness portion of the unit (hunt code MM076S1X covers GMUs 76, 77, and 751 Weminuche Wilderness Only), though moose licenses are extremely rare and no quota was offered in 2025. The Weminuche also supports bighorn sheep and mountain goats at higher elevations, though neither has active draw licenses in GMU 751 itself. Wild turkey occurs near the lower-elevation southern margins.

1. Harvest statistics (elk 2024: 234 harvested, 1,165 hunters, 20% success; deer 2024: 431 harvested, 769 hunters, 56% success) are unit-level estimates from CPW Big Game Harvest Survey and carry a confidence interval; they represent all manners of take combined. Both figures confirmed from official CPW harvest PDFs. 2. Elk and deer hunt codes using the 075 prefix (EM075O1R, DM075O2R, etc.) cover units 75 and 751 jointly; individual per-unit quotas are not separated in the regulations. 3. The mountain lion harvest limit of 23 is confirmed from the 2025-2026 CPW Mountain Lion Brochure for the group GMUs 74, 75, 77, 78, 741, 751, 771. Season runs from the day after close of 4th rifle (late November) through March 31. 4. A first rifle deer season for units 75 and 751 was added in the 2026 Colorado Big Game Brochure; specific quota numbers were not published in sources retrieved. 5. The 73% public land figure is sourced from GoHunt's unit profile; CPW does not publish an official GMU-level public land percentage. 6. Moose quota of 0 for 2025 confirmed from CPW regulations; MM076S1X covers GMUs 76, 77, and 751 Weminuche Wilderness Only. 7. The 4-point antler restriction for elk is confirmed in CPW Chapter W-2 #254 for GMU 751.