Unit 33 Deer Hunting, New Mexico
New Mexico hunting unit · 2,272 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 33 is like
Unit 33 runs low and gentle, with elevations between about 3,300 and 4,700 feet and a mean slope of roughly 1.2 degrees — country that is gentle and rolling from one end to the other, with no moderate, steep, or rugged ground recorded anywhere in the unit. Cover is dominated by shrub and brush, with pockets of grass and meadow scattered through it. There is little to break up sightlines, so a hunter can cover ground on foot and glass long distances, but that same openness means deer can spot movement just as easily as a hunter spots them.
A 2022 fire burned about 5,600 acres on the unit's east side, under 1% of the total area. By the seasons described here it is two to four years out, which is often some of the best glassing and feeding country a burn offers — timber is gone, new growth has come in, and deer can be found working the edge between burned and unburned ground early and late in the day. Hunters should check for current fire closures before heading out.
About 58% of Unit 33 is public land under BLM, State Trust, and State Wildlife Management Area ownership, though that is a measure of ownership rather than guaranteed access — some parcels are closed or restricted. State Trust land makes up 21% of the unit and can be used only during a hunter's own hunt, plus up to seven days of scouting beforehand, entering by public or established roads; some parcels are withdrawn, so checking the State Land Office's access map matters. The remaining 42% is private, and written permission is required to hunt it. Alongside the draw hunts below, a Private-Land Only Deer License is also sold outside the draw to residents and nonresidents alike, valid only on private land with the landowner's permission and never on public land of any kind.
Deer hunts in Unit 33 (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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ArcheryQuality hunt DER-2-314 Including Prairie Chicken WMAs | September 1 – September 24 | Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) | Fair odds | Long odds | Fair odds | Velvet Shed / Early Fall Transition |
| MuzzleloaderQuality hunt DER-3-316 Including Prairie Chicken WMAs: restricted muzzleloader only; Restricted muzzleloader | October 24 – October 28 | Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) | Good odds | Long odds | — | Early Pre-Rut |
| Any legal weaponQuality hunt DER-1-312 Including Prairie Chicken WMAs | November 7 – November 11 | Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) | Long odds | Very long odds | Long odds | Early Pre-Rut |
| Any legal weaponQuality hunt DER-1-313 Including Prairie Chicken WMAs | November 21 – November 25 | Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) | Long odds | Very long odds | Very long odds | Early Pre-Rut |
| ArcheryQuality hunt DER-2-315 Including Prairie Chicken WMAs | January 1 – January 15, 2027 | Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) | Long odds | Very long odds | Very long odds | Winter Concentration / Post-Rut Recovery |
"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 deer (mule deer or white-tailed) · September 1 – September 24
Early September finds bucks still holding to a late-summer rhythm, feeding into the morning before bedding down in shade for most of the day, which makes shady pockets and any north-facing break in the shrub and brush worth glassing hard at first light. A buck spotted and bedded can often be stalked at midday while he holds tight, and evening glassing is usually about marking a buck to return for the next morning rather than closing the distance that night. As the month wears on into late September the same pattern holds, so working the same country where bucks have been seen through summer keeps paying off. This is a Quality hunt for fork-antlered deer open to archery only, with fair odds for residents and for those applying with an outfitter, and long odds for nonresidents applying without one.
Muzzleloader · Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) · October 24 – October 28
By late October deer are moving into the early pre-rut, with activity beginning to shift ahead of the rut itself. The open, gently rolling shrub and brush country of Unit 33 offers few obstacles to covering ground, and the recovering burn on the unit's east side remains worth a look given how it draws deer along its edges. This is a restricted-muzzleloader Quality hunt for fork-antlered deer, with good odds for residents and long odds for nonresidents applying without an outfitter.
Any legal weapon · Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) · November 7 – November 11
Early November still sits in the early pre-rut, with deer activity building but not yet concentrated around breeding. Hunters working Unit 33 during this period have the advantage of its gentle, open terrain for spotting deer at distance, moving through the shrub and brush and grass and meadow cover and checking the burned ground on the east side for fresh use. This is an any-legal-weapon Quality hunt for fork-antlered deer, with long odds for residents, long odds for those applying with an outfitter, and very long odds for nonresidents applying without one.
