Unit 39 Deer Hunting, New Mexico
New Mexico hunting unit · 2,638 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 39 is like
Unit 39 is low, gentle country, with a mean slope of about 2.4 degrees and no steep or rugged ground to speak of. Elevations run from around 4,000 feet up to 7,600 feet, and the vegetation shifts with that rise: lower and middle elevations are dominated by shrub and brush with only a little grass and meadow mixed in, while the higher ground opens into grass and meadow with patches of shrub and brush, a touch of conifer and pinyon-juniper, and a sliver of riparian cover. This is foot-and-glass country more than a climbing proposition, with cover thick enough at lower elevations to hide a bedded deer and open enough at higher elevations to let a hunter work a spotting scope.
Only about 18 percent of Unit 39 is public land by ownership, split between State Trust land and BLM, and that figure overstates what a hunter can actually use — it still counts land inside the unitized Stoval ranch, which is closed to hunting even though it is tallied in the public total. State Trust land itself can only be hunted during a hunter's own hunt, plus up to seven days of scouting beforehand, and access must come by public or established roads. The remaining roughly 82 percent of the unit is private, and that private ground drives most opportunity here; hunters without landowner permission are working a small, scattered base of usable public acreage.
Deer hunters have two separate paths into Unit 39: the random draw hunts listed for the unit, each with its own hunt code and species-specific draw bands by pool, and a private-land-only deer licence sold outside the draw that is valid solely on private land with written landowner permission and never on any public land, State Trust included. New Mexico has no preference or bonus point system for deer, so every application in a given year stands on its own in the random draw.
Deer hunts in Unit 39 (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-2-345 | September 1 – September 24 | Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) | — | — | — | Velvet Shed / Early Fall Transition |
| Muzzleloader DER-3-347 | October 24 – October 28 | Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) | Good odds | — | — | Early Pre-Rut |
| Any legal weapon DER-1-343 | November 7 – November 11 | Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) | Fair odds | — | — | Early Pre-Rut |
| Any legal weapon DER-1-344 | November 21 – November 25 | Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) | Fair odds | Fair odds | — | Early Pre-Rut |
| Archery DER-2-346 | January 1 – January 15, 2027 | Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) | Good 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
The September archery hunt falls in the velvet shed and early fall transition phase, when bucks are settling into a steady daily pattern of feeding into the morning before bedding down for the bulk of the day. In Unit 39's shrub and brush flats and the grass and meadow pockets higher up, that means first-light glassing to locate a buck, watching where he beds, and either closing the distance at midday while he's down or holding off to watch him again in the evening and returning the next morning. Bucks that seem to vanish are usually still in the area, tucked into a small crevice or draw nearby rather than having moved off. This pattern holds through the hunt's full span into late September, so working the same ground where bucks were seen through summer continues to pay off. The hunt is open to fork-antlered deer, either mule deer or white-tailed, with archery equipment only.
Muzzleloader · Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) · October 24 – October 28
The late-October muzzleloader hunt sits in the early pre-rut phase, a short window before the rut gets underway in the region. Deer here are still working the gentle, low-relief terrain that defines Unit 39, moving between the shrub-and-brush-heavy lower and mid elevations and the more open grass and meadow country higher up. Access remains the central challenge, since the bulk of the unit is private and the public land share is limited and partly tied up in the closed unitized ranch. Resident applicants draw this hunt with good odds, and the legal animal is a fork-antlered deer, mule deer or white-tailed, taken with a muzzleloader.
Any legal weapon · Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) · November 7 – November 11
The second week of November also falls in the early pre-rut phase, with deer activity still building ahead of the rut rather than deep into it. Average lows sit near 29 degrees with modest snowfall for the month, conditions worth watching since any accumulation that does fall can concentrate deer lower in the shrub and brush rather than leave them spread across the higher grass and meadow ground. The flat, open character of this unit means visibility is good once snow does push animals into view, but hunters still have to find legal access across a landscape that is mostly private. This any-legal-weapon hunt carries fair odds for residents and is open to fork-antlered deer, mule deer or white-tailed.
