Arizona Unit 1: public land, hunts and harvest
Arizona's game management Unit 1 covers 844 square miles, and 91.1% of it is public land open to hunting, mostly national forest (measured from USGS PAD-US). AZGFD's 2026 hunt lists open 20 elk hunts, 2 deer hunts, 2 pronghorn hunts, 3 bighorn sheep hunts and 1 turkey hunt here. On the hunts held only in Unit 1, AZGFD's 2025 harvest survey counts 69 elk, 254 deer and 38 pronghorn taken.
Data updated October 2026. Hunts: AZGFD's 2026 booklets. Harvest: AZGFD harvest summaries to 2025. Land: USGS PAD-US 4.1. Boundary: AZGFD.
National forestState trust landAZGFD landTribal land (tribal permit)City, county and otherUnit 1Neighboring unitsLake or riverHighway
| AZGFD region | Region 1 (Pinetop) |
|---|---|
| Size | 844 square miles (540,414 acres) |
| Public land open to hunting | 91.1% (492,123 acres) |
| Elk hunts, 2026 | 20 hunts, 1,810 permits |
| Deer hunts, 2026 | 2 hunts, 560 permits |
| Pronghorn hunts, 2026 | 2 hunts, 62 permits |
| Bighorn sheep hunts, 2026 | 3 hunts, 4 permits |
| Turkey (fall) hunts, 2026 | 1 hunt, 500 permits |
| AZGFD wildlife areas | White Mountain Grasslands, Sipe White Mountain, Becker Lake, Luna Lake |
| Towns in and near it | Eagar, Vernon, Greer, Springerville, Pinetop-Lakeside and Show Low |
| Highways | US 180, US 191, AZ 261 and US 60 |
How much public land is in Unit 1?
91.1% of Unit 1 is public land open to hunting: 492,123 of 540,414 acres. The largest share is national forest, 410,826 acres or 76% of the unit.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Unit 1 |
|---|---|---|
| National forest | 410,826 | 76% |
| State trust land | 75,762 | 14% |
| AZGFD land | 5,535 | 1% |
| Tribal land (tribal permit) | 351 | 0.1% |
| City, county and other | 6 | under 0.1% |
Measured by FilledTag inside AZGFD's unit boundary 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. Arizona State Land Department rules let a licensed hunter on state trust land while hunting; other uses need its recreation permit. National forest: Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest.
What can you hunt in Unit 1 in 2026?
Draw hunts that include Unit 1, by species. A hunt may cover other units too; the count of hunts held only here is in its own column.
| Species | Hunts | Only in Unit 1 | Permits | Earliest season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk | 20 | 10 | 1,810 | Jul 31 to Aug 6 (hunt 3169) |
| Deer | 2 | 2 | 560 | Aug 21 to Sep 10 (hunt 1199) |
| Pronghorn | 2 | 2 | 62 | Aug 21 to Sep 3 (hunt 2038) |
| Bighorn sheep | 3 | 0 | 4 | Oct 1 to Oct 31 (hunt 6502) |
| Turkey (fall) | 1 | 1 | 500 | Oct 2 to Oct 8 (hunt 4501) |
Source: AZGFD 2026 Pronghorn and Elk Hunt Draw Information (elk and pronghorn) and AZGFD 2026-27 Arizona Hunting Regulations (deer, bighorn sheep, fall javelina and fall turkey).
Bighorn sheep, 2026: hunt 6501 (Nov 1 to Nov 30, 2 permits, with 27), hunt 6502 (Oct 1 to Oct 31, 1 permit, with 2B) and hunt 6503 (Nov 1 to Nov 30, 1 permit, with 2B).
How many elk, deer and pronghorn are taken in Unit 1?
| Species | Year | Hunts only in Unit 1 | Hunters | Taken | Shared hunts that included it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk | 2025 | 9 | 129 | 69 | 8 |
| Deer | 2025 | 2 | 426 | 254 | 0 |
| Pronghorn | 2025 | 2 | 58 | 38 | 0 |
Sums of AZGFD's per-hunt figures for the hunts held only in Unit 1. Source: AZGFD 2025 Elk Harvest Summary, AZGFD 2025 Deer Harvest Summary, AZGFD 2025 Pronghorn Harvest Summary. Each hunt, year by year, is on the elk page, deer page and pronghorn page.