Any legal weapon · Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) · November 21 – November 25
Late November continues within the early pre-rut phase, so deer behavior here carries the same buildup toward the rut rather than the rut itself. The unit's low relief and open shrub and brush cover still favor long-range glassing over ground scouting, and the east-side burn remains a spot to check for deer working its edges. This is an any-legal-weapon Quality hunt for fork-antlered deer, with long odds for residents and very long odds for both nonresidents applying without an outfitter and those applying with one.
Archery · Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) · January 1 – January 15, 2027
By January deer have settled into winter concentration and post-rut recovery, grouping up rather than dispersed as they were earlier in the fall. January in Unit 33 averages about half an inch of snowfall with lows near 25°F, and if snow has accumulated on the ground it is worth concentrating effort on lower, more open stretches of shrub and brush where deer can be glassed from a distance across the unit's gentle terrain. This is a Quality archery hunt for fork-antlered deer, with long odds for residents and very long odds for both nonresident pools.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 3,300–4,700 ft, typically around 3,900 ft
- Slope breakdown
- 100% gentle · 0% moderate · 0% steep · 0% rugged
- Public land by ownership
- ~1,317 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.
Across the unit
- Shrub and brush91%
- Grass and meadow6%
- Other cover2%
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 Unit 33. Fire perimeters show where a fire burned, not how hot — and closures change through the year, so check current fire closures and restrictions before you go.
- Unnamed fire, 2022 — about 5,600 acres in the unit, mostly on its east side.
Fire perimeters from the National Interagency Fire Center.
Land & access
About 58% of Unit 33 is public land by ownership — BLM, State Trust land and State Wildlife Management Area. Ownership is not the same as legal access: some parcels are closed or restricted.
- BLM37%
- State Trust land21%
- State Wildlife Management Area<1%
- Unclassified ownership<1%
- Private42%
Public land includes State Trust land (21% 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 93°F, lows around 65°F
- September — highs around 86°F, lows around 57°F
- October — highs around 77°F, lows around 45°F, about 0.2 in of snowfall
- November — highs around 65°F, lows around 33°F, about 0.1 in of snowfall
- December — highs around 56°F, lows around 25°F, about 1 in of snowfall
Unit 33 deer hunting FAQ
Can a hunter get a deer licence for Unit 33 without going through the draw?
Yes. Alongside the draw hunts, New Mexico sells a Private-Land Only Deer License outside the draw to residents and nonresidents alike. It is valid only on private land with the landowner's written permission and is never valid on public land, including State Trust land.
How hard is it to draw a deer hunt in Unit 33, and does it differ by pool?
Yes, odds vary by hunt and by pool. For example, the September archery hunt (DER-2-314) carries fair odds for residents and for applicants using a registered outfitter, but long odds for nonresidents applying without one, while the November hunts run from long to very long odds across the pools. The muzzleloader hunt in late October offers the best resident odds listed, at good.
Can a nonresident hunt deer in Unit 33?
Yes. Nonresidents can apply for any of the draw hunts, either on their own or through a registered outfitter, and nonresident odds are listed separately from resident odds for each hunt. A nonresident can also obtain the Private-Land Only Deer License without applying in the draw, provided they have written permission to hunt private land.
Does New Mexico use preference points or bonus points for deer hunts in Unit 33?
No. New Mexico has no preference points or bonus points system for deer at all. Every draw hunt in Unit 33 is awarded through a random drawing based on an application's randomly assigned sequence number, not accumulated points.
How much of Unit 33 is public land, and what is the rule on State Trust land?
About 58% of the unit is public land under BLM, State Trust, and State Wildlife Management Area ownership, with the remaining 42% private and requiring written permission to hunt. State Trust land makes up 21% of the unit and can only be used during a hunter's own hunt, plus up to seven days of scouting beforehand, entering by public or established roads, and some parcels are withdrawn from access.
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.