New Mexico Elk — GMU 21B

New Mexico GMU 21B covers 1,632,258 acres and lies 16 miles north-west of Hatch and 28 miles south of Elephant Butte. 69% of it is public land, mostly BLM (44%) and state trust land (24%). In 2025, 281 people hunted elk here and took 150 — 39% of them killed something. The 2026 draw put up 2 tags here for 6 first-choice applicants.

Tags (2026):17 Nonresident share:capped at 6% Applicants:79 Hunter success (2025):39% Public land:69% Size:1,632,258 acres

Your chance of drawing here

Every elk license type on offer in GMU 21B, with the prior-draw chance for a first-choice nonresident applicant. Type your points in to see your own number.

Chances are from the 2026 draw (the most recent) for a first-choice nonresident. "Points needed" = the cut in the last draw.

Simple view Odds at every point level

ELK-1-323 Unit 21B — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 1-5 0 tags · 0 applicants · Standard

— Not open to nonresidents
ELK-1-323 Unit 21B — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 1-5 1 tags · 23 applicants · Outfitter

4% Long shot
ELK-1-324 Unit 21B — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 17-21 1 tags · 7 applicants · Standard

0% Long shot 0% as 2nd choice
ELK-1-324 Unit 21B — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 17-21 1 tags · 1 applicants · Outfitter

100% Undersubscribed 0% as 2nd choice
ELK-1-325 Unit 21B — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 24-28 2 tags · 6 applicants · Standard

0% Long shot 0% as 2nd choice
ELK-1-325 Unit 21B — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 24-28 2 tags · 0 applicants · Outfitter

100% No first-choice applicants 0% as 2nd choice
ELK-1-326 Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Nov. 21-25 0 tags · 0 applicants · Standard

— Not open to nonresidents
ELK-1-326 Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Nov. 21-25 0 tags · 0 applicants · Outfitter

— Not open to nonresidents
ELK-1-327 Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Nov. 28-Dec. 2 0 tags · 0 applicants · Standard

— Not open to nonresidents
ELK-1-327 Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Nov. 28-Dec. 2 0 tags · 0 applicants · Outfitter

— Not open to nonresidents
ELK-1-328 Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Dec. 5-9 0 tags · 0 applicants · Standard

— Not open to nonresidents
ELK-1-328 Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Dec. 5-9 0 tags · 0 applicants · Outfitter

— Not open to nonresidents
ELK-1-329 Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Dec. 12-16 0 tags · 0 applicants · Standard

— Not open to nonresidents
ELK-1-329 Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Dec. 12-16 0 tags · 0 applicants · Outfitter

— Not open to nonresidents
ELK-2-321 Unit 21B — either sex — Bow — Sept. 1-14 2 tags · 8 applicants · Standard

0% Long shot 11% as 2nd choice
ELK-2-321 Unit 21B — either sex — Bow — Sept. 1-14 2 tags · 5 applicants · Outfitter

20% Long shot 13% as 2nd choice
ELK-2-322 Unit 21B — either sex — Bow — Sept. 15-24 2 tags · 15 applicants · Standard

7% Long shot 14% as 2nd choice
ELK-2-322 Unit 21B — either sex — Bow — Sept. 15-24 2 tags · 8 applicants · Outfitter

0% Long shot 5% as 2nd choice
ELK-2-330 Unit 21B — mature bull — Bow — Dec. 19-23 1 tags · 6 applicants · Standard

0% Long shot 0% as 2nd choice
ELK-2-330 Unit 21B — mature bull — Bow — Dec. 19-23 1 tags · 0 applicants · Outfitter

