Unit 23 Deer Hunting, New Mexico
New Mexico hunting unit · 2,928 sq mi
Draw hunts — random, no points
New Mexico has no preference or bonus points: every hunt here with draw odds is a random draw, with its own hunt code. Residents, nonresidents applying without an outfitter, and applicants applying with a registered outfitter (a pool open to residents and nonresidents) are drawn in separate pools, and the table gives each pool's odds in words. A Private-Land Only Deer License, sold outside the draw, covers private land only, with the landowner's written permission; it is never valid on public land, State Trust land included.
What hunting Unit 23 is like
Unit 23 is rolling country, with some steeper breaks rather than true mountains — mean slope sits under eight degrees and almost none of the ground qualifies as rugged. Lower elevations run to shrub and brush with a strong grass and meadow component, mid elevations stay shrub-and-brush dominant with a thinner slice of conifer and pinyon-juniper, and the highest ground flips to a near-even mix of conifer and pinyon-juniper and shrub and brush. It is foot country for the most part: gentle to moderate slopes that reward glassing and walking rather than technical climbing, with the steeper breaks offering pockets of security cover for deer that get pushed or pressured.
About two-thirds of the unit is public land in ownership — National Forest, BLM, State Wildlife Management Area, and State Trust land — but ownership is not the same as guaranteed access. State Trust land makes up a sizable share of that public total, and it can be used only during a hunter's own hunt plus up to a week of scouting beforehand, entering by public or established roads, with some parcels withdrawn entirely; checking the State Land Office's access map before heading out matters. The remaining third of the unit is private, and a Private-Land Only Deer License is also sold outside the draw for hunters who have written permission to hunt that private ground, though it never carries onto public land of any kind.
The Burro Mountains hunt area is split out as its own set of Quality hunts across every weapon and season, layered alongside the standard hunts that cover the rest of the unit. Every draw hunt listed runs through New Mexico's random-sequence draw system, and none of it depends on points, since the state does not use them for deer.
Deer hunts in Unit 23 (2026–27)
Each row is a hunt a hunter selects by its hunt code. Draw difficulty is a band in words from the 2026 first-choice results — good, fair, long or very long odds — for each pool; a dash means too few applicants to give a fair band. It is not a published percentage. The outfitter pool is open to both residents and nonresidents.
| Hunt | Dates | Legal deer | Resident | Nonresident, no outfitter | With an outfitter | Rut phase |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Archery DER-2-241 Except the Burro mountains hunt area | September 1 – September 24 | Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer | — | — | — | Late Fawning / Summer Pattern |
| ArcheryQuality hunt DER-2-249 Burro mountains hunt area only | September 1 – September 24 | Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer | Good odds | — | — | Late Fawning / Summer Pattern |
| Archery DER-2-239 Except the Burro mountains hunt area | September 1 – September 24 | Fork-antlered mule deer | Good odds | Good odds | — | Late Fawning / Velvet Shed |
| Muzzleloader DER-3-244 Except the Burro mountains hunt area | October 31 – November 4 | Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer | Good odds | — | — | Hard-Antler Fall / Security Pattern |
| MuzzleloaderQuality hunt DER-3-252 Burro mountains hunt area only | October 31 – November 4 | Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer | Good odds | Long odds | — | Hard-Antler Fall / Security Pattern |
| Muzzleloader DER-3-243 Except the Burro mountains hunt area | October 31 – November 4 | Fork-antlered mule deer | Good odds | Good odds | — | Early Fall / Hard-Antler Pattern |
| MuzzleloaderQuality hunt DER-3-251 Burro mountains hunt area only | October 31 – November 4 | Fork-antlered mule deer | Fair odds | Long odds | — | Early Fall / Hard-Antler Pattern |
| Any legal weapon DER-1-234 Except the Burro mountains hunt area | November 7 – November 11 | Fork-antlered mule deer | Fair odds | Long odds | — | Early Fall / Hard-Antler Pattern |
| Any legal weaponQuality hunt DER-1-245 Burro mountains hunt area only | November 7 – November 15 | Fork-antlered mule deer | Very long odds | Very long odds | Very long odds | Early Fall / Hard-Antler Pattern |
| Any legal weapon DER-1-235 Except the Burro mountains hunt area | November 14 – November 18 | Fork-antlered mule deer | Good odds | Long odds | — | Pre-Rut / Seeking Build-Up |
| Any legal weapon DER-1-236 Except the Burro mountains hunt area | November 21 – November 25 | Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer | Fair odds | Very long odds | Fair odds | Pre-Rut / Early Breeding |
| Any legal weapon DER-1-237 Except the Burro mountains hunt area | December 5 – December 13 | Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer | Fair odds | Very long odds | Long odds | Pre-Rut / Early Breeding |
