Units 011–013 Mule Deer Hunting, Nevada
Nevada hunt units drawn together · 2,354 sq mi
Draw hunts — squared bonus points
Every hunt here is a draw hunt, named by its weapon, what may be taken and its dates. In Nevada's draw an application is given one random number plus extra random numbers equal to its bonus points squared, and tags go to the lowest numbers first, so more bonus points always improve a hunter's chance but never guarantee a tag. Residents and nonresidents have separate quotas.
What hunting Units 011–013 is like
Units 011–013 are drawn together as one region, and the hunts described below apply across all three. The country is gentle and rolling, with the overwhelming majority of the ground gentle or moderate and almost nothing steep or rugged. Cover across the region is dominated by shrub and brush, with pockets of grass and meadow and small amounts of conifer and pinyon-juniper and riparian cover mixed in. Elevation runs from below 4,000 feet up to around 8,500 feet.
Public land makes up almost all of the region, managed as BLM and State Trust ground, with only a sliver in private hands. That said, public ownership here does not mean easy access — some of that public land can only be reached by crossing private property, so a hunter still has to plan routes and permissions carefully rather than assuming open country. The S-1 VYA fire burned a small share of the region in 2026, and for all three seasons that ground is still in its first year of recovery, meaning deer may be using it differently than they did before the burn, moving through recovering patches between unburned pockets rather than settling in it.
Getting a tag here runs through Nevada's draw, and the season tables below lay out how that draw treats each hunt and each pool separately for residents and nonresidents.
Mule deer hunts in Units 011–013 (2026-27)
Each row is a hunt, told apart by its weapon, what may be taken and its dates. Draw difficulty is in words from the 2025 draw results: good, fair, long or very long odds, read for a hunter with no bonus points and for one holding 5 bonus points, in each pool. A hunt that covers only part of a unit says so under its name.
| Hunt | Dates | Legal deer | Resident | Nonresident | Rut phase |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Archery | August 10 – September 9 | Antlered mule deer (bucks) | No points: Fair odds 5 points: Good odds | No points: Very long odds 5 points: Long odds | Summer Range / Bachelor Pattern, Velvet Shed / Early Fall Transition |
| Muzzleloader | September 10 – October 4 | Antlered mule deer (bucks) | No points: Very long odds 5 points: Long odds | Nonresidents can apply No draw odds shown | Velvet Shed / Early Fall Transition, Early Fall Migration / Nocturnal Buck Phase |
| Any legal weapon | October 5 – November 5 | Antlered mule deer (bucks) | No points: Very long odds 5 points: Long odds | No points: Very long odds 5 points: Very long odds | Early Fall Migration / Nocturnal Buck Phase, Early Pre-Rut / Migration Corridor Staging |
"No nonresident tags" means a nonresident cannot draw that hunt. "No draw odds shown" means that pool has tags for the hunt but too little draw history to put its odds in words. Odds are per application, never a promise, and a hunter with no bonus points can draw. A hunter needs no particular number of points for any hunt.
Archery · Antlered mule deer (bucks) · August 10 – September 9
Early season archery hunting here catches bucks still in velvet and loosely bachelored up through the summer, shifting into the early fall transition as September wears on. Summer scouting counts for more than anything else — glassing at first light to find a buck, watching where he beds in shade or on north-facing slopes, then working a stalk in the middle of the day while he's bedded is the standard approach. Evenings are for finding a buck again, sometimes to stalk but more often to pattern him for a return the next morning, since a buck that seems to vanish is often still tucked into a nearby crevice or draw. Residents face fair odds at zero bonus points and good odds with 5 bonus points, while nonresidents face very long odds at zero bonus points and long odds with 5 bonus points, for this antlered mule deer hunt.
Muzzleloader · Antlered mule deer (bucks) · September 10 – October 4
The muzzleloader hunt opens as bucks are finishing their velvet shed and starting to ease into the early fall transition, then runs into the stretch where deer grow increasingly nocturnal. Early mornings and evenings still produce best — glassing shady pockets and north-facing slopes to catch a buck before he beds, then closing the distance at midday while he's settled in — but as October approaches, more of the activity shifts to low light and bucks spend more daylight hours bedded without moving. Most bucks are still found near the same country they held through summer, so the scouting done earlier in the year keeps paying off. Residents face very long odds at zero bonus points and long odds with 5 bonus points for this antlered mule deer hunt.
