Mineral County Hunt Planner

Which GMUs cover Mineral County

CPW sets big game seasons by game management unit, and Mineral County holds parts of 5; GMU 76 alone takes in roughly 68% of it. Each GMU crosses the county edge somewhere. Map shares are approximate; the brochure lists each boundary road and creek, and those govern.

The four-point (or five-inch brow tine) bull rule covers GMUs 78, 77, 80, 79 for all elk seasons. None of the county's GMUs requires CWD sampling this season; voluntary testing remains available. Lion hunters in Mineral County watch group 14 (limit 16), group 17 (limit 23) and group 18 (limit 18), because the season ends early in any group that hits its limit. GMUs 76, 78, 77, 80, 79 are in the lynx recovery area, where trap-check and lure rules for felids apply. Shed antler and horn collecting is closed on public land west of I-25 from January 1 to April 30. The spring OTC turkey list includes GMUs 76, 78, 77, 79.

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.

Mapped public ground for Mineral County

Roughly 515,169 acres of Mineral County are public land open to hunting on the CPW and federal layers (91.9% of the county); the biggest owner category is USFS forest and grassland. Treat these acre counts as map measurements rather than official totals.

Mineral County public tracts

Just over the Mineral County line

• Williams Creek Reservoir SWA12 miles, state wildlife area, Hinsdale County
• Brown Lakes SWA22 miles, state wildlife area, Hinsdale County
• Echo Canyon Reservoir SWA23 miles, state wildlife area, Archuleta County
• Gerrard STL24 miles, state trust land parcel, Rio Grande County
• Devil Creek SWA26 miles, state wildlife area, Archuleta County
• Shaw Creek STL27 miles, state trust land parcel, Rio Grande County

A current Colorado hunting or fishing license (or the SWA Pass) is required for anyone 16 and up on SWAs and access-program trust land. Each SWA and trust parcel posts its own dates and rules, shown on the cards and land pages.

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.

CPW numbers for Mineral County

Area wildlife manager Rick Basagoitia oversees CPW Area 17, which takes in the bulk of Mineral County. Moose hunters bring the head or an incisor to a CPW office within five working days of the kill.

Towns of Mineral County

Listed in Mineral County: 6 outfitters and guides. Not listed: game processors, taxidermists and gun and outdoor stores. Hours change in season and directory listings age, so confirm by phone; outfitter rows show the registered mailing town only.

Mineral County cut and wrap

Mounts near Mineral County

Guns and optics, Mineral County

Mineral County guide services

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.

Mineral County legal shooting light

The CPW brochures print Denver sunrise and sunset tables with town offsets; the times for Mineral County here are worked out with the NOAA solar formula for its own location.

The light goose conservation order runs to half an hour after 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 Mineral County

County centres closest to this one, with three Colorado-wide guides.

Mineral County reminders for 2026-27

Get permission before hunting private land in Mineral County, and read each SWA or trust parcel page for its own rules.

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