A Hunter’s Take on Proposition 114
By Connor McHugh
Kyle Johnson is Colorado born and raised. He lived in Fort Collins for the majority of his but he now lives in Denver. Like many other Coloradoans, Kyle has taken up hunting, a pass time he’s done with his family at their cabin for over 10 years already. During this time, Kyle’s gotten to know the natural environment of Colorado pretty well. In a FaceTime interview with him, Kyle discusses his own experiences and how he feels Proposition 114, the reintroduction of wolves, would change the hunting season right here in Colorado if it were to happen.
Connor: When did you start hunting?
Kyle: I have been hunting since I was probably 11 or 12, but that was bird hunting mostly. I didn’t start big game elk hunting until I was closer to 15. But my family has been going since we’ve had this cabin, probably since the ’80s or so. My family has definitely been hunting in Colorado for a while.
When you go hunting, where do you normally go?
So we always go to the cabin when we go elk hunting. The cabin is actually pretty close to the Colorado-Wyoming border, it’s on Bull Mountain. So it’s kind of in-between Red Feather and Laramie. Unfortunately, it’s kind of in-between the Mullen and Cameron Peak fires right now so hopefully it doesn’t burn down.
Do you normally hunt elk and birds now?
Yep. When we go bird hunting, it’s closer into town. That’s just like going into a cornfield. But when we go elk hunting, deer hunting, big game hunting, that kind of stuff, that is pretty much exclusively at the cabin.
Have you noticed any differences in the current animal populations?
The last time I went to the cabin was last weekend actually, but I think the smoke made it so that no animals were around. Recently, there’s been a lot more public land hunters going up there. Bull Mountain is pretty close to 50% public land, so in recent years there’s been a lot more people going up there for muzzle-loader and first rifle season and actually camping on the public land. But I would say that we’ve still been successful in being able to see and shoot game. But I think it’s been more pressure on the animal, though.
If Proposition 114 were to pass and wolves were starting to be reintroduced by the end of 2023, would that affect your hunting choices?
A: Maybe it would. We definitely have one of the largest herds of elk in the United States, the largest herd of Rocky Mountain Elk lives in Colorado. I definitely think there’s plenty of game for the wolves to co-exist with us. But again, maybe there would be some more pressure on the elk, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing either. It kind of helps move the elk around. So for example, when I draw a cow tag, I can only hunt on private land so I’m not allowed to actually go to the public land and legally hunt. So maybe, if there’s more pressure moving the elk in between the 2, that would be a beneficial thing.
How do you feel about Proposition 114 and wolf reintroduction?
A: I actually support it. I’m totally for bringing back natural predators. My family has supported the W.O.L.F Sanctuary in Bellevue. I mean, growing up we were always like “wolves are cool, they belong here.” So why is it our right to keep them out of where they belong?
Is there anything else you want to add before we wrap up?
A: Go wolves! I like wolves. They’re a little scary, but I actually think they’re really cool animals.
