but rifle hunting definitely has a higher harvest rate than archery. You also have more opportunities to put on stalks when rifle hunting because if you spot elk far in the distance you can work into shooting positions quicker with a rifle than a bow. Even when feeding, elk can cover some distance, so by the time you get within 50 yards of where you spotted them they might be long gone.

Rifles matter too. My buddy shoots a 270, I shoot a 300 win mag. His 270 bullet leaves an entry hole only about 2/3rds the circumference of my 300.

And read up on tracking blood trails. An elk can travel a long way even when hit hard. I once double lunged an elk and broke it's left front shoulder with a shotguns slug and that elk still went 500 yds. Took us all day to find her.

Idaho has whitetail and muleys. Most of our whitetail are in the middle of the state but they've migrated down towards Boise now. Not sure if Colorado has whitetails. You might see if Colorado has concurrent deer seasons with elk seasons. Back in the 90's when archery hunting in Idaho I could pretty much shoot anything I saw (bull, cow, buck, doe) but now it's pick your weapon and season. I suspect Colorado is too.