Unit 481 is a Saguache County subunit covering the country south of US-50 in the Cochetopa Hills and Cochetopa Park region—the high broken country between the Gunnison Basin and the San Luis Valley. Elevations run from about 8,000 feet on the lower benches near Cochetopa Creek to 11,500 feet on the higher Cochetopa Hills ridges. The country is the kind of high open sage-and-park terrain that holds enormous numbers of elk—Cochetopa Park is one of the legendary elk ranges of Colorado and the unit benefits from spillover habitat. Vegetation is layered: open sagebrush parks with grass and willow-bottom riparian along the creeks, climbing through aspen groves on the cooler aspects, ponderosa and Douglas fir on the mid-slopes, and dense subalpine spruce-fir with scattered alpine meadow on the higher reaches. Mule deer and elk both produce well; pronghorn work the sagebrush parks; black bear is good in the aspen-and-oakbrush. Gunnison National Forest covers the higher country with significant BLM holdings on the lower benches; private ranches dominate the valley floors and the lower entry points. The La Garita Wilderness fringe touches the western edge. CO-114 cuts east-west across the unit between Saguache and Gunnison via North Pass—a beautiful drive through Cochetopa Park; FS roads (FS-750, FS-794, and the Cochetopa Creek system) provide access into the timber. Saguache, Gunnison, and Salida are all an hour or more away and provide full services. Cell service is genuinely poor across most of the unit. The country has an authentic Colorado-mountain feel—old cabins, working cattle ranches, and aspen groves that go gold in late September. Pressure on rifle elk is moderate to heavy; archery rewards hunters who pack in.