New Mexico Deer · GMU 8
New Mexico GMU 8 covers 590,059 acres and lies 10 miles north of Edgewood and 21 miles north-west of Moriarty. 19% of it is public land, mostly national forest (10%) and state trust land (5%). A further 10% is tribal land rather than public land. In 2025, 164 people hunted deer here and took 61, a 37% success rate. Its most applied-for hunt, DER-2-163, put up 4 tags (all residencies) in the 2026 draw for 28 nonresident first-choice applicants, 2 of whom drew.
No points in this draw. Every applicant has the same chance each year.
4 licenses · NR capped at 6%
first choice, NR
2025, all licenses
35% Forest Service
590,059 acres
Boundaries are drawn for orientation only. The written boundary description in the regulations governs.
Every License in GMU 8
| What | Season | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| DER-2-162 Standard · youth | Unit 8: youth only — fork-antlered deer — Bow - Youth Only — Nov. 21-29 | 100% (small sample) | |
| DER-2-162 Outfitter · youth | Unit 8: youth only — fork-antlered deer — Bow - Youth Only — Nov. 21-29 | 63% | |
| DER-2-163 Standard | Unit 8 — fork-antlered deer — Bow — Jan. 1-15, ‘27 | 7% (small sample) | |
| DER-2-163 Outfitter | Unit 8 — fork-antlered deer — Bow — Jan. 1-15, ‘27 | 15% |
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 | 164 | 61 | 37% |
| 2024 | 168 | 65 | 39% |
| 2023 | 154 | 60 | 39% |
| 2022 | 130 | 54 | 42% |
| 2021 | 123 | 76 | 62% |
| 2025 by License | Hunters | Deer | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reg · archery · 26 licenses | 22 | 10 | 45% |
| Reg · archery · 3 licenses | 2 | 1 | 50% |
| Reg · archery · 8 licenses | 7 | 2 | 29% |
| Reg · muzzleloader | 1 | 1 | 100% |
| Reg · rifle | 15 | 10 | 67% |
| Youth | 7 | 3 | 43% |
| Reg · archery · 10 licenses | 9 | 2 | 22% |
| Reg · archery · 15 licenses | 14 | 6 | 43% |
2025 split: archery 21 (60%) from 54 hunters, 39%, muzzleloader 1 (3%), rifle 13 (37%) from 22 hunters, 59%
What New Mexico Department of Game and Fish publishes after each season, for everyone who hunted the area: harvest statistics, not draw odds. Source: NMDGF 2025-2026 Deer Harvest Report; NMDGF 2024-2025 Deer Harvest Report; NMDGF 2023-2024 Deer Harvest Report.
The Ground
| Tribal | 61,500 ac | 10% |
| National Forest | 61,243 ac | 10% |
| State trust land | 28,876 ac | 5% |
| BLM | 21,883 ac | 4% |
| Department of Defense | 2,787 ac | <1% |
| State land | 95 ac | <1% |
| Private or other non-public land | 413,674 ac | 70% |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Land Management, New Mexico State Office 2023 BLM_Surface_Management_2023.
What the Agency Says About the Area
GMU 8: Beginning at the intersection of I-40 and I-25 at Albuquerque and running northeast along I-25 to its junction with NM 14, then south along NM 14 to Santa Fe County Road 42, then southeast along CR 42 to its junction with NM 41 at Galisteo, then south along NM 41 to its intersection with I-40 at Moriarty, then west along I-40 to its intersection with I-25.
▸ 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. How we compute these.
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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 · Methodology · All New Mexico deer hunts