Whether you are a resident or a non-resident looking to hunt Mule Deer in Colorado you’ll need to understand the preference point system Colorado Parks and Wildlife uses to allocate tags during the big game draw.
Having a solid understanding of the preference point system will allow you to create an effective application strategy and provide you with the opportunity you are looking for. Regardless if you are a long-time hunter or this is the first time you have looked at applying for a license this guide will help answer any questions you might have and provide additional insight to bolster your application strategy.
Why Have A Point System
One of the first questions you may ask is, “Why do I need to worry about preference points for mule deer in Colorado?”. Simply put, Colorado does not have any mule deer tags that are strictly sold as an over-the-counter license; you will be competing against other applicants to obtain a tag.
In Colorado the highest preference point holder will obtain the tag. No walking into the local sporting goods store to pick up a tag and heading into the woods unless you going to pick up leftover licenses. To find the highest quality hunts you must obtain a tag through the primary draw, the recently implemented secondary draw or through the leftover licenses list.
That being said, it is not impossible to find mule deer tags with zero preference points but it is imperative that if you plan to hunt Colorado mule deer you have some sort of plan to acquire a tag.
Here is the big picture to boil the process down to only the essentials:
1) Preference points are only obtained and used during the primary draw. This means that your application for preference points is due at the time the primary draw closes.
2) In order to apply in the draw and obtain either a preference point or a tag you must have a qualifying license for Colorado and have a valid hunter’s safety license or equivalent based on CPW’s standards. This qualifying license must be purchased before you enter the application process for the draw.
3) There are two ways to obtain a preference point during the primary draw. You can enter the designated preference point code, which for deer is D-P-999-99-P, as your first choice OR you can enter a desired hunt code as the first choice and if you do not draw that tag you will obtain a preference point in place of that non-awarded tag.
4) Once the draw is complete, your account will be updated with the number of points you have for each species.
5) Points you obtain from the draw can only be used the following year to apply for the tags of your choice.
6) If you enter the draw with a hunt code as your first choice and you are successful, you will use all of your accrued preference points. Your account balance will be reset to zero and you’ll be enjoying the fruits of you preference point labor.
Costs
Cost
For both residents and non-residents entering the primary draw to obtain either a preference point or a tag you will need a qualifying license and a valid hunters safety license.
As a resident you will spend $45.46 for the deer tag or $17.57 for resident you and for non-resident you will be at $456.14 or $116.50 for non-resident youth (2023 fees); there is no difference in fees for male or female tags.
As mentioned above you also need a qualifying license. Residents can get a Fall turkey tag as the cheapest option for $28.21 or a number of different licenses for a maximum of $56.97. Non-resident applicants can obtain an annual small game license for $93.78 to cover the qualifying license requirement.
If you are applying for a point only expect to pay the qualifying license fee and an additional non-refundable $8.00 for residents or $10.00 for non-residents, a $11.50 habitat stamp and $.25 search and rescue fee.
For a quick comparison on mule deer tags Wyoming is about $374.00 for non-residents and $42.00 for residents, Arizona is about $315.00 for non-resident and $58.00 for resident, and Nevada is the lowest at $240.00 for non-resident and $30.00 for resident.
Colorado will not charge you for tags in the draw unless you are awarded a tag but, you will be charged up front and not receive refunds for the other application fees, qualifying license fees , habitat stamp fees and search and rescue fees. As always, to check for current pricing you can view the CPW big game brochure.
Be sure to make sure your payment information is up to date because CPW will revoke your awarded preference points or tags if there are unresolved issues with your payment method by the payment deadline. If you feel you need a refund, exchange or reissuance you can view those specific requirements on page 8 of the brochure linked above.
Application Strategy
With a general outline of the process and the fees required to participate in the draw you are left with the decision-making part of the application. Probably the most important question in starting to apply for points or tags is, “How many preference points do I need to draw the tag I want?”.
As you can imagine this answer is complex, however; by using the right resources you can put yourself in the best position to not obtain too many preference points and waste valuable years of applying. In the 2022 draw there were about 950 individual hunt codes available for deer. Of those 950+ hunt codes, there are point requirements from zero points all the way up to 29 points for the most desired hunt codes.
Understanding the point requirements for each unit is critical, luckily Colorado provides very easy-to-read statistics.
