Hunting in the 21st century is a far cry from what it was in the middle of the 20th century. We have become accustomed to drawing for most licenses, utilizing preference points, researching the most likely areas in which to become a successful applicant, and generally looking forward to seeing one of the numerous game animals Colorado has to offer the hunter. It wasn't always this way.

Many things have changed in the last 40 years or so as far as hunting is concerned, especially right here in the San Juan Basin. Maybe one of the most profound changes is in the number of elk that we have now as compared to the late 1950s and 60s. There were not a lot of elk here then and it usually was considered a great season if half of the hunters in our camp were successful. It was not unusual to hunt three or four days in a row without seeing an elk or even a fresh track. My dad and his hunting companions hunted in the upper Hermosa, in the South Fork and Clear Creek areas. This was some of the best and most isolated elk habitat in the county, but that did not mean that there were a lot of elk there.

There were many years that success was determined by the group splitting three or four elk among 10 or 12 families. Occasionally things would work out and the group would harvest more, but those early years were pretty tough. It was not until the mid 70s and early 80s that the numbers really started to improve and elk hunting took on a whole new meaning to us.

Cow elk licenses were a very rare and cherished commodity in those days as well. I remember stories of guys standing in line most of the night hoping to get one of the few cow tags that were given out on a first come first served basis. Later, when the application and draw system became the norm cow licenses were still tough to draw. However, as the elk numbers increased so did the number of licenses and now we pretty much draw a cow tag at will.

I remember the first time I saw an elk south of highway 160, something that seemed nearly unheard ofl. The elk simply were not there, they stayed in the high country. Now we have elk from the alpine meadows of the LaPlatas to the sage and pinon flats in the Dryside area. The increase in numbers of elk meant an increase in the amount of range that they required. Today you can see elk nearly anywhere in this corner of the state all year round. That was not the case when I was a young man. In fact, you did not see an elk on the floor of the Animas Valley in the "old" days. They too, stayed up on the sides of the valley where the sun melted the snow on the southern exposed hillsides.

Another huge difference from then to now is the number of deer and deer licenses that we now are accustomed to. New hunters cannot imagine that we once had more deer here than elk and there were several years where you could buy multiple deer licenses in a given year. Some years you could take three or four deer in a season and there certainly was no need to apply for your licenses. There were early seasons, regular seasons, late seasons, and post seasons after the late seasons. It was pretty common to be able to hunt from September through the end of the year, depending on the area you chose to hunt.

Deer hunting was mostly a social undertaking, a way to relax from the demands of the elk season. There were deer everywhere and you could hunt nearly anywhere you cared to. We had few subdivisions and even fewer people who had a personal dislike for hunting. It was pretty enjoyable to go deer hunting because you knew you would probably be successful so the pressure was off and it became a family outing in many cases. Most of us kids got to become part of the hunt when we were very young because it was fairly easy and the deer were cooperative. Parents did not have to worry about packing the kids for a long hike so we got to go along early in our careers.

The numbers of animals has changed, some for the better and some for the worse. The
licensing process has changed as well and some tags are pretty hard to come by. Our part of the world has shrunk considerably as far as huntable land is concerned. Yes, all this has changed over the years, but one thing has remained the same. Hunting is still a wonderful sport that enables us to spend time in the great outdoors and spend some quality time with friends and family.

(George Malarsie is a long-time Durango resident, outdoor enthusiast and freelance columnist for the Durango Herald.)