100% No first-choice applicants

Hunt	Your odds	As 2nd choice	Points needed	Tags / applicants	License	Season
ELK-1-323 ↗ Unit 21B — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 1-5 Rifle	Not open to nonresidents	—	—	0 / 0	Standard	Oct 1–5, 2026
ELK-1-323 ↗ Unit 21B — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 1-5 Rifle	4% Long shot	—	—	1 / 23	Outfitter	Oct 1–5, 2026
ELK-1-324 ↗ Unit 21B — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 17-21 Rifle	0% Long shot	0%	—	1 / 7	Standard	Oct 17–21, 2026
ELK-1-324 ↗ Unit 21B — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 17-21 Rifle	100% Undersubscribed	0%	—	1 / 1 undersubscribed	Outfitter	Oct 17–21, 2026
ELK-1-325 ↗ Unit 21B — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 24-28 Rifle	0% Long shot	0%	—	2 / 6	Standard	Oct 24–28, 2026
ELK-1-325 ↗ Unit 21B — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 24-28 Rifle	100% No first-choice applicants	0%	—	2 / 0	Outfitter	Oct 24–28, 2026
ELK-1-326 ↗ Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Nov. 21-25 Rifle	Not open to nonresidents	—	—	0 / 0	Standard	Nov 21–25, 2026
ELK-1-326 ↗ Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Nov. 21-25 Rifle	Not open to nonresidents	—	—	0 / 0	Outfitter	Nov 21–25, 2026
ELK-1-327 ↗ Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Nov. 28-Dec. 2 Rifle	Not open to nonresidents	—	—	0 / 0	Standard	Nov 28 – Dec 2, 2026
ELK-1-327 ↗ Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Nov. 28-Dec. 2 Rifle	Not open to nonresidents	—	—	0 / 0	Outfitter	Nov 28 – Dec 2, 2026
ELK-1-328 ↗ Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Dec. 5-9 Rifle	Not open to nonresidents	—	—	0 / 0	Standard	Dec 5–9, 2026
ELK-1-328 ↗ Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Dec. 5-9 Rifle	Not open to nonresidents	—	—	0 / 0	Outfitter	Dec 5–9, 2026
ELK-1-329 ↗ Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Dec. 12-16 Rifle	Not open to nonresidents	—	—	0 / 0	Standard	Dec 12–16, 2026
ELK-1-329 ↗ Unit 21B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Dec. 12-16 Rifle	Not open to nonresidents	—	—	0 / 0	Outfitter	Dec 12–16, 2026
ELK-2-321 ↗ Unit 21B — either sex — Bow — Sept. 1-14 Archery	0% Long shot	11%	—	2 / 8	Standard	Sep 1–14, 2026
ELK-2-321 ↗ Unit 21B — either sex — Bow — Sept. 1-14 Archery	20% Long shot	13%	—	2 / 5	Outfitter	Sep 1–14, 2026
ELK-2-322 ↗ Unit 21B — either sex — Bow — Sept. 15-24 Archery	7% Long shot	14%	—	2 / 15	Standard	Sep 15–24, 2026
ELK-2-322 ↗ Unit 21B — either sex — Bow — Sept. 15-24 Archery	0% Long shot	5%	—	2 / 8	Outfitter	Sep 15–24, 2026
ELK-2-330 ↗ Unit 21B — mature bull — Bow — Dec. 19-23 Archery	0% Long shot	0%	—	1 / 6	Standard	Dec 19–23, 2026
ELK-2-330 ↗ Unit 21B — mature bull — Bow — Dec. 19-23 Archery	100% No first-choice applicants	—	—	1 / 0	Outfitter	Dec 19–23, 2026

What these columns mean

Your odds: the share of applicants at your point level who drew this tag in the 2026 draw. Not a forecast: quotas and demand move every year.
The badge: plain language for that number. Likely draw 75% or better · Real chance 40%+ · Long shot 15%+ · Point builder below that, so you are applying mainly to bank a point · Undersubscribed means fewer first-choice applicants than tags, so everyone who applied drew.
As 2nd choice: New Mexico lets you name more than one hunt on the application. Miss on your first choice and you go into the pot for whatever tags are left, alongside everyone else's second choices. Points never help a lower choice, so this number is the same whatever you have banked — it is usually worth naming a hunt that goes undersubscribed.
Points needed: the lowest point total that still got a tag in the 2026 draw, and how that cut has moved since the earliest draw we hold.
Tags / applicants: tags on offer and first-choice applicants for them, as the agency published them. Under five tags we print counts instead of a percentage, because one applicant either way swings it.

What it costs to apply (2026 nonresident fees)

License	Up front	Gone if you miss	If you draw
Standard license	$867	$107	$877
Outfitter license	$867	$107	$877

Application window: closes Mar 18, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.

The country

GMU 21B within New Mexico

GMU 21B and its neighbours

Zoomable USGS topo, aerial imagery and shaded relief, with the neighboring areas drawn on.

Boundaries are drawn for orientation only — the written boundary description in the regulations governs.

Who owns the ground

BLM 713,959 ac · 44%
State trust land 395,429 ac · 24%
State land 18,520 ac · 1%
Bureau of Reclamation 699 ac · 0%
National Forest 243 ac · 0%
Tribal 29 ac · 0%
Private or other non-public land 503,377 ac · 31%

Source: BLM_Surface_Management_2023 (BLM New Mexico State Office Surface Management Agency layer)

Nearby areas

How the hunting has gone

What New Mexico Department of Game and Fish publishes for this area after each season — harvest statistics for everyone who hunted it, not draw odds and not a forecast.