Colorado Parks and Wildlife - Gunnison

05/29/2026

Over the last year, CPW has worked to expand its K-9 program, and we will be excited to share more information about two of our new K-9 officers working here on the Western Slope over the coming weeks.

For now, we want to introduce you to K-9 Pike, handled by CPW officer Mark Richman. Pike will help with a wide range of duties here in the Gunnison Basin as well as the districts covered by CPW's Grand Junction and Glenwood Springs area offices.

As we bring Pike on board our team, we want to acknowledge the organizations who help make our K-9 program possible. Thanks to Vested Interest in K9s, Inc., we are able to make sure Pike has the proper protective equipment when he's in the field.

Here's more information:

Colorado Parks & Wildlife K9 Pike to get donation of body armor

GUNNISON, CO - K9 Pike will receive a bullet and stab protective vest thanks to a charitable donation from non-profit organization Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. K9 Pike’s vest was sponsored by Tiffany Crump of Aurora, CO and will be embroidered with the sentiment “In honor of Roam and Milo”. Delivery is expected within ten weeks.

Vested Interest in K9s, Inc., established in 2009, is a 501(c)(3) charity whose mission is to provide bullet and stab protective vests and other assistance to dogs of law enforcement and related agencies throughout the United States. This potentially lifesaving body armor for four-legged K9 officers is U.S. made, custom fitted, and National Institute of Justice (NIJ) certified. Since its inception, Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. has provided over 6,513 vests valued at $6.9 million to K9s in all 50 states, made possible by both private and corporate donations.

The program is open to U.S. dogs at least 20 months old, actively employed, and certified with law enforcement or related agencies. K9s with expired vests are also eligible to participate. There are an estimated 30,000 law enforcement K9s throughout the United States.

Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. accepts tax-deductible contributions in any amount, while a single donation of $1,050 will sponsor one vest. Each vest has a value of $1800.00, weighs an average of 4-5 lbs., and comes with a five-year warranty. For more information, or to learn about volunteer opportunities, please call (508) 824-6978. Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. provides information, lists events, and accepts donations at www.vik9s.org, or you may mail your contribution to P.O. Box 9, East Taunton, MA 02718.

05/05/2026

A win for wildlife in Colorado.

Thanks to funds generated by the habitat stamp, we were able to work with partners at Colorado State Forest Service, Great Outdoors Colorado - GOCO, Gunnison County, CO Government and others to secure a third-party conservation easement on the beautiful Higher Ground Ranch property.

A big thanks to everyone involved as well as the landowners for making this happen for the benefit of aquatic and terrestrial wildlife.

Home News Releases CPW works with partners to conserve Higher Ground Headwaters Ranch CPW works with partners to conserve Higher Ground Headwaters Ranch Southwest Region Share: John Livingston Southwest Region Public Information Officer 970-759-9590 / [email protected] CPW works wi...

04/20/2026

Our historic drought conditions are setting the stage for human/bear conflict. Fortunately, most conflicts can be mitigated with minimal effort and inconvenience. CPW looks forward to seeing you at these events... please bring your friends and neighbors! Let's rally this year and keep bears wild!

03/25/2026

2026 Castleton Outreach Mentored Cow Elk Hunt Facebook Announcement!!

The Castleton Ranch, in an effort to increase the conservation minded management of the ranch along with wanting to be more engaged with the local community, has once again partnered with CPW to help provide mentored hunt opportunities for the 2026 season. The ranch wants to prioritize local youth, novice, women, veterans, disabled hunters, and other groups with restricted access. Within these groups, people who may not come from a hunting background or have little experience will be a focus.

A unit 54 tag is NOT needed to apply for this hunt and there are multiple opportunities for this hunt.
If you are interested in participating in the Castleton Outreach Mentored Cow Elk Hunt please obtain the 2026 Castleton hunt Overview document and the Hunt application in person from the Gunnison CPW Office, located at 200 S. Spruce St., or by inquiring about the hunt via email subject “Castleton Hunt,” at
[email protected]

If potential participants are still interested after reading and understanding the information about the hunt, please turn the application into the Gunnison CPW Office by March 31, 2026.

ANY APPLICATIONS GIVEN DIRECTLY TO CASTLETON RANCH WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED FOR THE MENTORED HUNT.