| Any legal weaponQuality hunt DER-1-246 Burro mountains hunt area only | December 5 – December 13 | Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer | Very long odds | Very long odds | Very long odds | Pre-Rut / Early Breeding |
| Archery DER-2-240 Except the Burro mountains hunt area | January 1 – January 15, 2027 | Fork-antlered mule deer | Fair odds | Long odds | — | Primary Rut / Late Rut |
| ArcheryQuality hunt DER-2-248 Burro mountains hunt area only | January 1 – January 15, 2027 | Fork-antlered mule deer | Long odds | Long odds | Very long odds | Primary Rut / Late Rut |
| Archery DER-2-242 Except the Burro mountains hunt area | January 16 – January 31, 2027 | Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer | Good odds | Long odds | — | Primary Rut / Breeding, Late Rut / Post-Rut Transition |
| ArcheryQuality hunt DER-2-250 Burro mountains hunt area only | January 16 – January 31, 2027 | Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer | Fair odds | Long odds | — | Primary Rut / Breeding, Late Rut / Post-Rut Transition |
"Residents only" hunts (antlerless elk, and hunts held only on state wildlife areas) are closed to nonresidents. "Unlimited" hunts are private-land hunts: no quota, no draw, valid on private land only with the landowner's written permission. A "Quality hunt" is a State Wildlife Commission designation for hunts meant to improve the chance of a successful harvest, offer a wider selection of mature animals, or give a better experience through timing or hunter density. Youth, mobility-impaired, military and other special-eligibility hunts are not listed.
Archery · Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer · September 1 – September 24
Early fall Coues hunting here falls in the Late Fawning / Summer Pattern phase, with bucks still holding onto late-summer patterns across the unit outside the Burro Mountains hunt area. The country is rolling with some steeper breaks, and cover runs from shrub and brush and grass and meadow at lower elevation up into shrub and brush and scattered conifer and pinyon-juniper higher up. Access runs through the public land described for the unit, including State Trust parcels usable only during this hunt and its scouting window. This archery hunt is restricted to fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer.
Archery · Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer · September 1 – September 24
This Quality archery hunt inside the Burro Mountains hunt area also falls in the Late Fawning / Summer Pattern phase, putting bucks in the same late-summer pattern as the rest of the unit but concentrated on ground set aside specifically for this hunt area. The terrain here carries the unit's rolling character with some steeper breaks, and the cover mix shifts toward more conifer and pinyon-juniper as elevation climbs. Resident applicants face Good odds in the draw for this hunt. The legal animal is fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer only, taken with archery equipment.
Archery · Fork-antlered mule deer · September 1 – September 24
Archery hunters chasing mule deer in early fall work the unit during the Late Fawning / Velvet Shed phase, outside the Burro Mountains hunt area. Terrain here is gentle to moderate for the most part, with cover transitioning from shrub and brush and grass and meadow lower down to a mix including conifer and pinyon-juniper at higher elevation. Both residents and nonresidents applying without an outfitter see Good odds for this hunt. Only fork-antlered mule deer are legal.
Muzzleloader · Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer · October 31 – November 4
Muzzleloader hunters in this window find deer in the Hard-Antler Fall / Security Pattern phase across the unit outside the Burro Mountains hunt area, with bucks holding to the steeper breaks and timbered pockets that offer security cover. The unit's rolling terrain and mix of shrub and brush, grass and meadow, and conifer and pinyon-juniper at higher elevation gives plenty of ground to work on foot. Resident applicants draw Good odds for this hunt. The legal animal is fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer.
Muzzleloader · Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer · October 31 – November 4
This Quality muzzleloader hunt inside the Burro Mountains hunt area falls in the same Hard-Antler Fall / Security Pattern phase, with deer using the area's steeper breaks and timber for cover during hard-antler season. Residents see Good odds here while nonresidents applying without an outfitter face Long odds. The hunt is limited to fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer within the Burro Mountains hunt area only.
Muzzleloader · Fork-antlered mule deer · October 31 – November 4
Mule deer hunters with muzzleloaders work the Early Fall / Hard-Antler Pattern phase across the unit outside the Burro Mountains hunt area, when bucks are settled into fall patterns on the rolling terrain and in the conifer and pinyon-juniper pockets at higher elevation. Both residents and nonresidents applying without an outfitter draw Good odds for this hunt. Only fork-antlered mule deer are legal game.
