Units 061, 062, 064, 066–068 Mule Deer Hunting, Nevada
Nevada hunt units drawn together · 5,903 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 061, 062, 064, 066–068 is like
The hunts covering Units 061, 062, 064, 066–068 together move across rolling country with some steeper breaks: gentle ground dominates by far, with only a small steep-and-rugged share, and mean slope stays modest across the region. Elevation runs from around 4,000 feet up to 10,400 feet, and cover shifts with that climb — lower ground mixes shrub and brush with grass and meadow and a touch of riparian growth, mid elevations turn mostly to grass and meadow with shrub and brush filling in, and the higher country holds grass and meadow and shrub and brush with just a trace of conifer and pinyon-juniper and deciduous forest.
Public land covers about two-thirds of the region, managed across BLM, National Forest and State Wildlife Management Area ground, but that ownership share does not mean easy entry — some public ground can only be reached by crossing private land, so access takes some planning. About 4% of the region is tribal land, closed to public hunting and not opened by any state tag, and roughly 30% is private, where permission is on the hunter to arrange. Two older fires, the South Sugarloaf fire (2018) and the Martin fire (2018), each burned a meaningful share of the region and by the seasons here sit five to eight years out, meaning the regrowth is thick and brushy with building deadfall. Two newer fires, the Cottonwood Peak fire (2025) and the Jakes fire (2025), are within their first year after burning, when deer are likely in different places than they were in the summer.
Every hunt here is drawn, with separate resident and nonresident quotas and bonus points that build only within the mule deer category.
Mule deer hunts in Units 061, 062, 064, 066–068 (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: Good odds 5 points: Good odds | No points: Very long odds 5 points: Good odds | Summer Range / Bachelor Pattern, Velvet Shed / Early Fall Transition |
| Muzzleloader | September 10 – October 4 | Antlered mule deer (bucks) | No points: Long odds 5 points: Good odds | No points: Very long odds 5 points: Fair odds | Velvet Shed / Early Fall Transition, Early Fall Migration / Nocturnal Buck Phase |
| Any legal weapon | October 5 – October 20 | Antlered mule deer (bucks) | No points: Long odds 5 points: Good odds | No points: Very long odds 5 points: Long odds | Early Fall Migration / Nocturnal Buck Phase |
| Any legal weapon | October 21 – 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
Archery season opens while bucks are still in velvet and bachelored up through the summer, sliding into the early fall transition as velvet sheds. The pattern barely changes through that shift: bucks feed into the morning, bed in shade for most of the day, and a hunter does best glassing shady pockets and north-facing slopes at first light, then working a stalk while a buck is bedded or watching him again at dusk. A buck that seems to vanish is often still nearby in a small crevice or draw. Draw-wise this is the easiest hunt in the region for both pools, with good odds for residents at zero and at 5 bonus points, and nonresidents going from very long odds at zero points to good odds with 5.
Muzzleloader · Antlered mule deer (bucks) · September 10 – October 4
Muzzleloader season bridges the end of velvet shed and the start of the early fall migration phase, when bucks that held to summer bedding patterns start sliding toward nocturnal habits as October opens. Early in the season the same glass-and-stalk approach from summer still works — shady pockets, north-facing slopes, bedded bucks worked in the middle of the day — but by the back half bucks are becoming more and more nocturnal, with most still near where they spent the summer. Residents face long odds at zero bonus points but good odds with 5, while nonresidents face very long odds at zero points, improving to fair odds with 5.
Any legal weapon · Antlered mule deer (bucks) · October 5 – October 20
This any-legal-weapon hunt falls in the Early Fall Migration / Nocturnal Buck Phase, when bucks become more and more nocturnal and most are still near where they spent the summer. Residents draw this hunt at long odds with no points and good odds with 5, while nonresidents sit at very long odds at zero points and still long odds even with 5 — one of the tougher draws in the region for that pool.
