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Ranger district in the CPW Southwest Region
Saguache Ranger District, Rio Grande NF hunting access and seasons
National forest ranger district in Saguache County (521,653 acres).
Photo: Michael Rael (CC BY 2.0)
Getting to Saguache Ranger District, Rio Grande NF
Entry requirements for Saguache Ranger District
On Saguache Ranger District, CPW sets seasons and sells licenses while USFS manages habitat and roads. Federal rule 36 CFR 261.10(d) bars firing a gun within 150 yards of a residence, building, campsite, developed site or occupied area, and across or on a forest road or a body of water. Road and trail access for vehicles is set by the Motor Vehicle Use Map.
Forest Service wording: Our national forest offers many types of hunting opportunities for hunters of all ages and experience levels. Each year visitors enjoy hunting high in the mountains in thick timber stands, in open ground above timber and in the sagebrush lowlands. We have some of the best big game hunting in Colorado including GMU 76.
State laws apply to hunting laws and regulations on all national forests. Colorado hunting regulations.
Shooting is allowed. Gun safety and courtesy are a must. For recommended areas and additional information, contact the local ranger district offices.
According to Title 36 of the Code of Federal Regulations, recreational shooting can take place on the National Forests and Grasslands under these conditions: You are at least 150 yards from a residence, building, campsite, developed recreation area or occupied area You are not shooting across or on a National Forest System Road or an adjacent body of water.
From the agency source; checked November 5, 2026.
Nearby
Places to hunt and shoot around Saguache Ranger District, Rio Grande NF
What the agency says about Saguache Ranger District
Going by the USFS EDW Lands Area Statistics, Saguache Ranger District covers 521,653 acres. 32 ranger districts appear on this site, and by acres Saguache Ranger District comes 8th. Within Saguache County there are 4 ranger districts on file.
Species are not listed for Saguache Ranger District; any game in season in its GMUs may be hunted where the rules allow.
From the agency page (USDA Forest Service); retrieved 2026-11-04, checked November 5, 2026.
Open seasons by unit on Saguache Ranger District
In all, 40 public-land season rows apply in these GMUs. OTC options in these units: elk and wild turkey. Private-land-only and ranch rows (7) are not shown. Note: spring turkey shows 2026 dates until CPW prints 2027.
| Game | Method | Sex | Sale | Opens | Closes | GMUs here |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk | Archery | cow | Limited, nonresident | Sep 2, 2026 | Sep 30, 2026 | 82 |
| Elk | Archery | cow | OTC, residents | Sep 2, 2026 | Sep 30, 2026 | 82 |
| Elk | Archery | either sex | Limited, nonresident | Sep 2, 2026 | Sep 30, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Elk | Archery | either sex | OTC, residents | Sep 2, 2026 | Sep 30, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Elk | Muzzleloader | bull | Limited draw | Sep 12, 2026 | Sep 20, 2026 | 68, 79, 681 |
| Elk | Muzzleloader | cow | Limited draw | Sep 12, 2026 | Sep 20, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Elk | Muzzleloader | either sex | Limited draw | Sep 12, 2026 | Sep 20, 2026 | 82 |
| Elk | Rifle | bull | Limited draw | Oct 14, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 | 68, 79, 681 |
| Elk | Rifle | cow | Limited draw | Oct 14, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 | 79, 82 |
| Elk | Rifle | either sex | Limited draw | Oct 14, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 | 82 |
| Elk | Rifle | bull | Limited draw | Oct 24, 2026 | Nov 1, 2026 | 79 |
| Elk | Rifle | cow | Limited draw | Oct 24, 2026 | Nov 1, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Elk | Second rifle | bull | OTC | Oct 24, 2026 | Nov 1, 2026 | 68, 82, 681 |
