New Mexico Elk · GMU 6B
New Mexico GMU 6B covers 88,794 acres and lies 26 miles west of Española and 35 miles north-west of Santa Fe. 100% of it is public land, mostly national park (100%). In 2025, 779 people hunted elk here and took 251, a 32% success rate (sum of published weapon rows). Its most applied-for hunt, ELK-1-225, put up 1 tag (all residencies) in the 2026 draw for 498 nonresident first-choice applicants, 1 of whom drew.
No points in this draw. Every applicant has the same chance each year.
30 licenses · NR capped at 6%
first choice, NR
2025, all licenses
100% National Park Service
88,794 acres
Boundaries are drawn for orientation only. The written boundary description in the regulations governs.
Every License in GMU 6B
| What | Season | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| ELK-1-225 Standard | Unit 6B — either sex — Any Legal — Oct. 17-21 | <1% (small sample) | |
| ELK-1-225 Outfitter | Unit 6B — either sex — Any Legal — Oct. 17-21 | <1% (small sample) | |
| ELK-1-226 Standard | Unit 6B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Oct. 17-21 | not open | |
| ELK-1-226 Outfitter | Unit 6B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Oct. 17-21 | 100% (small sample) | |
| ELK-1-227 Standard | Unit 6B — either sex — Any Legal — Oct. 24-28 | <1% (small sample) | |
| ELK-1-227 Outfitter | Unit 6B — either sex — Any Legal — Oct. 24-28 | 2% (small sample) | |
| ELK-1-228 Standard | Unit 6B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Oct. 24-28 | not open | |
| ELK-1-228 Outfitter | Unit 6B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Oct. 24-28 | not open | |
| ELK-1-229 Standard · youth | Unit 6B youth only — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Oct. 31-Nov.4 | not open | |
| ELK-1-229 Outfitter · youth | Unit 6B youth only — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Oct. 31-Nov.4 | 100% (small sample) | |
| ELK-1-230 Standard | Unit 6B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Nov. 7-11 | not open | |
| ELK-1-230 Outfitter | Unit 6B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Nov. 7-11 | 100% (small sample) | |
| ELK-1-231 Standard | Unit 6B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Nov. 21-25 | not open | |
| ELK-1-231 Outfitter | Unit 6B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Nov. 21-25 | not open | |
| ELK-1-232 Standard · youth | Unit 6B youth only — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Nov. 28-Dec. 2 | not open | |
| ELK-1-232 Outfitter · youth | Unit 6B youth only — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Nov. 28-Dec. 2 | not open | |
| ELK-1-233 Standard | Unit 6B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Dec. 5-9 | not open | |
| ELK-1-233 Outfitter | Unit 6B — antlerless — Any Legal - NM — Dec. 5-9 | 100% (small sample) | |
| ELK-2-219 Standard | Unit 6B — either sex — Bow — Sept. 1-14 | <1% (small sample) | |
| ELK-2-219 Outfitter | Unit 6B — either sex — Bow — Sept. 1-14 | 2% (small sample) | |
| ELK-2-220 Standard | Unit 6B — antlerless — Bow - NM Resident — Sept. 1-14 | not open | |
| ELK-2-220 Outfitter | Unit 6B — antlerless — Bow - NM Resident — Sept. 1-14 | not open | |
| ELK-2-221 Standard | Unit 6B — either sex — Bow — Sept. 15-24 | <1% (small sample) | |
| ELK-2-221 Outfitter | Unit 6B — either sex — Bow — Sept. 15-24 | 1% (small sample) | |
| ELK-2-222 Standard | Unit 6B — antlerless — Bow - NM Resident — Sept. 15-24 | not open | |
| ELK-2-222 Outfitter | Unit 6B — antlerless — Bow - NM Resident — Sept. 15-24 | 33% (small sample) | |
| ELK-3-223 Standard | Unit 6B — either sex — Muzzle — Oct. 10-14 | 0% (small sample) | |
| ELK-3-223 Outfitter | Unit 6B — either sex — Muzzle — Oct. 10-14 | 1% (small sample) | |
| ELK-3-224 Standard | Unit 6B — antlerless — Muzzle - NM — Oct. 10-14 | not open | |
| ELK-3-224 Outfitter | Unit 6B — antlerless — Muzzle - NM — Oct. 10-14 | 100% (small sample) |
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 (summed) | 779 | 251 | 32% |
| 2024 (summed) | 746 | 221 | 30% |
| 2023 (summed) | 777 | 263 | 34% |
| 2022 (summed) | 736 | 255 | 35% |
| 2021 (summed) | 728 | 251 | 34% |
| 2025 by License | Hunters | Elk | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reg · rifle · 20 licenses | 18 | 9 | 50% |
| Youth | 20 | 14 | 74% |
| Reg · rifle · 15 licenses | 13 | 6 | 45% |
| Reg · rifle · 35 licenses (hunt 3 of 5) | 31 | 16 | 45% |
| Reg · rifle · 35 licenses (hunt 1 of 5) | 33 | 18 | 53% |
| Reg · rifle · 35 licenses (hunt 4 of 5) | 31 | 16 | 58% |
| Reg · rifle · 35 licenses (hunt 5 of 5) | 31 | 18 | 53% |
| Reg · rifle · 35 licenses (hunt 2 of 5) | 33 | 19 | 55% |
| Reg · archery · 150 licenses | 143 | 19 | 14% |
| Reg · archery · 105 licenses | 95 | 11 | 12% |
| Reg · muzzleloader | 146 | 34 | 23% |
| Reg · rifle · 105 licenses (hunt 1 of 2) | 96 | 38 | 41% |
| Reg · rifle · 105 licenses (hunt 2 of 2) | 89 | 33 | 33% |
2025 split: rifle 187 (75%) from 395 hunters, 47%, archery 30 (12%) from 238 hunters, 13%, muzzleloader 34 (14%) from 146 hunters, 23%
What New Mexico Department of Game and Fish publishes after each season, for everyone who hunted the area: harvest statistics, not draw odds. New Mexico Department of Game and Fish publishes no whole-GMU line for 2025; a year's total is the sum of published weapon rows, added only where the lines do not overlap. Source: NMDGF 2025-2026 Elk Harvest Report; NMDGF 2024-2025 Elk Harvest Report; NMDGF 2023 Elk Hunter Harvest Report.
The Ground
| National Park Service | 88,744 ac | 100% |
| National Forest | 10 ac | <1% |
| Tribal | 0 ac | <1% |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Land Management, New Mexico State Office 2023 BLM_Surface_Management_2023.
What the Agency Says About the Area
GMU 6B: All lands within the fenced and/or posted boundary of the Valles Caldera National Preserve as fenced and/or posted by the US Forest Service.
▸ 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