Muzzleloader · Fork-antlered mule deer · October 31 – November 4
This Quality muzzleloader mule deer hunt inside the Burro Mountains hunt area spans the same Early Fall / Hard-Antler Pattern phase, concentrating hunters on the designated hunt area's rolling ground and steeper breaks. Residents face Fair odds while nonresidents applying without an outfitter see Long odds. The legal animal is fork-antlered mule deer, Burro Mountains hunt area only.
Any legal weapon · Fork-antlered mule deer · November 7 – November 11
This short any-legal-weapon mule deer hunt falls in the Early Fall / Hard-Antler Pattern phase outside the Burro Mountains hunt area, a narrow five-day window across the unit's rolling terrain and mixed cover. Residents draw Fair odds while nonresidents applying without an outfitter face Long odds. Fork-antlered mule deer is the only legal animal.
Any legal weapon · Fork-antlered mule deer · November 7 – November 15
The Quality any-legal-weapon mule deer hunt in the Burro Mountains hunt area runs longer than its counterpart elsewhere in the unit but falls in the same Early Fall / Hard-Antler Pattern phase. All three pools — residents, nonresidents applying without an outfitter, and those applying with an outfitter — face Very long odds for this hunt. The legal animal is fork-antlered mule deer, limited to the Burro Mountains hunt area.
Any legal weapon · Fork-antlered mule deer · November 14 – November 18
By mid-November, mule deer hunters outside the Burro Mountains hunt area are into the Pre-Rut / Seeking Build-Up phase, when buck activity may be building across the unit's rolling terrain and steeper breaks. Any legal weapon is permitted for this hunt. Residents see Good odds while nonresidents applying without an outfitter face Long odds.
Any legal weapon · Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer · November 21 – November 25
Late November brings Coues deer hunters into the Pre-Rut / Early Breeding phase outside the Burro Mountains hunt area, a short window where buck activity may be building ahead of the breeding period. The unit's rolling ground and shrub, grass, and timber cover give hunters places to work on foot. Residents and those applying with an outfitter both see Fair odds, while nonresidents applying without an outfitter face Very long odds. Only fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer are legal.
Any legal weapon · Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer · December 5 – December 13
This early December Coues hunt outside the Burro Mountains hunt area also falls in the Pre-Rut / Early Breeding phase, running longer than the November hunt and into a period when December's average snowfall is light and lows average around 26°F — conditions worth planning around if snow has actually accumulated on the ground. Residents draw Fair odds, those applying with an outfitter face Long odds, and nonresidents without an outfitter see Very long odds. The legal animal is fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer, any legal weapon.
Any legal weapon · Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer · December 5 – December 13
The Burro Mountains hunt area version of this early December hunt covers the same Pre-Rut / Early Breeding phase and the same cold, light-snowfall December conditions, concentrated on the designated hunt area's ground. All three pools — residents, nonresidents applying without an outfitter, and those applying with an outfitter — face Very long odds. The legal animal is fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer, Burro Mountains hunt area only, any legal weapon.
Archery · Fork-antlered mule deer · January 1 – January 15, 2027
January archery hunters pursuing mule deer outside the Burro Mountains hunt area are in the Primary Rut / Late Rut phase, with January's average snowfall light and lows near 26°F — worth watching if accumulation becomes substantial, since deer may concentrate lower in that case. The unit's rolling terrain and brush, grass, and timber cover support still-hunting and glassing on foot. Residents draw Fair odds while nonresidents applying without an outfitter face Long odds. Only fork-antlered mule deer are legal with archery equipment.
Archery · Fork-antlered mule deer · January 1 – January 15, 2027
This Quality January archery mule deer hunt in the Burro Mountains hunt area falls in the same Primary Rut / Late Rut phase, under the same cold, light-snowfall conditions typical of January. Residents and nonresidents applying without an outfitter both face Long odds, while those applying with an outfitter see Very long odds. The legal animal is fork-antlered mule deer, Burro Mountains hunt area only.
Archery · Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer · January 16 – January 31, 2027
Archery Coues deer hunters in the second half of January work through the Primary Rut / Breeding phase into the Late Rut / Post-Rut Transition phase outside the Burro Mountains hunt area, with January's average snowfall light and lows around 26°F. The unit's rolling ground and steeper breaks, mixed with shrub and brush and patches of timber, give hunters places to work on foot through the season's final weeks. Residents draw Good odds while nonresidents applying without an outfitter face Long odds. Only fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer are legal.