Bighorn sheep, 2025: hunt 6501 (01/27 Black River), 2 hunters, 2 rams taken, hunt 6502 (01/02B), 1 hunter, 1 ram taken and hunt 6503 (01/02B), 1 hunter, 1 ram taken (AZGFD 2025 Bighorn Sheep Harvest Summary).
Over-the-counter archery deer, 2024: AZGFD estimates 590 archers hunted Unit 1 for 2,160 days and took 76 deer (mule deer bucks 72, whitetail bucks 4) (AZGFD 2024 Over-the-Counter Archery Deer Harvest Summary).
What did AZGFD's 2025 surveys count in Unit 1?
Elk: 1,776 classified in 55 groups, 20 bulls and 6 young per 100 cows. Mule deer: 191 classified in 33 groups, 14 bucks and 46 young per 100 does. Pronghorn: 186 classified in 24 groups, 46 bucks and 38 young per 100 does.
Source: AZGFD 2025 Elk Survey Summary, AZGFD 2025 Mule Deer Survey Summary, AZGFD 2025 Pronghorn Survey Summary.
Which AZGFD wildlife areas are in Unit 1?
White Mountain Grasslands Wildlife Area (2,860 acres inside the unit), Sipe White Mountain Wildlife Area (1,365 acres inside the unit), Becker Lake Wildlife Area (536 acres inside the unit, posted parts closed to hunting) and Luna Lake Wildlife Area (116 acres inside the unit).
How do you get to Unit 1?
Highways through the unit: US 180 (about 27 miles inside it), US 191 (about 25 miles inside it), AZ 261 (about 22 miles inside it), US 60 (about 16 miles inside it) and AZ 273 (about 11 miles inside it). Towns and places inside: Eagar, Vernon, Greer and Nutrioso. Nearby towns: Springerville (on the line), Pinetop-Lakeside (10 miles), Show Low (17 miles) and St. Johns (19 miles).
Which units border Unit 1?
Unit 1 touches 4 other units. Their size, public land and the number of 2026 draw hunts that include each:
| Unit | Square miles | Public land | Elk hunts | Deer hunts | Pronghorn hunts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit 2B | 824 | 56.7% | 13 | 1 | 1 |
| Unit 2C | 315 | 59.2% | 8 | 1 | 1 |
| Unit 3B | 579 | 44.5% | 13 | 2 | 2 |
| Unit 27 | 1,353 | 94.6% | 10 | 6 |
Questions hunters ask
How much public land is in Arizona Unit 1?
91.1% of Unit 1 is public land open to hunting, 492,123 of its 540,414 acres; the largest share is national forest at 410,826 acres. 351 acres are tribal land, which needs the tribe's own permit.
What can you hunt in Unit 1 in 2026?
AZGFD's 2026 draw lists 20 elk hunts (1,810 permits), 2 deer hunts (560 permits), 2 pronghorn hunts (62 permits), 3 bighorn sheep hunts (4 permits) and 1 turkey (fall) hunt (500 permits) that include Unit 1. Over-the-counter seasons are set statewide in AZGFD's regulations.
What is the closest town to Unit 1?
Eagar, Vernon and Greer are inside the unit. Just outside: Springerville (on the line), Pinetop-Lakeside (10 miles) and Show Low (17 miles).
Which AZGFD region is Unit 1 in?
Region 1, run from the Pinetop office. It borders Unit 2B, Unit 2C, Unit 3B and Unit 27.
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Where these numbers come from
- Hunts and permits: AZGFD's 2026 Pronghorn and Elk booklet and 2026-27 regulations.
- Harvest: AZGFD harvest summaries (AZGFD harvest reporting).
- Public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee managers). Unit boundary: AZGFD game management unit boundaries.
- Highways and towns: U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024 primary and secondary roads; U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer, places.
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.