Unit 8 deer hunting: 2026 hunts, harvest and draw
AZGFD's 2026 regulations list 3 deer hunts open in Unit 8, with 425 permits in all (one of them shared with other units). The largest is hunt 1011, antlered mule deer, October 30 to November 5, with 350 permits. On the 3 hunts held only in Unit 8 in 2025, AZGFD's harvest survey counts 299 hunters and 119 deer taken; AZGFD lists 113 as mule deer and 4 as whitetail.
Data updated October 2026. Hunts: AZGFD's 2026 2026-27 regulations. Harvest: AZGFD harvest summaries, 2021 to 2025. Draw: AZGFD's 2025 report.
National forestState trust landAZGFD landMilitary (closed or by permit)City, county and otherUnit 8Neighboring unitsLake or riverHighway
| Unit | Unit 8 |
|---|---|
| AZGFD region | Region 2, Flagstaff |
| Deer hunts, 2026 | 3 (425 permits) |
| Hunt types | general |
| Earliest season | October 30 to November 5 (hunt 1011) |
| Deer taken on its own hunts, 2025 | 119 by 299 hunters |
| 2025 draw, first-choice applicants | 1,931 for 375 permits issued |
| Public land open to hunting | 94.9%, mostly national forest |
What deer hunts does Unit 8 have in 2026?
3 hunts: 3 general. 2 are held only in Unit 8. Permits are AZGFD's numbers for the whole hunt.
| Hunt | Type | Season, 2026 | Legal animal | Permits | Open area |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1011 | General | Oct 30 to Nov 5 | Antlered mule deer | 350 | 8 |
| 1077 | General | Dec 11 to Dec 31 | Antlered whitetail deer | 25 | 6B (except Camp Navajo) and 8 |
| 1078 | General | Nov 6 to Nov 12 | Antlered whitetail deer | 50 | 8 |
Source: AZGFD 2026-27 Arizona Hunting Regulations, PDF pages 29 and 30. Note numbers refer to AZGFD's printed notes, which set boundaries and restrictions; read them before you apply.
How many deer are harvested in Unit 8?
Year by year, the hunts held only in Unit 8. Hunter and harvest totals are sums of AZGFD's figures for those hunts.
| Year | Hunts | Hunters | Hunter days | Mule deer | Whitetail | Deer taken | Deer per 100 hunters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 3 | 299 | 1,248 | 113 | 4 | 119 | 40 |
| 2024 | 2 | 271 | 1,070 | 119 | 9 | 128 | 47 |
| 2023 | 2 | 290 | 1,175 | 98 | 13 | 111 | 38 |
| 2022 | 2 | 294 | 1,294 | 57 | 11 | 68 | 23 |
| 2021 | 3 | 518 | 2,377 | 93 | 9 | 102 | 20 |
Deer per 100 hunters is worked out from AZGFD's own hunter and harvest figures for the same hunts.
Every hunt that included Unit 8, as AZGFD reported it:
| Hunt | Type | Area | Permits issued | Hunters | Hunter days | Mule deer bucks | Mule deer antlerless | Whitetail bucks | Whitetail antlerless | Harvest | Success (AZGFD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1012 | General | 8 | 248 | 212 | 894 | 93 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 95 | 45% |
| 1077 | General | 6B and 8 | 24 | 20 | 133 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 40% |
| 1078 | General | 8 | 47 | 45 | 202 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 9% |
| 1151 | Youth only | 8 | 50 | 42 | 152 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 48% |
| Hunt | Type | Area | Permits issued | Hunters | Hunter days | Mule deer bucks | Mule deer antlerless | Whitetail bucks | Whitetail antlerless | Harvest | Success (AZGFD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1011 | General | 8 | 295 | 229 | 853 | 119 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 119 | 52% |
| 1078 | General | 6B & 8 | 25 | 18 | 178 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 13 | 72% |
| 1079 | General | 8 | 47 | 42 | 217 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 21% |
Earlier years: 2023, 2022, 2021
| Hunt | Type | Area | Permits issued | Hunters | Hunter days | Mule deer bucks | Mule deer antlerless | Whitetail bucks | Whitetail antlerless | Harvest | Success (AZGFD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1011 | General | 8 | 300 | 255 | 1,018 | 98 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 98 | 38% |
| 1079 | General | 8 | 50 | 35 | 157 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 13 | 37% |
| Hunt | Type | Area | Permits issued | Hunters | Hunter days | Mule deer bucks | Mule deer antlerless | Whitetail bucks | Whitetail antlerless | Harvest | Success (AZGFD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1011 | General | 8 | 298 | 253 | 1,012 | 57 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 57 | 23% |