Stats
You can access the previous years’ draw results on the CPW website or Colorado Outdoors magazine provides an annual preference point issue with those statistics compiled all in one easy-to-read location. To start this preference point issue is probably the easiest location to start your research. Following the new year, you will be able to purchase the Colorado Outdoors preference point issue from the CPW shop or closer to the draw deadline it usually becomes available electronically on the Colorado Outdoors website.
Specific Unit
If you are looking to hunt a specific unit for mule deer, use the CPW big game brochure to identify the hunt code for the unit and season you would like to hunt. From there you can reference the preference point issue to find your hunt code and it will provide you with the lowest amount of points someone drew that tag with and additionally break those stats down into resident, non-resident, resident youth and non-resident youth.
This information will give you a baseline for the rest of your research. You shouldn’t use the preference point issue as your end all be all guide though. Since it reports the lowest amount of points it took to draw the tag, you won’t always have all the information you need. To understand your odds you really need to also go into the draw statistics provided by CPW for each hunt code you are looking at. These charts will tell you how many people applied, how many tags were available, how many people applied with a certain number of preference points, and how each of those applications were drawn out.
This information will allow you to compare the preference points you have to the applicants who applied the previous year and help you determine what your chances are of drawing. Keep in mind these are last year’s statistics and can only be used as a general guideline, the application pool for the current year could look very different. CPW hunt statistics can be found here.
If you are looking to add a mule deer hunt as just an opportunity hunt there are a number of hunt codes that will be available as part of the leftover list. These tags, leftover from the primary and secondary draw, are available for purchase usually around August. They are available until the limited quota tag allocations have been met so get them as soon as you can if you are planning to go that route. Anticipate finding doe/female tags, units that have limited access, and units that may not provide the highest quality hunt and opportunity on the leftover list.
Hybrid
As part of the standard draw you can also enter into the hybrid draw with your accrued preference points. For individuals that have a minimum of 5 preference points you can apply for hunt code within the hybrid draw. This draw includes hunt codes that requires 10 or more preference points for Colorado’s premier units.
During the hybrid draw up to 20% of the tag allocations for the unit can be issued during this random draw. In other words, if you are looking to participate in a hunt that requires 10 or more points you can continue obtaining preference points while also entering the hybrid draw where you actually have a small chance of obtaining the tag with significantly less points that is required in the application for those units during the primary draw.
Applications for the hybrid draw are submitted during the primary draw period, think of the hybrid draw and just a hybrid application within the primary draw.
Additional tips and considerations
There are a handful of useful tips to help you maximize your opportunity and make the best choices with your preference points.
1) You can earn a preference point and still draw a tag in the primary draw, you are not limited to one or the other.
2) During the secondary draw you can’t earn additional preference points but you can obtain a tag as your first choice without using any of your preference points. Youth hunters applying in the secondary draw get automatic preference so if you have a youth hunter this can be a great way to obtain high-value tags without using any preference points.
3) Preference points aren’t for a specific unit, grab your points and then use them to apply at a later time for a specific unit and hunt code.
4) If you are looking at a hunt code that is part of a float group, preference points will be harder to track as CPW does not keep statistics for the individual groups within the float group.
5) If an applicant fails to apply for a species or has not purchased a license for that same species during any given 10-year period, all accumulated preference points for that species become void. In other words, make sure you apply once every 10 years if you plan on keeping your preference points in your account, fail to do so and you will lose your points.
2023 is a big year for CPW, they are reaching the end of their 5-year big game season structure and are planning to update what the structure of the next 5 years looks like for 2025-2029. Questions from early surveys hinted at tag allocation limits and changes for non-residents, elimination of over-the-counter or capped over-the-counter tags, increased tag fees and changes to preference point banking.
All of this on the heels of the controversial wolf reintroduction plan will surely make for an interesting future for Colorado’s big game hunting. Be sure to stay up to date with the latest big game brochures and the CPW’s website for additional surveys and planned changes. If you would like to review additional information on the 5-year plan and process you can do so here.
If you ever have any questions reach out to an outfitter or the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Department.
If you enjoyed this article, here are some more helpful articles from Pinetrees And Solitude.
- How Much Is A Mule Deer Hunt? Guided vs. DIY
- What You Need For An Idaho Mule Deer Hunt
- Catch Mule Deer While They Are Active
- What Should I Bring Elk Hunting? Idaho List
- Hunting Elk In Timber: Tactics To Even The Odds
(This article was originally published on Pintreesandsolitude.com. If it is now published on any other site, it was done without permission from the copyright owner.)