02/23/2026

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-D9NFSm9AB4

Crashes with animals on roads change lives in an instant. In Colorado, these collisions impact families, communities, and the state’s iconic wildlife.Hear fr...

02/13/2026

Years of discussion surrounding over-the-counter versus limited hunting in the Gunnison area culminated in a recent regulation change specific to bull elk hunting in the northern Gunnison Basin.

At the Parks and Wildlife Commission meeting in January in Denver, the commission approved CPW’s staff recommendation to eliminate over-the-counter (OTC) hunting licenses for bull elk that had previously been available during the second and third rifle seasons in Game Management Units (GMUs) 54, 55 and 551 in the northern Gunnison Basin.

This management shift now aligns with GMUs 66 and 67 in the southern Gunnison Basin, which were converted to totally limited for elk licenses in 1999.

The entire Gunnison Basin is now completely limited across all hunt codes, and hunters will need to plan on applying for elk licenses in these GMUs through the annual draw process. For the 2026 hunting seasons, draw applications are due by 8 p.m. on April 7.

A big thanks to our community and Gunnison Wildlife Association for the ongoing communication on this topic for the past several years on an issue that goes back decades in our area.

More information is available below.

Presidents' Day Office Closure Colorado Parks and Wildlife offices, including park visitor centers, will be closed for the state holiday, Monday, Feb. 16.

01/27/2026

01/27/2026

🥶Brrrrr! This was one chilly wildlife rescue yesterday outside of Gunnison!

We got a report late Monday afternoon of a Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep that fell through the ice on the Taylor River. It was stuck and couldn't get itself out. District Wildlife Managers Codi Prior and Clayton BonDurant raced to the scene to try to save her.

Prior first tried to slip a catch pole over the ewe’s head and body but couldn’t get it underneath her front legs. So, she switched plans and used a tow strap. Using the strap, BonDurant and Prior were able to muscle the ewe out of the icy river.

The team immediately went to work to try to warm up this bighorn ewe. They put a covering over her face to reduce the stress and loaded her into a horse trailer and gave her a ride to a warm place. We kept her over night to make sure she’d survive the stress and impacts from the time she spent in the feeezing water.

This morning, our team drove the trailer back to where this ewe’s herd was spending time up on a mountain above. She bolted out of the horse trailer in excellent health, a relief to our entire Gunnison area office staff.

A big thanks to the folks who helped report this bighorn stuck in the ice. Nature is brutal, but this bighorn is getting a second chance at life thanks to this epic rescue by our team.

12/18/2025

After 35 years, CPW Wildlife Property Technician Dan Zadra retired from our agency back on Oct. 31. We had the opportunity to celebrate him this week with a farewell party.

It has been our absolute honor to work alongside this fine man. He is truly a legend for all the work he has done for our area.

We also want to thank the Gunnison Country Times for the story about Dan in this week's paper. You can read it at the link below.

https://www.gunnisontimes.com/stories/zadra-retires-wildlife-conservation,27699

11/23/2025

We are seeking information from the public regarding the illegal killing of a mountain lion that was left in Taylor Canyon northeast of Almont.

Our officers responded Friday when a report came in of a mountain lion carcass near the group campsites at Gunnison Mountain Park. A female mountain lion that had been shot through the chest had been left in bushes.

“We are looking for leads or information anyone might have that could assist us with this investigation,” said CPW District Wildlife Manager Codi Prior. “Somebody killed this lion and then dumped its carcass in the place where it was discovered.”

The lion had previously been part of CPW’s mountain lion density study in the Gunnison Basin.

The carcass was discovered three days before the start of legal mountain lion hunting season in Colorado. All wildlife killed in self defense should immediately be reported to the nearest CPW office.

For anyone with information, Prior can be reached at 970-641-7075 or at [email protected]. Our office can be reached at 970-641-7060.

To provide information anonymously, contact Operation Game Thief by phone at 877-265-6648 or by email at [email protected].

Operation Game Thief is a CPW program that pays rewards to citizens who turn in poachers. A citizens committee administers reward funds in many poaching cases, which is maintained by private contributions. The board may approve rewards of up to $1,000 for flagrant cases.