I just came back from another great hunt in the Craig area. We saw somewhere around 3000 head of elk and some dandy mulies. This old girl was 347 yds away, I shot her with my 300win, 180gr TSX. I broke one shoulder, messed up the heart and both lungs, the bullet exited.This was a ranching for wildlife elk, I am impressed with that program, it provides opportunities for both resident and non resident hunters.

If your location at the bottom of your post is correct and you took that animal on a Ranching for Wildlife tag and did not have an either sex tag bought directly from the landowner, then you broke some serious laws.

All female tags for the Ranching for Wildlife areas are reserved by law for Colorado residents only. In addition to all the female tags, between 10 and 20 percent of the male tags are also set aside for residents. The only way a non-resident can pull a tag for Ranching for wildlife is to buy a male tag or an either sex tag directly from the landowner and they usually run well into the 4 and 5 figure totals. Non-residents are not allowed to hunt females on these ranches.

The only way you could have legally taken a cow elk was if you had one of the few either sex licenses that some landowners had and you bought it directly from them. If you had such a tag, I'd be curious why you used it on a cow when there are huge herds in that area right now.

Mac

ELKMAN2 you have had one good hunting season pronghorn, deer, and elk. Congratulations on another successful hunt. RFW tags are always fun to have.

I had a land owner voucher, you guys think I'm nuts??? or a green horn??? I under stand the laws in Colorado and would not break them any more than I would break them here.I have friends that runan outfitting business and I was their guest. I did see several wounded elk and a couple of dead ones that were lost. The out fitter said they just had the public hunting days and none of those wounded ones were there before then..I kind of resent your jumping to conclusions, some of use are ethical you know!!

And I think you are wrong, most of the hunters on this ranch are non residents, two out fitters lease all the hunting except for the residents that draw their tags, They will cow hunt till January, and the hunting opens in Sept. Deer hunting also is going on now.

>>All RFW tags regardless of sex are supposed to go to Colorado residents.<<


Guys,

Don't confuse the PUBLIC RFW licenses with those RWF licenses the ranchers get to sell as they see fit.

The PUBLIC licenses are available to RESIDENTS ONLY through the limited drawing. BUT...anyone, including even a RESIDENT of Colorado, can purchase one of the RFW landowner vouchers for the PRIVATE hunts. All it takes is money, or as Elkman was -- be hosted by someone.

Also, I believe the rancher can let those with private vouchers hunt during the same seasons when those residents who drew public tags do. That would explain someone with Iowa plates being in the field and left unmolested by the critter cops. -TONY

Taylorce1,

Thank You, but I don't need to be informed of the laws for Ranching for Wldlife (RFW). I've hunted nearly a dozen of these properties since the program began. The point I was making was that unless ELKMAN had a specific tag for RFW directly from the landowner he is in violation of Colorado Law. Only residents can hunt females on RFW properties. There is also a law that states general landowner vouchers are not legal for RFW. RFW tags specifically state they are for RFW and can not be used anywhere else in the state. Also, the only tags the landowner can provide for RFW are for males (there are very few exceptions). A landowner can not give out a female tag, all of those are issued to the public. Read the Colorado regulations and go on the web page and look at the in-depth policy.

Even though the regulatons specifically state the tags are only for Colorado residents, lots of people from other states still try to circumvent the system.

Mac

MAC, you are wrong. my tag says non resident antlerless RFW!!!!I DID NOT go around any laws and did everything perfectly legal..I suggest you look into the non resident hunting on leased land, I do not like being accuced of doing any thing illegal!!!

Elkman,

Does it say "antlerless" or "either sex?" Mac is right that all FEMALE-ONLY RFW licences in the public drawing are for residents.

I can tell you exactly what was offered where you hunted if you give me the ranch name, or you can view it yourself at wildlife.state.co.us/NR/rdonlyres/7DFB1848-D3B2-4A63-85C2-42824CB34A35/0/ElkSeasons_LicsRFW2006.pdf -TONY

Elkman,

Here's more interesting reading to show how the RFW licenses are allocated between the PUBLIC and the PRIVATE ones the landowners receive to sell.

