Gilpin County for Hunters

Gilpin County units, point rules and CWD

Seasons here follow 2 game management units, not the county line; GMU 38 is the biggest piece at near 93%. None of these units lies wholly inside Gilpin County; each one carries on into a neighbouring county. Unit edges are roads, drainages and divides named in the brochure text; the percentages here are GIS measures, and the written description decides where a unit stops.

CPW lists GMU 38 as antler point restriction units; count four points or measure the brow tine before shooting. CWD testing is optional for hunts in Gilpin County: its units are not on the mandatory elk list, and deer testing is not required in 2026. Mountain lion hunting runs November 23, 2026 to March 31, 2027 in harvest-limit groups; the county touches group 4 (limit 28), and each group closes when its limit is reached. Leave sheds on public ground west of I-25 until May 1. OTC spring gobbler hunting is open in GMUs 38, 29.

GMU shares from the CPW GMU boundary layer over Census county lines; boundaries in the 2026 Big Game brochure GMU descriptions; point rule from brochure p. 36; CWD units from brochure p. 41; lion groups from the 2026-2027 Mountain Lion brochure; turkey lists from the 2026 Turkey brochure; shed closure from brochure p. 12. Checked November 5, 2026.

Gilpin County acres by owner

The overlay finds about 43,926 public acres here, or 45.7% of the land area; the top category is forest Service land. Do not assume State Land Board land is open: only the CPW-leased parcels are. Acres with a star are left out of the public figure; hunting there depends on park, base or lease rules. Acreages come from overlaying map polygons and will not match agency totals exactly.

Gilpin County public ground, largest first

Just over the Gilpin County line

• Eldorado Canyon State Park12 miles, state park, Boulder County
• Beaver Brook STL12 miles, state trust land parcel, Clear Creek County
• Georgetown SWA13 miles, state wildlife area, Clear Creek County
• Bergen Peak SWA15 miles, state wildlife area, Clear Creek County
• Mount Evans SWA17 miles, state wildlife area, Clear Creek County
• Rocky Flats NWR18 miles, national wildlife refuge, Jefferson County

Carry a Colorado hunting or fishing license, or buy the SWA Pass, before stepping onto an SWA or trust parcel if you are 16 or older. Dates and restrictions vary property by property; the land pages carry the CPW wording.

Acres from the CPW managed properties layer (SWA and STL), USGS PAD-US 4.1 (Forest Service, BLM, refuges, parks, military) and the BLM field office layer; places from the CPW SWA finder, the STL finder and each land page; access rules from the CPW property pages. Checked November 5, 2026.

Gilpin County area office, outfitters and stores

CPW Area 1 is led by area wildlife manager Scott Murdoch, which covers Gilpin County. Lion hunters phone CPW within 48 hours of a kill and present the head and hide within five days.

Gilpin County towns, units and land

Remaining towns and CDPs, Gilpin County:

• Black Hawk120
• Rollinsville

For services, hunters in Gilpin County look to adjoining counties, shown below.

Taxidermy around Gilpin County

Gilpin County gun counters

Registered outfitters, Gilpin County

Offices and area wildlife managers from the CPW Contact Us page and the CPW area layer; towns and places from the 2024 Census gazetteer; outfitters from the DORA licence data; other services from store locators and Yellow Pages listings. Checked November 5, 2026.

Gilpin County legal shooting light

The sun rises about twenty minutes later at Grand Junction than at Burlington, so use the times worked out for Gilpin County.

Lion hunting hours match big game.

Hours rules from the 2026 Colorado Big Game brochure and the Small Game and Waterfowl brochure; sunrise and sunset worked out for this location with the NOAA solar formula (Mountain Time); checked November 5, 2026. Legal hours for every county.

Close to Gilpin County

Nearest county guides first, then statewide pages worth a look.

Gilpin County trip reminders

This page covers the 2026-27 seasons only; where it and the CPW brochures differ, the brochures govern.

Sources: 2026 Colorado Big Game brochure, CPW hunting, Census and the sources in each section. Checked November 5, 2026.