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Colorado hunting unit

GMU 501: public land and hunting map

GMU 501 is one of Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s 186 Game Management Units (GMUs) in Colorado. It covers about 501 square miles (320,816 acres), and roughly 90% of it is public land: Forest Service 89%, state land under 1%.

Measured Oct 12, 2026 from agency boundaries and USGS PAD-US 4.1 · sources and method

Who manages the land

  • U.S. Forest Service89%
  • State land (wildlife, trust and natural-resource agencies)under 1%

Share of the unit’s area. Federal agencies plus state wildlife, trust and natural-resource land, as the WikiHunt map classifies it. The rest is private, tribal, local or other land.

Rut: Published deer rut timing for Colorado: Mid-Nov – mid-Dec. Rut dates and sources for Colorado.

Outline of GMU 501 and the units around itGMU 46 · 77% publicGMU 461 · 8.6% publicGMU 50 · 44% publicGMU 500 · 68% publicGMU 51 · 47% publicGMU 511 · 62% public
GMU 501 in orange; neighbours shaded by public land share (darker = more public). Tap a neighbour to open it.

Units next to GMU 501

Colorado season dates, 2026

Statewide general seasons. Many units have their own dates, quotas or draw-only hunts, so check the unit in the regulations before you go.

SpeciesSeason2026 dates
Deer Archery Deer Sep 2 – Sep 30
Deer Muzzleloader Deer Sep 12 – Sep 20
Deer Combined Rifle Deer Oct 14 – Nov 22
Elk Archery Elk Sep 2 – Sep 30
Elk Muzzleloader Elk Sep 12 – Sep 20
Elk Combined Rifle Elk Oct 14 – Nov 22
Pronghorn Rifle Antelope Oct 3 – Oct 11
Black bear Fall Bear Sep 2 – Nov 30

Full notes on the Colorado page · Colorado regulations.

Questions

How much of GMU 501 is public land?

About 90% of GMU 501 (287,131 of 320,816 acres) is federal or state public land in USGS PAD-US 4.1, mostly U.S. Forest Service and State land (wildlife, trust and natural-resource agencies). Public land is not always open land: check access and closures before you go.

Who manages the land in GMU 501?

U.S. Forest Service: 89%; State land (wildlife, trust and natural-resource agencies): under 1%. The rest is private, tribal, local government or other land.

Which units border GMU 501?

GMU 46, GMU 461, GMU 50, GMU 500, GMU 51 and GMU 511.

Where are the season dates and rules for GMU 501?

Colorado Parks and Wildlife sets them. Start at the Colorado hunting regulations. WikiHunt shows the statewide general seasons on the Colorado page and in the app.

Sources and method

  • Boundary: Colorado Parks and Wildlife, the same layer the WikiHunt map draws.
  • Public land: USGS Protected Areas Database (PAD-US) 4.1, Fee Managers layer (public domain).
  • Method: the unit and PAD-US polygons are simplified to about 100 m and measured on a grid of about 250 cells across the unit, so overlapping records are counted once. Expect about ±1 percentage point.
  • Season dates: WikiHunt’s season table, updated Sep 2, 2026, checked against each state’s published regulations. Dates change; the regulations win.
  • Last updated: Oct 12, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.