Colorado

Season Dates (2013): Colorado's archery season runs from Oct. 1 to 2 and then reopens from Nov. 6-30, then again Dec. 15-31, depending on the unit hunted. Muzzleloading season runs from Sept. 14-22, and the rifle season runs from Oct. 26 through Nov. 5 then repens Dec. 1-14.

The Grade: B

Colorado is no doubt known as a mule deer state and is arguably the best mule deer hunting destination in the Lower 48. However, in the last couple of decades whitetails have taken up residency along the river bottoms in eastern Colorado and are slowly creeping westward. Although most of this part of Colorado is privately owned and because whitetails are relatively new, access can be gained with a polite knock at the door, especially for the archery hunter. There are an estimated 40,000 acres of public access along the South Platte and Arkansas river drainages that are prime whitetail locations, and since the Colorado Division of Wildlife limits the number of licenses sold annually, these can provide a quality experience. There are also numerous other large and small tracts of state and federal land that hold an ample supply of whitetails.

Antler Nation Knowledge: Although Colorado's B&C trophy buck numbers are small when compared to many other states, if you look closely most of the record book brutes have come in recent years. In fact, 32 of Colorado's typical bucks have fallen in the last 28 years, and all of the non-typical bucks listed were killed during that same time frame as well. This, no doubt, makes Colorado's overlooked whitetails a potential hot spot in the near future.