RWF

A bit more info on RWF, -TONY


Some Elements of the RFW Program Have Not Changed:

***PUBLIC*** RFW licenses are available only to residents of Colorado.
A minimum of 12,000 private contiguous acres.
Equal access to all parts of the ranch that are hunted by private hunters.
Wildlife habitat improvement and management elements built into a plan of action for each ranch.
Quality hunting experience at lower hunter densities on most ranches.
No liability to the state for game damage payments for species under contract.
Program Elements that Have Changed:

100% of Female Licenses are Public
Some Hunting Activity Must Occur During the Four Regular Seasons in Select Management Units in NW Colorado.(Hunting activity “in season†must equal 25% of the private deer and elk licenses sold but can be public and/or private hunts)
New Minimum Performance Standards for all ranches related to:
Habitat Management.
Public Hunter Satisfaction – determined by our telephone hunter satisfaction survey – be sure to respond!
Harvest of Female Animals in Proportion with the Habitat Provided by the Ranch within the Management Unit.
Public Hunter Success Generally Equal to or Exceeding Hunter Success in the Surrounding Management Unit.
New Tier System for Determining the Public and Private Share of Male or Either Sex Licenses:
Tier A = 90% private / 10% public
Tier B = 85% private / 15% public
Tier C = 80% private / 20% public

quote:

Even though the regulatons specifically state the tags are only for Colorado residents, lots of people from other states still try to circumvent the system.

How so?

If they are applying for the PUBLIC RFW licenses, they need to be a Colorado resident or lie about their residence on their application. If they are getting the *PRIVATE* RFW licenses from the landowner, it doesn't matter where they live. -TONY

It says antlerless,and it is issued by the State of Colorado. Some one is screwed up here. My friend must kill 20-25 cows each year all non resident. My tag says NON RESIDENT ..Is the Colorado DOW selling illegal tags????

Two ways to get ranching for wildlife tags, residents can draw one in the drawing or the ranch owner can give or sell his tags in the ranching for wildlife program as well as set his own seasons. Landowner private land only tags are different and may be had by residents and non res alike, maybe Elkman has a Private land only landowner tag?

As I said in the beginning I had a landowner voucher!!!!!

As I suspected, usually the answer is simpler than it first seems.
A Landowner Voucher is not a Ranching for Wildlife license. Landowner Vouchers are available to residents and non res alike.
Ranching for Wildlife is different and some of the guidelines were mentioned by others earlier. RFW is an excellent program that the DOW and qualifying landowners have worked out so that they ( landowners) can hunt their lands in a way that benefits them most economically and benefits the rest of us by getting a small opportunity to hunt well managed private lands that some of us wouldn't be able to afford to hunt. By participating landowners get to set their own season dates and guaruntee that their paying clients can have a license, the DOW regulates how many licenses a landowner may have ( how many animals they may harvest ) and I believe 10 % of those tags be offered in the drawing to Residents of Colorado.
A Landowner Voucher is issued to qualified landowners who apply for tags the number is related to how much property they own and they may do as they wish with those tags, sell, trade or give them away. There is a glitch in that system however as landowners who get these tags are to let people hunt their property thereby lessening depredation on their crops but no teeth in that part of the system has allowed some landowners to sell those tags to the highest bidders and NOT allow hunting on their property, increasing the pressure on public ground.
Elkman I hope this explains a bit of the various programs ( there is more ) and lets you off the hook so to speak as it was sounding like a lynching there for awhile.

A general landowner voucher is not legal for Ranching for Wildlife properties. Says so right in the regulations. All Ranching for Wildlife properties have licenses allocated with a specific code on them that indictes exactly what ranch and what time frame they are legal for.