Any legal weapon · Antlered mule deer (bucks) · October 21 – November 5
The final any-legal-weapon season opens still inside the nocturnal buck pattern but runs into the start of the early pre-rut, when deer may begin migrating toward their rutting ground, so glassing the country between where they spent the summer and where they will be during the rut is the approach. November averages about 3.9 inches of snowfall with lows near 25°F. Draw odds are tight across the board here: residents see very long odds at zero points and only long odds with 5, while nonresidents face very long odds at both zero and 5 bonus points.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 4,000–10,400 ft, typically around 5,800 ft
- Slope breakdown
- 66% gentle · 28% moderate · 6% steep · 0% rugged
- Public land by ownership
- ~3,880 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 brush46%
- Grass and meadow42%
- Riparian8%
- Other cover4%
Mid elevations
- Grass and meadow59%
- Shrub and brush37%
- Other cover3%
Higher elevations
- Grass and meadow51%
- Shrub and brush44%
- Conifer and pinyon-juniper2%
- Other cover1%
- Deciduous forest1%
Across the unit
- Shrub and brush53%
- Grass and meadow43%
- Riparian1%
- Other cover1%
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 061, 062, 064, 066–068. 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.
- South Sugarloaf fire, 2018 — about 232,000 acres in the region (6%).
- Martin fire, 2018 — about 218,000 acres in the region (6%).
- Cottonwood Peak fire, 2025 — about 132,000 acres in the region (4%).
- Jakes fire, 2025 — about 82,000 acres in the region (2%).
Fire perimeters from the National Interagency Fire Center.
Land & access
About 66% of Units 061, 062, 064, 066–068 is public land by ownership — BLM, National Forest and State Wildlife Management Area. Ownership is not the same as legal access: public land can be reachable only across private ground, and some parcels are closed or restricted.
- BLM55%
- National Forest10%
- State Wildlife Management Area<1%
- tribal land4%
- Other land<1%
- Private30%
About 4% of this unit is tribal land, which is closed to public hunting and is not counted as huntable. Your tag does not open it.
Private land: permission is the hunter's to get.
Fall weather
- August — highs around 85°F, lows around 51°F
- September — highs around 75°F, lows around 43°F, about 0 in of snowfall
- October — highs around 61°F, lows around 33°F, about 0.4 in of snowfall
- November — highs around 47°F, lows around 25°F, about 3.9 in of snowfall
- December — highs around 38°F, lows around 19°F, about 8.3 in of snowfall
Units 061, 062, 064, 066–068 mule deer hunting FAQ
How does a hunter get a mule deer tag in Units 061, 062, 064, 066–068?
A hunter applies through Nevada's draw for one of the mule deer hunts covering this group of units, choosing a weapon and date range. Tags are awarded through the draw process rather than sold over the counter, and residents and nonresidents apply against separate quotas.
How hard are these hunts to draw, and does it differ for residents and nonresidents?
It varies a lot by hunt and by pool. The archery hunt is the easiest draw overall, with good odds for residents at zero and at 5 bonus points and good odds for nonresidents once they hold 5 points, while the late any-legal-weapon hunt in October–November is difficult for both pools, sitting at very long or long odds even with 5 bonus points. In general, earlier seasons draw easier than the later ones in this region.
Can a nonresident hunt here?
Yes, nonresidents can apply for every mule deer hunt listed for this region. Their odds differ from residents' odds and tend to be longer at zero bonus points, but a nonresident with no points can still be drawn.
Does Nevada have bonus points, and how do they work?
Nevada uses bonus points, not preference points, and a hunter earns one by applying unsuccessfully or by purchasing a point instead of applying, as long as they hold an active hunting or combination license at the time of the draw. Points are tracked separately by category, so points earned toward mule deer do not carry over to another species or hunt type. In the draw itself, an application gets 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. A hunter loses those points if they miss applying for the category two years in a row.
Which seasons fall in the rut, and how much of the region is public land open to a state tag?
None of the four mule deer seasons in this region fall during the primary rut; all of them run from early August through early November, ahead of the rut window. About 66% of the region is public land under BLM, National Forest, or State Wildlife Management Area management, while roughly 4% is tribal land closed to public hunting regardless of tag, and about 30% is private land requiring the hunter's own permission to access.
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.