Units 111–113 Mule Deer Hunting, Nevada
Nevada hunt units drawn together · 2,114 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 111–113 is like
Units 111–113 are drawn together as one region, and the hunts below cover these units jointly. The country runs from around 5,300 feet up to nearly 11,900 feet, but the bulk of it is rolling, with some steeper breaks rather than truly rugged ground — gentle slopes dominate by area, with moderate and steep ground mixed in and only a sliver of anything approaching rugged. Lower elevations are dominated by shrub and brush with a little grass and meadow; mid elevations carry more conifer and pinyon-juniper mixed through the shrub and brush; the higher country flips to mostly conifer and pinyon-juniper with shrub and brush and a trace of grass and meadow underneath.
Public land makes up the large majority of the region, on the order of 94 percent, managed across BLM, National Forest and a State Wildlife Management Area, though reaching some of that public ground can mean crossing private land first, so access is never a given just because a map shows public ownership. About 5 percent of the region is tribal land, which is closed to public hunting under a state tag and requires the tribe's own permission to enter. The Becky Peak fire burned about 5,400 acres here, under 1 percent of the region's total area, and by the time these seasons run it will be two to four years out from the burn — the stage when a burn can offer some of the best hunting on a unit: it is far easier to glass, and deer use it to feed early in the morning and right before dark, moving in and out of the unburned timber around it.
Nevada runs every one of these hunts through its draw, and residents and nonresidents are scored against separate quotas. Bonus points accumulate separately for the antlered mule deer category from any other category a hunter applies for, and are earned only when the hunter holds an active hunting or combination license at the time of the draw. Points are lost when a hunter misses two years in a row of applying for the category.
Mule deer hunts in Units 111–113 (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: Long 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: Good odds | Nonresidents can apply No draw odds shown | Velvet Shed / Early Fall Transition, Early Fall Migration / Nocturnal Buck Phase |
| Any legal weapon | October 5 – October 20 | Antlered mule deer (bucks) | No points: Very long odds 5 points: Fair odds | No points: Very long odds 5 points: Very 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: Very 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 working through summer range and bachelor groups and running into velvet shed by its close. Summer scouting counts for more than anything else here: glass at first light to find a buck, mark where he beds in shade or on a north-facing slope, then make the move at midday while he's down, or hold off and come back for him at first light the next morning. A mature buck needs very little water; a small seep or an occasional rainstorm can be enough. A buck that seems to vanish midday is often still there, tucked into a nearby crevice or draw. For residents the archery hunt runs from long odds at zero bonus points to good odds with 5 bonus points, while nonresidents see very long odds at zero bonus points improving to long odds with 5 bonus points.
Muzzleloader · Antlered mule deer (bucks) · September 10 – October 4
The muzzleloader hunt opens right around velvet shed and carries into the early fall migration period when bucks start going nocturnal. Early in the season the same glass-and-stalk approach from summer still works — find a buck feeding into the morning, watch him bed, and close in while he's down or wait him out until evening. Through October bucks become more and more nocturnal, and most are still near where they spent the summer. Residents face very long odds at zero bonus points but good odds with 5 bonus points on this hunt.
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 go from very long odds at zero bonus points to fair odds with 5 bonus points, while nonresidents face very long odds at both zero and 5 bonus points.
Any legal weapon · Antlered mule deer (bucks) · October 21 – November 5
By late October into early November, deer are still showing the same nocturnal pattern from earlier in the fall, but toward the back half of this season 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 can pay off. November averages about 2.1 inches of snowfall with lows near 23°F. Both residents and nonresidents face very long odds at zero bonus points and very long odds with 5 bonus points on this hunt.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 5,300–11,900 ft, typically around 6,700 ft
- Slope breakdown
- 63% gentle · 27% moderate · 10% steep · 0% rugged
- Public land by ownership
- ~1,997 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 brush91%
- Other cover7%
- Grass and meadow2%
Mid elevations
- Shrub and brush72%
- Conifer and pinyon-juniper25%
- Grass and meadow2%
- Other cover1%
Higher elevations
- Conifer and pinyon-juniper63%
- Shrub and brush35%
- Grass and meadow2%
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 111–113. 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.
- Becky Peak fire, 2022 — about 5,400 acres in the region.
Fire perimeters from the National Interagency Fire Center.
Land & access
About 94% of Units 111–113 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.
- BLM73%
- National Forest21%
- State Wildlife Management Area<1%
- tribal land5%
- Private<1%
About 5% 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 52°F
- September — highs around 76°F, lows around 43°F
- October — highs around 62°F, lows around 32°F, about 0.2 in of snowfall
- November — highs around 49°F, lows around 23°F, about 2.1 in of snowfall
- December — highs around 40°F, lows around 16°F, about 3.6 in of snowfall
Units 111–113 mule deer hunting FAQ
How does a hunter get a mule deer tag in Units 111–113?
A hunter applies through Nevada's draw for one of the four antlered mule deer hunts covering Units 111–113 together, choosing a weapon and date range. Tags are awarded through the draw itself rather than sold over the counter, and residents and nonresidents are drawn from separate quotas.
How hard are these hunts to draw, and does it differ for residents and nonresidents?
Yes, residents and nonresidents are scored separately and the odds differ by pool and by how many bonus points an applicant holds. On the archery hunt, for example, residents move from long odds at zero bonus points to good odds with 5 bonus points, while nonresidents move from very long odds to long odds over the same range. Some hunts, like the final any-legal-weapon season, stay very long odds for both pools even with points in hand.
Can a nonresident hunt here?
A nonresident can apply for the archery hunt and the two any-legal-weapon hunts, each of which has nonresident draw odds. Nonresidents can also apply for the muzzleloader hunt (September 10 to October 4); no draw odds are shown for it.
Does Nevada have bonus points, and how do they work?
Nevada uses bonus points rather than 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 for the antlered mule deer category apart from any other category. 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.
Which of these seasons fall in the rut, and how much of the region is public versus closed to a state tag?
None of the four seasons here fall during the rut; all run through summer range, velvet shed, or the early fall and pre-rut staging periods before the rut phase begins. About 94 percent of the region is public land under BLM, National Forest and State Wildlife Management Area management, while roughly 5 percent is tribal land that is closed to public hunting and not opened by a state tag.
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.