Unless the Ranch owner or agent provides the tag (for free or for sale) these properties can only be hunted by residents of the state of Colorado. Non-residents must obtain licenses from the ranch. And these licenses will either be for a male or an either sex permit. If your licenses says it is a non-resident antlerless, I'm of the opinion that the license code will show it to be a voucher. And vouchers can NOT be used for Ranching for Wildlife properties. They can be used in the rest of that particular Game Management Area (GMU) but not on the participating ranch. You outfitter buddy should know this. All this is spelled out in the Colorado Hunting Regulations. Just because they gave you a permit, doesn't mean it is legal to use on the specific ranch.

Before I accepted another tag from this guy, I'd do some serious research on the program. I'd hate to see you get nailed for a big time violation because of something you thought was above board.

Mac

Guys,

I see it's been all ferreted out. I was watching Fox News this morning and remembered about the Landowner Vouchers, which as someone else stated, are different than the RFW licenses.

Elkman,

This "MAC, you are wrong. my tag says non resident antlerless RFW!!!!" is why I asked about the either sex thingie. As you can see, you said it had RFW on it.

Snellstrom,

If I recall, the CDOW has addressed that glitch of the sale of licenses and will require that such sale can only take place IF the ranch is OPEN to hunting. See below from Article I, #206 approved on 11/08/06. -TONY

4. The transfer of any license voucher by a landowner must include permission to the
license holder to hunt on the land for which the voucher was awarded.

Also in regard to using standard vouchers on RFW ranches:

What kind of licenses can be used on RFW properties?

With certain exceptions only RFW licenses are valid on RFW properties. Exceptions are allowed for regular or late season cow hunting on ranches where the DAU is significantly over herd objective. This may only be done by written agreement of DOW, may not occur at the same time as any RFW public hunting season, and if run before RFW seasons may not be done so if it would result in burning game that would be hunted by RFW hunters off the property. Exception is also allowed for non-contract species hunting. For instance, if a ranch is enrolled for elk but not deer, the ranch may allow deer hunting on the ranch, but may not do so at the same time as any RFW season.

And...I think there's still some confusion with the RFW licenses. The PUBLIC ones issued through the drawing (including ALL female/cow only) are for RESIDENTS only; the PRIVATE ones can go to either Residents or NONRESIDENTS. In fact, on most ranches, 75-100% of the PRIVATE allocation winds up going to NRs.

Actually last year I talked with the warden, he checked my tag and elk..This is a leased ranch, the name of the ranch in on my tag, the tag says RFW, I do not even begin think there is a mistake, the 2 outfitters involved take many non residents, including custumors from a large booking agent, They know what they are doing and certainly have a lot to loose if things are not done right

Elkman,

And I'm betting you're right, too. I just checked the RFW license allocation again and see both the the Big Gulch and Blue Gravel ranches each had 150 PRIVATE antlerless RFW permits, which NRs can use legally! The Four Mile Ranch had 80; Mountain Meadows - 10 and Wolf Springs - 21. They are listed as Special Population Management Hunts!

From the rules:
4. In addition to the proportional license allocation, where the species may be determined to be
substantially over herd objective DOW and RFW operations should make use of “Special
Population Management†and “PLO†licenses, but not as a substitute for the proportional
license allocation.


Any of those ranch names sound familiar? -TONY

quote:

and if run before RFW seasons may not be done so if it would result in burning game that would be hunted by RFW hunters off the property.

Hey Tony, Is that some kind of Politically Correct term for "killing" they are using?

HC,

I thought the same thing when I read that. Certainly a strange word to use, but if I recall that was a FAQ thingie on the CDOW website and not something in the rules/regs.

I'm guessing it was supposed to be "running." Then again, maybe they'll be making lasers legal to burn those critters. -TONY

I took a cow on Blue Gravel last year. Game checked it and had no problem. I'm headed back next year for a Bull.Good PeopleRob

Rob,

Did you use an RFW for a SPMHunt or a regular landowner voucher? -TONY

SEE I was right!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I hunted Blue Gravel also!!!!!!!!!! So after being accused of being a poacher, a liar and a cheat I'm right after all. Amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mac,

Cool your jets...

