New Mexico Deer · GMU 52
New Mexico GMU 52 covers 268,846 acres and lies 32 miles west of Questa and 45 miles north-west of Taos. 95% of it is public land, mostly national forest (78%) and BLM (15%). In 2025, 251 people hunted deer here and took 108, a 43% success rate (sum of published weapon rows). Its most applied-for hunt, DER-1-395, put up 5 tags (all residencies) in the 2026 draw for 46 nonresident first-choice applicants, 4 of whom drew.
No points in this draw. Every applicant has the same chance each year.
8 licenses · NR capped at 6%
first choice, NR
2025, all licenses
83% Forest Service
268,846 acres
Boundaries are drawn for orientation only. The written boundary description in the regulations governs.
Every License in GMU 52
| What | Season | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| DER-1-394 Standard | Unit 52 — fork-antlered deer — Any Legal — Oct. 31-Nov.4 | 14% | |
| DER-1-394 Outfitter | Unit 52 — fork-antlered deer — Any Legal — Oct. 31-Nov.4 | 47% | |
| DER-1-395 Standard | Unit 52 — fork-antlered deer — Any Legal — Nov. 7-11 | 9% | |
| DER-1-395 Outfitter | Unit 52 — fork-antlered deer — Any Legal — Nov. 7-11 | 29% | |
| DER-2-396 Standard | Unit 52 — fork-antlered deer — Bow — Sept. 1-24 | 9% (small sample) | |
| DER-2-396 Outfitter | Unit 52 — fork-antlered deer — Bow — Sept. 1-24 | 73% | |
| DER-3-397 Standard | Unit 52: restricted muzzleloader only — fork-antlered deer — Muzzle - Restricted — Sept.… | 17% (small sample) | |
| DER-3-397 Outfitter | Unit 52: restricted muzzleloader only — fork-antlered deer — Muzzle - Restricted — Sept.… | not open |
First-choice nonresident odds, 2026 draw. No points in this draw: every applicant has the same chance.
Draw results: NMDGF 2026 Big Game Drawing Odds Complete Report, retrieved Aug 31, 2026.
If you draw (2026 nonresident fees): Standard $502 ($492 to apply) · Outfitter $502 ($492 to apply). Closes Mar 17, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.
Harvest
| Year | Hunters | Deer | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 (summed) | 251 | 108 | 43% |
| 2024 (summed) | 249 | 112 | 45% |
| 2023 | 276 | 84 | 30% |
| 2022 (summed) | 269 | 106 | 39% |
| 2021 | 256 | 79 | 31% |
| 2025 by License | Hunters | Deer | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reg · rifle · 3 licenses | 3 | 3 | 100% |
| Reg · rifle · 17 licenses | 15 | 10 | 64% |
| Reg · archery · 1 license | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Reg · muzzleloader | 3 | 0 | 0% |
| Reg · rifle · 85 licenses (hunt 2 of 2) | 70 | 39 | 55% |
| Reg · rifle · 85 licenses (hunt 1 of 2) | 75 | 34 | 46% |
| Reg · archery · 100 licenses | 84 | 22 | 26% |
2025 split: rifle 86 (80%) from 163 hunters, 53%, archery 22 (20%) from 85 hunters, 26%, muzzleloader 0 (0%)
What New Mexico Department of Game and Fish publishes after each season, for everyone who hunted the area: harvest statistics, not draw odds. New Mexico Department of Game and Fish publishes no whole-GMU line for 2025; a year's total is the sum of published weapon rows, added only where the lines do not overlap. Source: NMDGF 2025-2026 Deer Harvest Report; NMDGF 2024-2025 Deer Harvest Report; NMDGF 2023-2024 Deer Harvest Report.
The Ground
| National Forest | 209,657 ac | 78% |
| BLM | 39,929 ac | 15% |
| State trust land | 3,650 ac | 1% |
| State land | 857 ac | <1% |
| Tribal | 1 ac | <1% |
| Private or other non-public land | 14,751 ac | 5% |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Land Management, New Mexico State Office 2023 BLM_Surface_Management_2023.
What the Agency Says About the Area
GMU 52: Beginning at the intersection of US 64 and the east boundary of the Tierra Amarilla grant and running north along the eastern boundary of the grant to the Colorado-New Mexico state line, then east along the state line to its intersection with US 285, then south along US 285 to its junction with US 64 at Tres Piedras, then west along US 64 to its intersection with the east boundary of...
▸ Sources 10
- NMDGF 2026 Big Game Drawing Odds Complete Report draw results, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- NMDGF 2026-2027 Draw Hunt License Fees / Draw… fees, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- NMDGF 2026-2027 Over-the-Counter License Fees, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- NMDGF 2025-2026 Deer Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- NMDGF 2024-2025 Deer Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- NMDGF 2023-2024 Deer Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- NMDGF 2022-2023 Deer Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- NMDGF 2021-2022 Deer Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- NMDGF 2026 NM Game Management Units, layer 0 boundary, area description, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- U.S. Bureau of Land Management, New Mexico State Office 2023 BLM_Surface_Management_2023 land ownership, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
About These Numbers
Odds are from the 2026 draw, the latest on file, computed from New Mexico Department of Game and Fish's published results. They are what happened in that draw, not a forecast. Under five tags a percentage carries a *, because one applicant either way swings it. A dash means the agency did not publish the number, and a date marked expected is last cycle's schedule rolled forward.
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We don't take applications: check New Mexico Department of Game and Fish's site and apply there.
Prior-draw odds from New Mexico Department of Game and Fish's results, not a forecast · All New Mexico deer hunts