New Mexico Elk ELK-1-142

Mature bull elk in GMU 5A, any legal weapon, Oct 24–28, 2026. 17% public land, mostly BLM.

No points in this draw. Every applicant has the same chance each year.

2026 draw

Not open to nonresidents in 2026

New Mexico Department of Game and Fish issued no nonresident tags for this hunt in 2026 and took no nonresident applications for it.

Odds by Year

Not enough years with tags and applicants to chart.

What It Costs · 2026 NR Fees

Closes Mar 17 · 150 days
Cost to Apply
$867
If You Miss
$107
If You Draw
$877

The $13 nonresident draw application fee (per species, nonrefundable; included in the printed draw price) is not refunded. The $90 nonresident Game-Hunting License (must be purchased, nonrefundable, before applying for any big-game draw) is not refunded. The $4 habitat Management and Access Validation (HMAV), mandatory age 18+, added automatically with the Game-Hunting License is not refunded. Drawing adds the $10 habitat Stamp (required to hunt on BLM and Forest Service land; buy by May 15 to be printed on the licence/tag). The $760 nonresident Standard Elk License, mature bull or either sex (printed draw price $773 incl. $13 application fee); charged at application, refunded if unsuccessful. Quality / high-demand hunt codes are $998 printed is refunded if you miss.

Opens
—
Closes
Mar 17, 2027
Results
about Apr 21

Next application window: Closes Mar 17, 2027 (expected). Dates are last cycle's, rolled forward until New Mexico Department of Game and Fish publishes 2027.

▸ Every Fee, With Sources
5A
25%hunter success 2025 · 386 hunters, 340 elk
GMU 5A in full →

Details

Odds in This Draw · 2026 Draw

No nonresident draw was held in 2026.

How It Hunted, 2025

WhoHuntersHarvestSuccess
All of GMU 5A 386 340 25%

Across every license type in GMU 5A, New Mexico Department of Game and Fish counted 386 hunters and 340 elk taken in 2025, and 25% of them took an elk. Post-season survey, not draw statistics. Source: NMDGF 2025-2026 Elk Harvest Report; NMDGF 2024-2025 Elk Harvest Report.

▸ Year-by-Year Numbers 4 draws

The standard draw for nonresidents, one row per year.

Year Tags Applicants Per Tag Published Odds Source
2026 0 0 — 0.00% NMDGF 2026 Big Game Drawing Odds Complete Report
2025 0 0 — 0.00% NMDGF 2025-26 Big-Game Drawing Odds Complete…
2024 0 0 — 0.00% NMDGF 2024-25 Big-Game Drawing Odds Complete…
2023 0 0 — 0.00% NMDGF 2023 Big-Game Complete Drawing Odds Report

Other Licenses Valid in GMU 5A

  • ELK-1-138 Unit 5A public land only — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 10-14 Oct 10–14 · 0 tags · not open to nonresidents in 2026 —
  • ELK-1-139 Unit 5A public land only — antlerless — Any Legal – NM — Oct. 10-14 Oct 10–14 · 0 tags · not open to nonresidents in 2026 —
  • ELK-1-140 Unit 5A public land only — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 17-21 Oct 17–21 · 0 tags · not open to nonresidents in 2026 —
  • ELK-1-141 Unit 5A public land only — antlerless — Any Legall – NM — Oct. 17-21 Oct 17–21 · 0 tags · not open to nonresidents in 2026 —
  • ELK-1-143 Unit 5A public land only — antlerless — Any Legall – NM — Oct. 24-28 Oct 24–28 · 0 tags · not open to nonresidents in 2026 —
  • ELK-1-144 Unit 5A public land only — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 31-Nov. 4 Oct 31 – Nov 4 · 0 tags · not open to nonresidents in 2026 —
  • ELK-1-145 Unit 5A public land only — antlerless — Any Legall – NM — Oct. 31-Nov. 4 Oct 31 – Nov 4 · 0 tags · not open to nonresidents in 2026 —
  • ELK-2-136 Unit 5A public land only — either sex — Bow — Sept. 1-14 Sep 1–14 · 0 tags · not open to nonresidents in 2026 —
  • ELK-2-137 Unit 5A public land only — either sex — Bow — Sept. 15-24 Sep 15–24 · 0 tags · not open to nonresidents in 2026 —

Odds for a first-choice nonresident, standard class where offered. * fewer than 5 tags.

▸ Legal Cartridges 23 on file for New Mexico elk
▸ Sources 14
  1. NMDGF 2026 Big Game Drawing Odds Complete Report draw results, seasons, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  2. NMDGF 2025-26 Big-Game Drawing Odds Complete… earlier draws, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  3. NMDGF 2024-25 Big-Game Drawing Odds Complete… earlier draws, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  4. NMDGF 2023 Big-Game Complete Drawing Odds Report earlier draws, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  5. New Mexico Commission of Public Records - State Records Center and Archives 2023 19.31.3 NMAC draw rules, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  6. NMDGF 2026-2027 Draw Hunt License Fees / Draw… fees, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  7. NMDGF 2026-2027 Over-the-Counter License Fees, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  8. NMDGF 2025-2026 Elk Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
  9. NMDGF 2024-2025 Elk Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
  10. NMDGF 2023 Elk Hunter Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
  11. NMDGF 2022 Elk Hunter Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
  12. NMDGF 2021 Elk Hunter Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
  13. NMDGF 2026 NM Game Management Units, layer 0 boundary, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
  14. 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 (not open to this residency that year — no tags, no applicants). 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.

Report an error on this page

Every report is checked against the agency source before we change anything.

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 elk hunts