Potential move.....

[stifler51]

So born and raised in MN. Im a HUGE outdoorsman. Archery Deer, Waterfowl, Trapping, Walleye fishing, Ice fishing, Snowmobiling, Camping etc etc. Heres what concerns me, my fiance may be going to CSU Fort Collins for her PHD and im worried that ice fishing/fishing will be few and far between, Hard woods tree stand hunting for whitetails wont happen, Waterfowl?, i heard trapping is pretty much non-existent due to hippie tree huggers so no me time trotting around a marsh hanging out with nature.

Someone ease my worries.....

I dont wanna lose what i love to sit in a house all day. Although id love to stick an Elk with my bow.

[Esox_Magnum]

My brother lives in CO and loves it, hunting galore and plenty of fishing to be had. Whitetails, Mulies, Elk,Bear, Moose, Sheep, Grouse, lots of impoundments to fish and more streams and rivers to explore than a guy will ever have time for. 60% of the state is public hunting and with a little resurch some of it is pretty good hunting.... I would live there in a heartbeat if I could, MN has nothing on the Rockies....

[MN Mike]

You won't have much to worry about stifler, opportunities abound! If you end up on the couch, you need a better source of information I'm not sure what is close to Fort Collins but if you can travel a bit one thing you should google is North Park Colorado, I've hunted Mulies and Elk out there over the years and I've always had a great time. Moose, Antelope, Bighorn Sheep, Black Bear, Coyotes, Fox, Pine Martins, Geese and Ducks have been observed sitting on post or hiking around.

Check out the Colorado DOW HSOforum for your hunting / fishing seasons, if you remain a non resident, hold on to your pocketbook!

We hunt out of Walden and a few years ago we took a 9 day snowmobiling trip, spent 4 days around Walden and I wish we would have spent all 9, we had a absolute BLAST!

Fishing won't be a problem.

Mike

[Antero]

It, like most is a weird state....if you are a Christian Conservative you will fit in well in most places. If you are a hippie tree hugger you will fit in well in most places. We have all kinds out here. Good local music and beer galore. Ft Collins is reputed to be a great town and it is close to Boulder and just a hour and a half from Denver which to me is similar to Mpls.

The hunting opportunities are readily available. There are whitetails on the plains but I do not believe the traditional midwest hunting techniques work out there. There are no 40 acre cornfields bordered by line fences and woodlots. There are lots of muleies but they are real hard to pattern. Waterfowl? Not so much. Some grouse in the high country but LOTS of walking will be needed.

Fishing for trout is real good....both stream and lakes. Warm water fish such as walleye and bass is available but you will need to travel and it is nothing like Mn. I fished the midwest for 40 yrs and Colorado other than trout does not do it for me. However the trout fishing here far exceeds the midwest.

Not sure why you cannot walk in the woods or swamp without trapping but to each his own. I think trapping was outlawed back in they day in a statewide vote so it was just not tree huggers who opposed it.

[Bran32]

I was born and raised in colorado (kiowa, little town east of castle rock) and lived there until I was 24! Moved up here to Minnesota 5 years ago and haven't been back!! Things are different ( like having to pay get into some of the resivoirs, Chatfield, Cherry Creek and up by Ft. Colins you'll have good old larimer county park fees to get into Carter or Horsetooth resivoir) I just do not miss anything about the place besides elk hunting!! And I do miss the coyote hunting out east of windsor and up by sterling and the pawnee national grasslands that was always fun! Not to be a downer just thought I would give a different perspective but I hope you enjoy yourself! I just wouldn't move back but if you ever have any ?'s about places to go or things to do PM me or just write back on here!! Good Luck

[Antero]

Brian is correct, the fees and regs and costs will be a lot higher out here compared to Mn. However it is very pleasant fishing or camping with very few mosquitos and no humidity and sunny skies. Where I live if we have 2 days of clouds folks start complaining. I recall summers in Mn with so many bugs that going out after dusk was almost impossible and days when my garage floor was sweating from the hunidity. I do not even have screen doors out here, no need. When I get visitors from the midwest they are amazed that we sit on the deck at dusk with no can of OFF on the table.

There is the wind tho......

[so haaad]

I grew up here but lived in CO twice in my 20's. It's different hunting and fishing in CO compared to MN, but I wouldn't say it's better or worse. Just have an open mind and be up for trying new ways to fish/hunt and you'll enjoy your time out there. And look at the bright side, after six months of living there you can get the $49 resident elk tag vs. the $554 non-resident tag.

[cold one sd]

I lived there for 6 years in Greeley which is 30 miles from Fort Collins. There are walleyes in several lakes within 30 miles of Fort Collins that I can remember. Each county has it's own fees for camping and boating out there and I had stickers on my camper and boat from every county I fished and camped in. Things got too crowded for me and I moved to SD in 1977. I never looked back and have never had to stand in line since. It baecame too crowded for me. I hunted deer close to Meeker and everywhere I looked I saw orange vests and rifle barrels flashing in the sun. I hope you like it, but it wasn't for me.

[GSP4ME]

The real treat us the quail hunting in south eastern Colorado. No one it there does it. I'll take it over Kansas any . Fishing though is nothing like the Midwest

[chasineyes]

Go and don't look back!!! You may NEVER get this chance again, especially if you start having little ones. As far as my view on Colorado...Ski in the mountains and golf in the valley!!!!!

[nofishfisherman]

Personally I'd jump at the chance. If you are looking to move there just for your fiancee's schooling then you aren't tied there for more than a couple years. If it were a permanent move I'd have to think about it a little more but for a move that could be temporary I'd be pretty excited about it. I'd look at it as a chance to learn some new kinds of hunting and fishing and it would give me an entire new area to explore for a few years. Once her schooling is done then you can look to move back to MN if you want, but you may not want to.

And just because you live in CO doesn't mean you can't come back to MN in the fall and still enjoy a deer hunt with the old hunting buddies back here.

[MN BassFisher]

Hey stifler51, did you ever end up making the move?? I just moved out to CO (CO Springs) about a month and a half ago. I haven't gotten too into hunting (although I'd like to start) but I'm an avid fisherman. I was worried about losing the chance to fish whenever I had time because of the lack of lakes in comparison to MN. But there are plenty of lakes out here and some that hold real nice fish! From meeting and talking to local outdoorsmen, then hunting opportunities seem pretty vast as well. There are new species here to chase (fish, waterfowl, and big game)!!