| Elk | Rifle | bull | Limited draw | Nov 7, 2026 | Nov 15, 2026 | 79 |
| Elk | Rifle | cow | Limited draw | Nov 7, 2026 | Nov 15, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Elk | Third rifle | bull | OTC | Nov 7, 2026 | Nov 15, 2026 | 68, 82, 681 |
| Elk | Rifle | bull | Limited draw | Nov 18, 2026 | Nov 22, 2026 | 68, 681 |
| Elk | Rifle | cow | Limited draw | Nov 18, 2026 | Nov 22, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Elk | Rifle | either sex | Limited draw | Nov 18, 2026 | Nov 22, 2026 | 82 |
| Deer | Archery | buck | Limited draw | Sep 2, 2026 | Sep 30, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Deer | Muzzleloader | buck | Limited draw | Sep 12, 2026 | Sep 20, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Deer | Rifle | buck | Limited, early | Sep 12, 2026 | Sep 20, 2026 | 82 |
| Deer | Rifle | buck | Limited draw | Oct 24, 2026 | Nov 1, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Deer | Rifle | buck | Limited draw | Nov 7, 2026 | Nov 15, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Deer | Rifle | buck | Limited draw | Nov 18, 2026 | Nov 22, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Pronghorn | Archery | buck | Limited draw | Aug 15, 2026 | Sep 20, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Pronghorn | Archery | doe | Limited draw | Sep 1, 2026 | Sep 20, 2026 | 82, 681 |
| Pronghorn | Muzzleloader | buck | Limited draw | Sep 21, 2026 | Sep 29, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Pronghorn | Rifle | buck | Limited draw | Oct 3, 2026 | Oct 11, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Pronghorn | Rifle | doe | Limited draw | Oct 3, 2026 | Oct 11, 2026 | 68, 82, 681 |
| Moose | Season choice | bull | Limited draw | Sep 12, 2026 | Oct 14, 2026 | 68, 79, 681 |
| Moose | Rifle | cow | Limited draw | Oct 1, 2026 | Oct 14, 2026 | 68 |
| Moose | Season choice | bull | Limited draw | Oct 1, 2026 | Oct 14, 2026 | 68 |
| Black bear | Archery | either sex | Limited draw | Sep 2, 2026 | Sep 30, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Black bear | Rifle | either sex | Limited draw | Sep 2, 2026 | Sep 30, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Black bear | Muzzleloader | either sex | Limited draw | Sep 12, 2026 | Sep 20, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Black bear | Rifle | either sex | Limited draw | Oct 14, 2026 | Nov 22, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Mountain lion | All methods | – | Group harvest limit | Nov 23, 2026 | Mar 31, 2027 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Wild turkey | Spring | – | OTC | Apr 11, 2026 | May 31, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
| Wild turkey | Fall | – | OTC | Sep 1, 2026 | Oct 4, 2026 | 68, 79, 82, 681 |
Season rows and hunt codes from the 2026 Colorado Big Game brochure, the 2026 Small Game and Waterfowl brochure, the Turkey brochure and the Mountain Lion brochure; property access dates still apply; checked November 5, 2026.
Which units cover Saguache Ranger District
The CPW unit layer puts Saguache Ranger District in 4 GMUs: GMU 68, GMU 79, GMU 82, GMU 681.
In GMU 68, GMU 79 and GMU 681 a legal bull elk must meet the antler point rule. Lion hunters check the quota for group 14 before going out. GMU 68, GMU 79 and GMU 681 lie in the lynx recovery area, with extra trapping and lure rules.
| GMU | Counties | Flags |
|---|---|---|
| GMU 68 | Saguache | elk antler point rule, lion group 14, spring turkey OTC |
| GMU 79 | Saguache, Rio Grande, Mineral | elk antler point rule, lion group 14, spring turkey OTC |
| GMU 82 | Saguache, Alamosa | lion group 14, spring turkey OTC |
| GMU 681 | Saguache | elk antler point rule, lion group 14, spring turkey OTC |
Read these as whole-unit numbers: the biggest 2024 total among them was 521 elk in GMU 82.