Any legal weapon · Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) · November 21 – November 25
Running into late November, this hunt shares the early pre-rut phase with the hunt three weeks earlier, so deer behavior is similarly unsettled rather than locked into rut patterns. The same modest average snowfall and lows near 29 degrees apply; where real accumulation has built up by hunt time, deer are more likely to be found concentrated in the lower shrub and brush rather than scattered across the higher grass and meadow, while lighter conditions can leave them more spread out. Both resident and nonresident-without-outfitter applicants face fair odds for this any-legal-weapon hunt, making it one of the more approachable draw options in the unit for out-of-state hunters. The legal animal is fork-antlered deer, mule deer or white-tailed.
Archery · Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) · January 1 – January 15, 2027
The January archery hunt lands in the winter concentration and post-rut recovery phase, after the region's rut activity has wound down. With average lows near 21 degrees and around an inch of snowfall typical for the month, any snow that has actually accumulated by the hunt's dates can draw deer down out of the higher grass and meadow country into the shrub and brush at lower elevations, and that effect should be judged on the ground rather than assumed. The unit's gentle, low-relief terrain keeps this a walking and glassing hunt rather than a technical one, though the limited and partly restricted public land still shapes where a hunter can legally set up. Residents draw this archery-only hunt for fork-antlered deer, mule deer or white-tailed, with good odds.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 4,000–7,600 ft, typically around 5,600 ft
- Slope breakdown
- 97% gentle · 3% moderate · 0% steep · 0% rugged
- Public land by ownership
- ~468 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 brush95%
- Grass and meadow3%
- Other cover2%
Mid elevations
- Shrub and brush95%
- Grass and meadow4%
- Other cover1%
Higher elevations
- Grass and meadow62%
- Shrub and brush32%
- Other cover3%
- Conifer and pinyon-juniper2%
- Riparian1%
Cover classes from the USGS National Land Cover Database. “Other cover” is the remainder — bare ground, water, agriculture and developed land.
Land & access
About 18% of Unit 39 is public land by ownership — State Trust land and BLM. Ownership is not the same as legal access: some parcels are closed or restricted. That figure still counts State Trust and BLM land inside the unit's unitized ranch (Stoval), which is closed to hunting — so the dependably open share is lower.
- State Trust land16%
- BLM2%
- Unclassified ownership<1%
- Private82%
Public land includes State Trust land (16% 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. Unitized ranch in this unit: Stoval. State Trust and BLM land inside them is treated as private and closed to hunting — it is still counted in the huntable figure above — while the ranch's private land in the agreement is open to public hunters. See NMDOW's unitized-ranch maps.
Fall weather
- August — highs around 88°F, lows around 58°F
- September — highs around 81°F, lows around 50°F
- October — highs around 71°F, lows around 39°F, about 0.4 in of snowfall
- November — highs around 59°F, lows around 29°F, about 0.6 in of snowfall
- December — highs around 50°F, lows around 22°F, about 2.1 in of snowfall
Unit 39 deer hunting FAQ
How does a hunter get a deer licence for Unit 39?
A hunter can apply for one of the random draw hunts listed for Unit 39, each identified by its own hunt code and open weapon and season combination. Alternatively, a hunter can obtain a private-land-only deer licence sold outside the draw, which is valid only on private land with the landowner's written permission and never on any public land, State Trust land included.
How hard are the Unit 39 deer hunts to draw, and does it differ by pool?
Odds vary by hunt and by pool. The muzzleloader hunt and the January archery hunt both show good odds for residents, the two November any-legal-weapon hunts show fair odds for residents, and the late-November hunt also shows fair odds for nonresidents applying without an outfitter; bands are per application, not guaranteed, and some pools simply have no published band for a given hunt.
Can a nonresident hunt deer in Unit 39?
Yes. A nonresident can apply for the draw hunts, including the outfitter pool which is open to both residents and nonresidents, and a nonresident can also obtain a private-land-only deer licence sold outside the draw for use on private land with written permission.
Does New Mexico use preference or bonus points for deer hunts?
No. New Mexico has no point system of any kind for deer, so every application for a Unit 39 deer hunt is evaluated on its own random sequence number in that year's draw rather than through accumulated points.
How much of Unit 39 is public land, and does the State Trust land work like regular public land?
Public land by ownership makes up about 18 percent of Unit 39, combining State Trust and BLM acreage, with the remaining roughly 82 percent held privately. State Trust land within that public share can only be used during a hunter's own hunt plus limited scouting days beforehand, and some of it sits inside the unit's unitized Stoval ranch, where it is closed to hunting even though it is still counted in the public total.
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.