Tuesday August 6 at 9:00 am, the firing pistol goes off and thousands of applicants have about 5 minutes to snap up the best of the Colorado leftover tags, that is, if they can get through. That means you only have today to study the leftover list. Fortunately, it doesn’t take long. There are tens of thousands of licenses but the vast majority are for does or cows.
Strategy
- Look over the list and write down at least 10 hunt codes for a species.
- Make sure you can access your account with your CID #. Give that a trial run now. You may need a new password.
- Get set to take your shot.
Don’ts
- Don’t show up at a CPW office at 3 am to be first in line without finding out if they call you up by order in line or by lottery.
- Don’t buy at a retailer unless you know they can accommodate you and will do so on the stroke of 9:00.
- If you want to buy online, log on at CPW Shop before 9:00 am but DON’T go past the residency page until seconds after 9:00. If you do, it will log you out at 9:00 and you’ll need to spend time to get back to that page.
- Don’t call the main CPW phone, call 800-244-5613
- Don’t apply as a group unless there are lots of license left. The agent has to talk to every group member.
- Don’t assume because a license is in your cart that you got it. The winner is the first one through the whole process.
- Don’t try to buy an A group license if you already have one for that species, you can only get a B or C license.
- Unless you feel extremely lucky, don’t try for the hunts where only 1 or 2 are on the list, especially if quantity has the word “float” which means the one license can be gotten by people listing any of several related hunt codes, usually different seasons.
Over the Counter Licenses
OTC licenses go on sale until Thursday, August 8 at 9am.
Reissued Licenses
Reissued licenses, which is where the real gold is, will be randomly added to the leftover list starting August 13. There can be some very good licenses here, but you have to check diligently every day for weeks. Last year one of the best bighorn sheep licenses in the state showed up on the list later on.
6 comments
Thoroughly disgusted with the way CP&W is doing business as of late. They are into the money game and having to spend $100 to apply for an elk tag is the last straw. I gained most of my preference points for elk while a resident of the state and paid a modest fee for the points. CP&W is proud to say that they no longer charge for PP’s. However purchasing a small game license, a habitat stamp, and a processing fee is Bravo Sierra.
Major error in Over the Counter license in your article. License sales BEGIN August 8, they are not currently “on sale UNTIL August 8”. Also, bear hunters may purchase OTC as well, but there are caps on sales.
Look at the bottom of the article it’s there.
I did, it reads as follows: “Over the Counter Licenses
OTC licenses go on sale until Thursday, August 8 at 9am. ” This would seem to indicate that OTC sales END 8 August when that is actually when they BEGIN.
Fuck you Colorado! I and my friends will spend out hunting dollars in other states that are not out to gouge the nonresident hunter!
Colorado big game management went from first to worst when they merged parks with the DOW. Parks is where all the leftists are and the reason our Forrest’s are full of dead trees. All leftists do is ruin everything they touch for everyone.