New Mexico Elk · GMU 23
New Mexico GMU 23 spans 1,874,149 acres, centered 18 miles west of Silver City. 74% of it is public land, mostly state trust land (33%) and national forest (24%). In 2025, 409 people hunted elk here and took 66, a 23% success rate. Its most applied-for hunt, ELK-1-335, put up 5 tags (all residencies) in the 2026 draw for 79 nonresident first-choice applicants, 1 of whom drew.
No points in this draw. Every applicant has the same chance each year.
16 licenses · NR capped at 6%
first choice, NR
2025, all licenses
44% State
1,874,149 acres
Boundaries are drawn for orientation only. The written boundary description in the regulations governs.
Best Bets
Ranked by your odds times how often that license type's hunters filled their tag in 2025. Nonresident, first choice, 2026 draw; licenses with at least 10 tags that anyone can buy.
Every License in GMU 23
| What | Season | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| ELK-1-333 Standard · youth | Unit 23 youth only — either sex — Any Legal - Youth — Oct. 10-14 | 0% (small sample) | |
| ELK-1-333 Outfitter · youth | Unit 23 youth only — either sex — Any Legal - Youth — Oct. 10-14 | 3% (small sample) | |
| ELK-1-335 Standard | Unit 23 — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 24-28 | 1% | |
| ELK-1-335 Outfitter | Unit 23 — mature bull — Any Legal — Oct. 24-28 | 0% | |
| ELK-1-336 Standard | Unit 23 — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Dec. 5-9 | not open | |
| ELK-1-336 Outfitter | Unit 23 — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Dec. 5-9 | 100% (small sample) | |
| ELK-1-338 Standard | Unit 23: south of NM 78 — antlerless — Any Legal - South — Dec. 19-27 | not open | |
| ELK-1-338 Outfitter | Unit 23: south of NM 78 — antlerless — Any Legal - South — Dec. 19-27 | not open | |
| ELK-2-331 Standard | Unit 23 — either sex — Bow — Sept. 1-14 | 2% | |
| ELK-2-331 Outfitter | Unit 23 — either sex — Bow — Sept. 1-14 | 100% | |
| ELK-2-332 Standard | Unit 23 — either sex — Bow — Sept. 15-24 | 4% | |
| ELK-2-332 Outfitter | Unit 23 — either sex — Bow — Sept. 15-24 | 0% | |
| ELK-2-337 Standard | Unit 23 — mature bull — Bow — Dec. 19-23 | 20% (small sample) | |
| ELK-2-337 Outfitter | Unit 23 — mature bull — Bow — Dec. 19-23 | 100% (small sample) | |
| ELK-3-334 Standard | Unit 23 — mature bull — Muzzle — Oct. 17-21 | 8% | |
| ELK-3-334 Outfitter | Unit 23 — mature bull — Muzzle — Oct. 17-21 | 22% |
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 $877 ($867 to apply) · Outfitter $877 ($867 to apply). Closes Mar 17, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.
Harvest
| Year | Hunters | Elk | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 409 | 66 | 23% |
| 2024 | 418 | 129 | 35% |
| 2023 | 423 | 122 | 44% |
| 2022 | 400 | 123 | 29% |
| 2021 | 395 | 100 | 24% |
| 2025 by License | Hunters | Elk | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reg · rifle · 75 licenses | 65 | 9 | 14% |
| Reg · rifle · 20 licenses (hunt 1 of 2) | 18 | 4 | 31% |
| Reg · rifle · 20 licenses (hunt 2 of 2) | 16 | 1 | 8% |
| Reg · archery · 15 licenses | 14 | 4 | 50% |
| Reg · archery · 10 licenses | 9 | 2 | 33% |
| Reg · muzzleloader | 13 | 5 | 33% |
| Reg · rifle · 15 licenses | 14 | 4 | 29% |
2025 split: rifle 18 (62%) from 113 hunters, 16%, archery 6 (21%) from 23 hunters, 26%, muzzleloader 5 (17%) from 13 hunters, 38%
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 Elk Harvest Report; NMDGF 2024-2025 Elk Harvest Report; NMDGF 2023 Elk Hunter Harvest Report.
The Ground
| State trust land | 612,097 ac | 33% |
| National Forest | 449,895 ac | 24% |
| BLM | 329,239 ac | 18% |
| Department of Defense | 2,140 ac | <1% |
| State land | 1,964 ac | <1% |
| Private or other non-public land | 478,811 ac | 26% |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Land Management, New Mexico State Office 2023 BLM_Surface_Management_2023.
What the Agency Says About the Area
GMU 23: Beginning at the intersection of US 180 and the NM/AZ state line west of Luna, then south along the state line to its intersection with US 70, then southeast along US 70 to its junction with US 180 at Deming: then northwest along US 180 to its junction with the NM/AZ state line. Burro Mountain Hunt Area: The Big Burro Mountain portion of the Gila National Forest in GMU 23,...
▸ 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 Elk Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- NMDGF 2024-2025 Elk Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- NMDGF 2023 Elk Hunter Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- NMDGF 2022 Elk Hunter Harvest Report harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- NMDGF 2021 Elk Hunter 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 elk hunts