Colorado Parks and Wildlife invited media to join biologists for the first of two annual Bighorn Sheep counts on Pikes Peak in the early hours of Wednesday morning, July 30, 2025. Biologists, wildlife officers and volunteers fanned out to multiple locations on the mountain above Colorado Springs to conduct a visual accounting of herds from the roadside and on foot.
The annual count by CPW’s Southeast Region team seeks to provide “an accurate assessment of the current herd population and ratio of males to females,” according to a release by CPW. “The data is used to assess trends in the population size, make hunting license recommendations, and determine current herd health.”
The first recorded survey of Bighorn Sheep on Pikes Peak was in 1949 when 205 were counted. Annual counts have been conducted by CPW since 1988. The official count in 2024 was 82.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife staff prepare for Bighorn Sheep counting on Pikes Peak on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)From Left, Tyson Floersheim, Travis Sauder and Kjerstine Jones hike to find Bighorn Sheep on Pikes Peak on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)Tyson Floersheim of Colorado Parks and Wildlife photograph a group of Bighorn Sheep with scope and cellphone on Pikes Peak on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)Travis Sauder of Colorado Parks and Wildlife observed West Beaver Creek area on Pikes Peak on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)A group of Bighorn Sheep on Pikes Peak on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)From left, Kjerstine Jones, Travis Sauder and Tyson Floersheim count Bighorn Sheep on Pikes Peak on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)A group of people hike to find Bighorn Sheep on Pikes Peak on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)A Bighorn Sheep on Pikes Peak on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)Travis Sauder of Colorado Parks and Wildlife marks a map where he found Bighorn Sheep on Pikes Peak on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)Clouds cover part of Pikes Peak on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)A tourist takes a picture of a Bighorn Sheep on Pikes Peak on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)
I'm Jesse Rose I'm a traveling photographer, videographer and content creator from Byron Bay, Australia. I am a full-time photographer and optionally write top-notch content for the website cortinatravel.com
