Season Dates and Regulations
Be sure to read the “What’s New” pages in the Small Game and Waterfowl, Recreational Lands, Walk-in Atlas brochures to see a full list of changes on tap for the upcoming seasons.
Pheasant
Season 1: Nov. 14–Jan. 31, 2027
Area: East of I-25
Season 2: Nov. 14–Jan. 3, 2027
Area: West of I-25
Pheasant Hunting Outlook
- Overall Expectations: The season is shaping up to be fair to good. Strong bird carryover from previous years resulted in encouraging spring crow counts.
- Weather Impacts: A dry spring and early summer stunted wheat growth, leading to below-average nesting cover. Despite this, farmers are flushing higher-than-expected numbers of pheasants during the recent corn harvests.
- Top Locations: Sedgwick, Phillips, and Yuma counties remain the most consistent producers in the northeast, while Baca and eastern Prowers counties are the top spots in the southeast.
- Strategy: Summer hailstorms caused highly localized damage to bird populations. Hunters are advised to keep moving and searching until they hit active pockets of birds.
Quail Forecast
- Bobwhite Quail: This species is the major bright spot for 2026. Thanks to strong precipitation the prior year, excellent nesting habitat allowed bobwhites to set near-record numbers on spring survey routes. Key hunting areas include the South Platte River corridor, eastern Baca County, and eastern Prowers County.
- Scaled Quail: It is not a banner year for these desert birds, as the midsummer monsoonal moisture they rely on arrived late. However, localized populations can still be found south of Cheyenne County, particularly around the Comanche National Grasslands (near Campo) and southwest of La Junta.
Walk-In Access and Landowner Respect
Colorado has enrolled over 250,000 acres of private land across roughly 250 landowners in its Walk-In Access program. Colorado Parks and Wildlife thanks sportsmen for maintaining strong landowner relationships by not littering, driving off-road, or interfering with livestock, houses, and active harvest operations.
2026 Regular Walk-in Atlas Brochure
WIA properties are open for hunting from the fall into the spring every year. WIA properties can only be accessed on foot. Some WIA properties will be open for both small game, waterfowl, furbearers, and big game, while other properties will remain small game, waterfowl, and furbearers only. For more information on the Walk-In Access Program, please visit the Colorado Parks and Wildlife website.
Habitat Conservation Efforts
- Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) and partners like Pheasants Forever invest heavily in converting cropland—specifically pivot corners—into high-quality nesting habitat using warm-season bunch grasses and forbs.
- These engineered habitats provide a reliable baseline for bird populations even during dry years, making Walk-In Access lands some of the highest-quality hunting grounds on the Eastern Plains.
Thank you for your passion and support!
Colorado Parks and Wildlife sincerely thanks hunters for their vital role in wildlife conservation. Your contributions make a significant impact. To discover how hunting and angling license revenues bolster conservation efforts in Colorado, we invite you to explore our website. Wishing you a safe and exciting hunting season filled with unforgettable experiences.
2026-27 Pheasant Forecast by Jonathan Reitz. Jonathan is the Small-Game Manager for Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Video by Jerry Neal. Neal is an avid angler and the Senior Video Producer for CPW.