Archery · Fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer · January 16 – January 31, 2027
The Burro Mountains hunt area counterpart to the late-January archery Coues hunt spans the same Primary Rut / Breeding and Late Rut / Post-Rut Transition phases, with the same cold, light-snowfall January conditions to plan around. Residents see Fair odds and nonresidents applying without an outfitter face Long odds. The legal animal is fork-antlered Coues white-tailed deer, Burro Mountains hunt area only, taken by archery equipment.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 3,700–9,000 ft, typically around 5,300 ft
- Slope breakdown
- 70% gentle · 25% moderate · 5% steep · 0% rugged
- Public land by ownership
- ~1,908 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 unit.
Lower elevations
- Shrub and brush58%
- Grass and meadow40%
- Other cover2%
Mid elevations
- Shrub and brush62%
- Grass and meadow31%
- Conifer and pinyon-juniper7%
Higher elevations
- Shrub and brush51%
- Conifer and pinyon-juniper40%
- Grass and meadow7%
- Other cover2%
Cover classes from the USGS National Land Cover Database. “Other cover” is the remainder — bare ground, water, agriculture and developed land.
Land & access
About 65% of Unit 23 is public land by ownership — National Forest, State Trust land, BLM and State Wildlife Management Area. Ownership is not the same as legal access: some parcels are closed or restricted.
- National Forest24%
- State Trust land23%
- BLM18%
- State Wildlife Management Area<1%
- Private35%
Public land includes State Trust land (23% of this unit). You may use it only during your own hunt, plus up to 7 days of scouting beforehand, entering by public or established roads (NM State Land Office / Game Commission easement). Some parcels are withdrawn; check the State Land Office's hunting-access map.
Fall weather
- August — highs around 88°F, lows around 60°F
- September — highs around 84°F, lows around 54°F
- October — highs around 75°F, lows around 43°F
- November — highs around 64°F, lows around 33°F
- December — highs around 55°F, lows around 26°F, about 0.2 in of snowfall
Unit 23 deer hunting FAQ
Can a hunter get a deer licence for Unit 23 outside the draw?
Yes. New Mexico sells a Private-Land Only Deer License outside the draw to residents and nonresidents alike, valid only on private land with the landowner's written permission. That licence is never valid on public land of any kind, including State Trust land, even if a landowner leases that ground.
How hard are the draw hunts in Unit 23, and does it differ by pool?
It varies by hunt and by pool. Many of the hunts outside the Burro Mountains hunt area show Good or Fair odds for residents, while several Burro Mountains hunt area Quality hunts show Long or Very long odds across residents, nonresidents without an outfitter, and those applying with an outfitter. Each hunt's band is specific to that hunt code and that pool, not a unit-wide rule.
Does New Mexico use points for deer in Unit 23?
No. New Mexico has no preference points or bonus points system for deer at all. Every draw hunt here is awarded through a random-sequence draw rather than any point-based priority.
Which Unit 23 deer seasons fall in the rut?
The archery mule deer hunt from January 1 to January 15 and the archery Coues white-tailed deer hunt from January 16 to January 31 fall within rut phases, both inside and outside the Burro Mountains hunt area. Earlier seasons, from September archery through the December any-legal-weapon hunts, fall outside those rut phases.
How much of Unit 23 is public land, and does State Trust land change that?
About 65 percent of the unit is public land by ownership, including National Forest, BLM, State Wildlife Management Area, and State Trust land, with the remaining 35 percent private and requiring written permission to hunt. State Trust land makes up 23 percent of the unit on its own, and it can be used only during a hunter's own hunt plus up to seven days of scouting beforehand, entering by public or established roads, since ownership alone does not guarantee access to every parcel.
Data sources & methodology
- New Mexico Department of Game and Fish — Hunting Rules & Info booklet (2026-27) — season dates, legal animals, hunt codes and the rules for each hunt
- New Mexico Department of Game and Fish — How the New Mexico draw works — the random draw, the choices a hunter ranks and how licences are split among the draw pools
- New Mexico Department of Game and Fish — Applications and draw information — the draw results behind the draw-difficulty bands for each pool
- New Mexico Department of Game and Fish — Game management unit maps — unit boundaries and the official unit maps
- 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
- Daymet daily climate, 1991–2020 (Oak Ridge National Laboratory) — fall weather
- National Interagency Fire Center — wildfire perimeters — recent fires, their size and where they burned
Draw difficulty is a qualitative band from first-choice results for each pool, not published odds. Rut phases are regional timing, not New Mexico-specific dates. Land shares are separate, non-overlapping categories. Confirm current dates and rules in the New Mexico Hunting Rules & Info booklet before you hunt. Unit data last updated October 21, 2026.