New Mexico Elk ELK-1-401 — ELK-1-401

Units 29, 30 — either sex — Any Legal — Oct. 10-14

What you may take
Units 29, 30 — either sex — Any Legal — Oct. 10-14
Weapon
Rifle
Where
29, 30
Season (2026)
Oct 10–14, 2026
Tags (2026)
1
for 29 first-choice applicants · nonresidents capped at 6%

Showing nonresident results (Standard class). Switch to resident · Standard Outfitter

Odds by point level — 2026 draw

Prior-draw probability for a first-choice nonresident applicant. 1 tags, 29 first-choice applicants. Source: 2026 Big Game Drawing Odds... · sheet1 row 681.

Points Your chance Applicants Drawn
0 3%

First-choice tags drawn ÷ first-choice applicants, as published. A dash means New Mexico Department of Game and Fish did not publish a count for that level. How we compute these.

What it costs (2026 nonresident fees)

Cash to apply
$867
Out of pocket if unsuccessful
$107
Total if drawn
$877
Refunded if unsuccessful
$760

At the 2026 odds, expected cost per hunt-year ranges from $3,872.98 (enough points to draw) to $3,872.98 (lowest published odds).

Nonresident draw application fee (per species, nonrefundable; included in the printed draw price) · paid at application $13 source
Nonresident Game-Hunting License (must be purchased, nonrefundable, before applying for any big-game draw) · paid at application $90 source
Habitat Management and Access Validation (HMAV), mandatory age 18+, added automatically with the Game-Hunting License · paid at application $4 source
Habitat Stamp (required to hunt on BLM and Forest Service land; buy by May 15 to be printed on the licence/tag) · paid if drawn $10 source
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 · paid at application, refundable $760 source

Next application window: closes Mar 18, 2027 (expected) · results ~April 22. Last cycle's schedule rolled forward — confirm when the agency publishes.

Point creep & years to draw

No points in this draw — every applicant has the same chance each year, so there is no cut to creep and nothing to build toward.

Seasons (2026)

Split 1: Oct 10–14, 2026 p. sheet1 row 681

As a lower choice

2nd choice
0%

Drawn at this choice ÷ applicants listing it at this choice, as published. Points do not help a lower choice.

3rd choice
0%

Drawn at this choice ÷ applicants listing it at this choice, as published. Points do not help a lower choice.

Year by year

The standard draw for nonresidents, one row per year.

Year Tags Applicants Applicants per tag Points needed Published odds Source
2026 1 29 29.0 <1% 2026 Big Game Drawing Odds... · sheet1 row 681
2025 1 11 11.0 1% 2025-26 Big-Game Drawing Odds... · sheet1 row 683
2024 1 19 19.0 1% 2024-25 Big-Game Drawing Odds... · sheet1 row 692
2023 1 19 19.0 <1% 2023 Big-Game Complete Drawing... · sheet1 row 691

Legal cartridges for elk in New Mexico

From the New Mexico hunting laws rules on file for a rifle. "Depends" means the rule turns on your specific load — check the state page.

.22-250 Remington
.223 Remington from $0.42/rd
.243 Winchester from $1.11/rd
.25-06 Remington
6.5 Creedmoor
6.5 Grendel
.270 Winchester from $0.16/rd
7mm-08 Remington
7mm Remington Magnum
.30-06 Springfield
.300 AAC Blackout from $0.56/rd
.300 Winchester Magnum from $1.25/rd
.30-30 Winchester
.308 Winchester
.338 Winchester Magnum
.350 Legend from $1.07/rd
.35 Whelen
.360 Buckhammer
.400 Legend
.444 Marlin
.450 Bushmaster from $2.00/rd
.45-70 Government from $1.97/rd
.50 Beowulf
Spot a data error on this page? Tell us.

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

How to read these numbers

Every percentage on this page is a prior-draw probability: the chance an applicant with that many points would have drawn in the draw year shown, computed from the agency's published results. It is not a forecast — quotas, applicant numbers, and point creep change every year. Every figure links to the agency document it came from. Where a state does not publish a number, we show a dash, never a zero. Hunts with fewer than five tags show counts instead of percentages. Fees show the fee year used. Read the methodology for the engine details.

Not an application service

This page is informational only. Draw rules, quotas, fees, and deadlines are set by the state agency and change by commission action — confirm everything on the agency's own site before you apply, and apply through the agency, not here. We disclaim all liability for reliance on this page.