Never been to 24, but I've hunted a lot in Colorado and had great success OTC. I'd start with the CO Hunting Atlas here:
http://ndismaps.nrel.colostate.edu/index.html?app=HuntingAtlas Then I'd look for areas within a few miles of access points that require a steep climb/descent (think hands and knees) or are otherwise very difficult to access. Sometimes areas are almost untouched because of being blocked by insane amounts of deadfall. Your goal is to get away from horses (unless you have some), and that's going to be difficult; but if you can, you'll most likely be in the elk. Locals, guides, packers, and most all elk hunters rely on horses and gentler terrain.
I like the 3rd week, despite the muzzleloaders, since the elk should be rutting but not herded up as much, and the last week seems to get an additional traffic rush. The latter weeks of the season allow hunting pressure to concentrate the elk and make them more predictably found in the honey/hellholes (depends on how you look at it!). Most of my CO OTC hunts I will at least see and/or hear elk daily.
Also, figure out how you will get one out after you kill him! Becomes especially difficult if you've followed my previous advice