It's a shame that laws and rules regarding hunting game take a Philadelphia Lawyer to interpret.

Our game laws here in Florida are FAAAAAR less complicated than Colorado's and I know several Wildlife Officers that live in a constant state of confusion trying to keep up with them.

I gave up hunting Colorado because of the painfully short seasons and the incredibly confusing rules and regs. It's a shame too because I REALLY enjoyed hunting elk and mulies in the mountains there.

$bob$

Tony, I don't have the tag but it was purchased at the ranch.Cow tag the week of Thanksgiving and they were going to continue to sell them through Dec.They said it was a RFW tag

I just took the following info off the Colorado Division of Wildlife's page concerning the regulations in regards to the Ranching for Wildlife program. These new laws were put in effect for the 2006 season:

(DIRECT QUOTE)Some Elements of the RFW Program Have Not Changed: Public RFW licenses are available only to residents of Colorado.

(DIRECT QUOTE) Program Elements that Have Changed: 100% of Female Licenses are now condidered Public licenses.

If you are not a resident of Colorado and you had a tag that specifially stated a female (antlerless) of the species for Ranching for Wildlife, then you are in violation of the updated laws.

A ranch can provide a male tag or an either sex tag legally, but all tags specifically designating females (antlerless) are only issued to residents of the state of Colorado via public drawing. Non-residents can not hold these licenses.

In years past, this was not the case, but it is as of this year and if your outfitter buddy is still going by the old guidelines, he is in violation as well.

A landowner voucher is a different animal than a Ranching for Wildlife tag, but landowner vouchers are not valid on properties enrolled in Ranching For Wildlife per State Laws.

LDHUNTER: I am currently stationed in Fl and agree the regulations here are easier than those in Colorado, but Fl only has 2 basic types of big game: whitetails and hogs. Colorado has 10 species of huntable big game each with different season structures and limits. It only stands to reason that the regs there would be a little more in depth than those in Fl.

Mac

MAC, I'm sure you are right, the Game warden is wrong, the outfitters are wrong, the guy that sold me the tag is wrong, the rancher is wrong, the guide is wrong, Cabelas are wrong the whole world is wrong.

Mac,

You're not digging deep enough.

There were indeed 150 RFW ANTLERLESS PRIVATE licenses issued for the Blue Gravel ranch as a special Population Mangement Hunt under the rule I posted (see below).

***
From the rules:
4. In addition to the proportional license allocation, where the species may be determined to be substantially over herd objective DOW and RFW operations should make use of “Special
Population Management†and “PLO†licenses, but not as a substitute for the proportional
license allocation.
****

These licenses are available to res. or non-res. hunters on RFW lands! They are NOT under the special voucher program, which are available for only lands where the RFW hunts do not occur. Nor do they affect the normal RFW allocation under the rules you cited above.

You can view the complete list of 2006 RFW elk licenses at http://wildlife.state.co.us/Hunting/BigGame/RanchingforWildlife/ Then click on the ELK pdf file under the SEASONS in the Ranching For Wildlife Program Links box to the right of the page. Pay particular attention to:

Blue Gravel Ranch
(Special Pop. Mgmt Lic.)
3, 4, 301
EF003N1R
TYPE: PRIVATE ANTLERLESS
SEASON: 09/11/2006 - 01/16/2007
NUMBER: 150

Hey ELKMAN2, Nice Elk, I was just in Craig myself. My nephew had a cow tag for the Deakins ranch. We were south of the hiway and all the elk were on the neighboring ranch cavorting in a wheat field. Some came across the fence but we had to leave before tagging out.

I've been drawing tags for the Blue Gravel RFW about every two to three years for as long as they've been in the RFW pgm. The people there have seemed contientious and friendly to those who don't purchase their licenses and use their services. Glad you all had great hunts on that property.