| GMU | Animal | Taken | Hunters | Success rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GMU 68 | Elk | 323 | 2,283 | 14% |
| GMU 68 | Deer | 164 | 426 | 38% |
| GMU 68 | Pronghorn | 16 | 24 | 66% |
| GMU 68 | Black bear | 5 | – | – |
| GMU 79 | Elk | 163 | 1,034 | 16% |
| GMU 79 | Deer | 183 | 266 | 69% |
| GMU 79 | Pronghorn | 20 | 31 | 65% |
| GMU 79 | Black bear | 2 | – | – |
| GMU 82 | Elk | 521 | 2,297 | 23% |
| GMU 82 | Deer | 210 | 419 | 50% |
| GMU 82 | Pronghorn | 98 | 119 | 82% |
| GMU 82 | Black bear | 4 | – | – |
| GMU 681 | Elk | 153 | 1,519 | 10% |
| GMU 681 | Deer | 196 | 404 | 49% |
| GMU 681 | Pronghorn | 22 | 36 | 61% |
| GMU 681 | Black bear | 2 | – | – |
GMU overlay from the CPW Big Game GMU layer; unit rules from the 2026 Big Game brochure; 2024 elk harvest by GMU, 2024 deer harvest by GMU, 2024 pronghorn harvest by GMU, 2024 bear harvest by GMU; checked November 5, 2026.
Counties of Saguache Ranger District
It is one district of Rio Grande National Forest.
| County | Forest acres |
|---|---|
| Saguache County | 521,653 |
From the agency source, USFS EDW Lands Area Statistics; checked November 5, 2026.
Saguache Ranger District route and map files
Its map point, 38.1000, -106.4446, comes from the boundary layer.
point from CPW Hunting Atlas Land Management (COMaP) Forest Service polygons inside the USFS EDW Ranger Districts boundary (polygon centroid of the largest part); checked November 5, 2026.
Towns and outfitters within reach of Saguache Ranger District
Count on Saguache, about 17 miles out, as the first town for supplies. Census 2024 counts 6,007 people in Salida, the largest nearby. The nearest CPW office is in Salida, 37 miles away.
| Community | County | Residents | Straight line | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saguache | Saguache | 530 | 17 miles | east |
| Del Norte | Rio Grande | 1,410 | 30 miles | south |
| City of Creede | Mineral | 281 | 31 miles | southwest |
| Cathedral | Hinsdale | – | 32 miles | west |
| Salida | Chaffee | 6,007 | 38 miles | northeast |
Towns from places.json (Census 2024 estimates); CPW offices from the CPW Contact Us page; businesses from services.json listings; straight-line miles. Checked November 5, 2026.
Public places a short drive from Saguache Ranger District
The closest other public ground is Spring Gulch STL, 4 miles to the east. Within the six nearest places are 6 trust land parcels.
| Area | Kind | Acres | County | Miles off | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring Gulch STL | State trust land | 640 | Saguache | 4 miles | east |
| Jacks Creek STL | State trust land | 640 | Saguache | 8 miles | northeast |
| Laughlin Gulch STL | State trust land | 640 | Saguache | 10 miles | east |
| Los Creek STL | State trust land | 320 | Saguache | 12 miles | west |
| Middle Creek STL | State trust land | 640 | Saguache | 12 miles | northeast |
| Burro Springs STL | State trust land | 28,905 | Saguache | 17 miles | southeast |
Point: CPW Hunting Atlas Land Management (COMaP) Forest Service polygons inside the USFS EDW Ranger Districts boundary (polygon centroid of the largest part). Straight-line distances. Closed places from lands.json closed rows. Statewide public land map.
