Phillips County for Hunters

Phillips County units, point rules and CWD

Seasons here follow 2 game management units, not the county line; GMU 98 is the biggest piece at near 53%. None of these units lies wholly inside Phillips 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. Each GMU here sits in the plains group, with its own OTC elk rows and mostly private ground.

Bull licenses in Phillips County have no point minimum, since no unit here is an APR unit. CWD testing is optional for hunts in Phillips 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 19 (limit 5), and each group closes when its limit is reached. OTC spring gobbler hunting is open in GMUs 98, 93.

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.

Phillips County acres by owner

The overlay finds about 153 public acres here, or under 0.1% of the land area; the top category is state wildlife areas (CPW). 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.

Phillips County public ground, largest first

Just over the Phillips County line

• Sand Draw SWA19 miles, state wildlife area, Sedgwick County
• Sedgwick Bar SWA24 miles, state wildlife area, Sedgwick County
• Pony Express SWA25 miles, state wildlife area, Sedgwick County
• Red Lion Ranch STL26 miles, state trust land parcel, Logan County
• Red Lion SWA27 miles, state wildlife area, Logan County
• Tamarack Ranch SWA27 miles, state wildlife area, Logan 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. Walk-In Access reaches Phillips County, adding leased private acres for foot hunters with the right stamp.

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.

Phillips County area office, outfitters and stores

CPW Area 3 is led by area wildlife manager Todd Cozad, which covers Phillips County. Lion hunters phone CPW within 48 hours of a kill and present the head and hide within five days.

Trailhead towns of Phillips County

Remaining towns and CDPs, Phillips County:

• Haxtun967
• Paoli50
• Amherst

Within Phillips County the directory holds 1 game processor and 1 outfitter or guide and lacks taxidermists and gun and outdoor stores. Listings mix DORA outfitter records with chain locators and Yellow Pages; ring before you go.

Phillips County meat cutters

Phillips County gun counters

Registered outfitters, Phillips 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.

Phillips County legal shooting light

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

Turkey hours end at sunset.

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 Phillips County

The four closest county pages by distance between county centres, plus three statewide guides.

Phillips 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.