| 1078 | General | 6B and 8 | 25 | 19 | 109 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 32% |
| 1079 | General | 8 | 47 | 41 | 282 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 27% |
| Hunt | Type | Area | Permits issued | Hunters | Hunter days | Mule deer bucks | Mule deer antlerless | Whitetail bucks | Whitetail antlerless | Harvest | Success (AZGFD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1010 | General | 8 | 495 | 444 | 2,025 | 86 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 86 | 19% |
| 1011 | General | 8 | 10 | 10 | 58 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 67% |
| 1079 | General | 6B/8 | 24 | 21 | 138 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 38% |
| 1080 | General | 8 | 73 | 64 | 294 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 13% |
Source: AZGFD 2025 Deer Harvest Summary, AZGFD 2024 Deer Harvest Summary, AZGFD 2023 Deer Harvest Summary, AZGFD 2022 Deer Harvest Summary, AZGFD 2021 Deer Harvest Summary. Success is AZGFD's printed figure, and AZGFD's parts (bulls, cows, species) do not always add up to its harvest total; both are shown as printed. Hunt numbers change from year to year; the area column says where each hunt was. Rows AZGFD printed with a blank middle cell are left out rather than guessed.
How many hunters applied in the 2025 draw?
AZGFD's 2025 draw report lists 4 deer hunts that included Unit 8: 1,931 first-choice applications for 375 permits issued. These are 2025 counts, not a forecast.
| Hunt, 2025 | Area | Hunt type | Season | First-choice applicants | Second-choice applicants | Permits issued |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1012 | 8 | Antlered mule deer | 10/31 to 11/6 | 1,551 | 1,547 | 250 |
| 1077 | 06B/08 | Antlered whitetail | 12/12 to 12/31 | 105 | 114 | 25 |
| 1078 | 8 | Antlered whitetail | 10/24 to 11/2 | 74 | 105 | 50 |
| 1151 | 8 | Any antlered deer | 10/10 to 10/16 | 201 | 221 | 50 |
Source: AZGFD 2025 Deer draw report. AZGFD's report also prints a percentage column whose basis it does not state, so it is not copied here.
How much public land is in Unit 8?
94.9% of Unit 8 is public land open to hunting: 391,336 of 412,419 acres, the largest share national forest (384,776 acres). The Unit 8 page has the full land table, towns and roads.
Measured by FilledTag inside AZGFD's unit boundaries from USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee managers). Public land open to hunting here means national forest, BLM, state trust land, AZGFD land, national wildlife refuges, national recreation areas and Bureau of Reclamation land. Tribal land, military land and national parks are counted on their own rows and left out of that figure.
Questions hunters ask
How many deer permits does Unit 8 have in 2026?
425 permits across 3 hunts in AZGFD's 2026 regulations. The largest is hunt 1011 (antlered mule deer). One of these hunts also covers Unit 6B.
When is deer season in Unit 8 in 2026?
The first deer hunt open here starts October 30 (hunt 1011, general) and the last ends December 31. Each hunt's dates are in the table on this page.
How many deer were harvested in Unit 8 in 2025?
AZGFD's 2025 harvest survey counts 119 deer taken by 299 hunters on the 3 hunts held only in Unit 8, against 128 in 2024. Hunts shared with other units are counted in AZGFD's table for each hunt, not added here.
How many hunters applied for Unit 8 deer in 2025?
AZGFD's 2025 draw report counts 1,931 first-choice applications for the 4 deer hunts that included Unit 8, and 375 permits issued. AZGFD publishes no forecast for 2026; these are 2025 counts.
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Where these numbers come from
- Hunts, seasons, legal animals and permits: AZGFD 2026-27 Arizona Hunting Regulations.
- Harvest, hunters and days: AZGFD 2025 Deer Harvest Summary, AZGFD 2024 Deer Harvest Summary, AZGFD 2023 Deer Harvest Summary, AZGFD 2022 Deer Harvest Summary, AZGFD 2021 Deer Harvest Summary.
- Draw applicants and permits: AZGFD 2025 Deer draw report.
- Unit boundaries: AZGFD game management unit boundaries. Public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee managers).
FilledTag is not part of the Arizona Game and Fish Department. Numbers are copied from AZGFD's published reports or measured from AZGFD and USGS maps; nothing here is estimated by FilledTag. AZGFD's regulations are the final word on every rule.