A look at the country near Saguache Ranger District
Saguache Ranger District: when the legal day starts and ends
In Saguache Ranger District, the light goose conservation order and furbearer hunting both run to half an hour after sunset.
| Date | Why it matters | Sunrise | Sunset | Big game hours | Bird hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 15, 2026 | Pronghorn bow opener | 6:19 a.m. | 8:00 p.m. | 5:49 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. | 5:49 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. |
| Sep 2, 2026 | Archery opener | 6:35 a.m. | 7:35 p.m. | 6:05 a.m. to 8:05 p.m. | 6:05 a.m. to 7:35 p.m. |
| Sep 12, 2026 | Muzzleloader opens | 6:43 a.m. | 7:20 p.m. | 6:13 a.m. to 7:50 p.m. | 6:13 a.m. to 7:20 p.m. |
| Oct 3, 2026 | Duck season opens | 7:01 a.m. | 6:47 p.m. | 6:31 a.m. to 7:17 p.m. | 6:31 a.m. to 6:47 p.m. |
| Oct 24, 2026 | Second rifle opens | 7:21 a.m. | 6:17 p.m. | 6:51 a.m. to 6:47 p.m. | 6:51 a.m. to 6:17 p.m. |
| Nov 23, 2026 | Lion season opens | 6:54 a.m. | 4:49 p.m. | 6:24 a.m. to 5:19 p.m. | 6:24 a.m. to 4:49 p.m. |
| Dec 21, 2026 | Shortest day | 7:17 a.m. | 4:48 p.m. | 6:47 a.m. to 5:18 p.m. | 6:47 a.m. to 4:48 p.m. |
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.
Saguache Ranger District (Rio Grande National Forest) hunters: public range plus clubs
The closest CPW-listed range to Saguache Ranger District (Rio Grande National Forest) is Chaffee County Shooting Range, roughly 44 miles off as the crow flies. After the public range come the nearest clubs within 30 miles.
From the CPW Shooting Range Finder, ranges’ own pages and directory listings, checked November 5, 2026.
Saguache Ranger District: questions hunters ask
What license or pass gets me onto Saguache Ranger District?
No federal hunting permit: a Colorado license for the GMU, species and season is what you need.
Where do I confirm the rules for Saguache Ranger District?
Check the agency page run by USDA Forest Service.
What counties does Saguache Ranger District reach into?
Inside Saguache County.
How much room is there to roam on Saguache Ranger District?
Listed size: 521,653 acres.
What animals may be hunted on Saguache Ranger District?
State seasons decide; the manager does not publish a game list.
Which GMUs does Saguache Ranger District overlap?
Units on the CPW layer: GMU 68, GMU 79, GMU 82 and GMU 681.
CWD and antler rules for Saguache Ranger District?
The point restriction on bull elk covers GMU 68, GMU 79 and GMU 681. No mandatory CWD testing GMU here; deer testing is not mandatory in 2026.
Do I need to draw for elk on Saguache Ranger District?
Buy over the counter for 4 rows (archery, OTC, residents is one); the other elk hunts need the April draw.
Who can answer a question about conditions on Saguache Ranger District?
Phone CPW Salida Office in Salida, (719) 530-5520 (37 miles away).
Where do I buy gas and ice near Saguache Ranger District?
Saguache is 17 miles from the record point.
Can deer or elk be baited on Saguache Ranger District?
No. Deer and elk may not be hunted over bait; migratory bird hunters also follow the federal 10-day baited-area rule.
What blaze orange rule applies on Saguache Ranger District?
With any firearm license for deer, elk, pronghorn, moose or bear: 500 square inches of solid orange or pink above the waist plus an orange or pink hat.
What clock times bound legal hunting on Saguache Ranger District?
Half an hour either side of the sun for big game, which on November 7, 2026 means 6:06 a.m. to 5:31 p.m. in Saguache County.
Wrap-up for Saguache Ranger District
Use this page to plan, then reread the agency page for Saguache Ranger District the week before the trip.
Sources: source 1 · source 2 · source 3 · source 4; seasons from the 2026 Colorado Big Game brochure. Checked November 5, 2026.
Other photos on this page: USFWS Mountain Prairie (Public domain); NPS Photo (Public domain); USFWS Mountain Prairie (Public domain).