Any legal weapon · Antlered mule deer (bucks) · October 5 – November 5
By the time the any-legal-weapon season opens, bucks are deep into their nocturnal pattern and mostly holding in the same country they occupied all summer, though the back half of the season pushes into the start of pre-rut staging. That transition matters: toward the end of October deer may begin shifting toward their rutting ground, so glassing the country between summer range and likely staging areas can put a hunter on a moving buck. November averages about 3.4 inches of snowfall with lows near 27°F. Both residents and nonresidents face very long odds at zero bonus points, improving to long odds for residents and remaining very long odds for nonresidents with 5 bonus points, for this antlered mule deer hunt.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 3,900–8,500 ft, typically around 5,800 ft
- Slope breakdown
- 76% gentle · 20% moderate · 3% steep · 0% rugged
- Public land by ownership
- ~2,324 sq mi
Habitat & cover
What grows here, by elevation. Each band adds to 100% on its own — these are shares of that band, not of the region.
Lower elevations
- Shrub and brush87%
- Grass and meadow8%
- Other cover4%
- Riparian1%
Mid elevations
- Shrub and brush93%
- Grass and meadow5%
- Other cover1%
Higher elevations
- Shrub and brush89%
- Grass and meadow10%
Across the unit
- Shrub and brush85%
- Grass and meadow8%
- Conifer and pinyon-juniper3%
- Other cover2%
- Riparian2%
Cover classes from the USGS National Land Cover Database. “Other cover” is the remainder — bare ground, water, agriculture and developed land.
Recent fires
Wildfires in the last several seasons that burned a meaningful share of Units 011–013. Fire perimeters show how much of the region burned, not how hot — and closures change through the year, so check current fire closures and restrictions before you go.
- S-1 VYA fire, 2026 — about 9,600 acres in the region.
Fire perimeters from the National Interagency Fire Center.
Land & access
About 99% of Units 011–013 is public land by ownership — BLM and State Trust land. Ownership is not the same as legal access: public land can be reachable only across private ground, and some parcels are closed or restricted.
- BLM99%
- State Trust land<1%
- Private1%
Private land: permission is the hunter's to get.
Fall weather
- August — highs around 83°F, lows around 52°F
- September — highs around 74°F, lows around 45°F
- October — highs around 61°F, lows around 36°F, about 0.2 in of snowfall
- November — highs around 46°F, lows around 27°F, about 3.4 in of snowfall
- December — highs around 38°F, lows around 21°F, about 6.8 in of snowfall
Units 011–013 mule deer hunting FAQ
Can a hunter get a mule deer tag in Units 011–013?
A hunter applies through Nevada's draw for one of the three antlered mule deer hunts offered in Units 011–013: archery, muzzleloader, or any legal weapon. Every tag here is awarded through the draw, so none of these hunts can be picked up without being drawn first. Both residents and nonresidents may apply, though their odds and quotas are kept separate.
How hard are these hunts to draw, and does it differ for residents and nonresidents?
Draw difficulty is published in words rather than numbers, ranging from fair odds up to very long odds depending on the hunt and pool. Residents generally see better odds than nonresidents across all three seasons, and odds improve somewhat with bonus points on hand, though holding points never guarantees a tag. The archery hunt offers the best resident odds, and nonresident odds stay very long on the any-legal-weapon hunt even with 5 bonus points.
Does Nevada have bonus points, and how do they work here?
Nevada uses bonus points rather than preference points, with antlered mule deer points kept as their own total, separate from points for any other hunt category. A hunter earns a bonus point by applying unsuccessfully or by purchasing one instead of applying, but only while holding an active hunting or combination license at the time of the draw. Missing two consecutive years of applying in a category causes those points to be lost.
Do any of these seasons fall during the rut?
None of the three mule deer seasons in Units 011–013 fall during the primary rut. The archery and muzzleloader hunts run through summer and early fall patterns, while the any-legal-weapon hunt extends into the early pre-rut staging period but closes before the rut itself begins.
How much of Units 011–013 is public land?
Nearly all of the region, on the order of 99 percent, is public land managed by the BLM and State Trust, with only a small private share remaining. That high public share does not mean access is simple, since some public ground can only be reached by crossing private land, so a hunter still needs to work out routes and permission ahead of time.
Data sources & methodology
- Nevada Department of Wildlife — 2026 Big Game Application FAQ — how the draw works, how bonus points are earned, squared and lost, and how many hunt choices an application takes
- Nevada Department of Wildlife — 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 big game hunting seasons (Commission Regulation 25-07) — season dates, weapons and legal animals for each group of units
- Nevada Department of Wildlife — Bonus point and application choice trends — the draw results behind the draw-difficulty words
- USGS / MRLC — National Land Cover Database — habitat and cover classes by elevation band
- USGS PAD-US — Protected Areas Database of the United States — land ownership and access
- PRISM Climate Group — 1991–2020 normals — fall weather
- National Interagency Fire Center — wildfire perimeters — recent fires, their size and where they burned
Draw difficulty is a qualitative reading of the modelled chance from the 2025 draw results for each pool, not published odds. Rut phases are borrowed regional timing, not Nevada-specific dates. Land shares are separate, non-overlapping categories. Confirm every rule with the Nevada Department of Wildlife before you apply.