Arizona Unit 23: public land, hunts and harvest
Arizona's game management Unit 23 covers 1,185 square miles, and 98.1% of it is public land open to hunting, mostly national forest (measured from USGS PAD-US). AZGFD's 2026 hunt lists open 10 elk hunts, 5 deer hunts, 1 bighorn sheep hunt and 1 turkey hunt here. On the hunts held only in Unit 23, AZGFD's 2025 harvest survey counts 298 elk and 226 deer 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 forestAZGFD landTribal land (tribal permit)Unit 23Neighboring unitsLake or riverHighway
| AZGFD region | Region 6 (Mesa) |
|---|---|
| Size | 1,185 square miles (758,423 acres) |
| Public land open to hunting | 98.1% (743,832 acres) |
| Elk hunts, 2026 | 10 hunts, 785 permits |
| Deer hunts, 2026 | 5 hunts, 800 permits |
| Bighorn sheep hunts, 2026 | 1 hunt, 2 permits |
| Turkey (fall) hunts, 2026 | 1 hunt, 325 permits |
| AZGFD wildlife areas | Roosevelt Lake |
| Towns in and near it | Young, Christopher Creek, Hunter Creek, Star Valley, Payson and Miami |
| Highways | AZ 260 and AZ 288 |
How much public land is in Unit 23?
98.1% of Unit 23 is public land open to hunting: 743,832 of 758,423 acres. The largest share is national forest, 743,728 acres or 98.1% of the unit.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Unit 23 |
|---|---|---|
| National forest | 743,728 | 98.1% |
| Tribal land (tribal permit) | 193 | under 0.1% |
| AZGFD land | 104 | 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. National forest: Tonto National Forest.
What can you hunt in Unit 23 in 2026?
Draw hunts that include Unit 23, 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 23 | Permits | Earliest season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk | 10 | 10 | 785 | Sep 11 to Sep 24 (hunt 3148) |
| Deer | 5 | 5 | 800 | Oct 9 to Oct 15 (hunt 1161) |
| Bighorn sheep | 1 | 0 | 2 | Dec 1 to Dec 31 (hunt 6507) |
| Turkey (fall) | 1 | 1 | 325 | Oct 2 to Oct 8 (hunt 4511) |
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 6507 (Dec 1 to Dec 31, 2 permits, with 24A).
How many elk, deer and pronghorn are taken in Unit 23?
| Species | Year | Hunts only in Unit 23 | Hunters | Taken | Shared hunts that included it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk | 2025 | 10 | 645 | 298 | 0 |
| Deer | 2025 | 5 | 733 | 226 | 0 |
Sums of AZGFD's per-hunt figures for the hunts held only in Unit 23. Source: AZGFD 2025 Elk Harvest Summary, AZGFD 2025 Deer Harvest Summary. Each hunt, year by year, is on the elk page and deer page.
Bighorn sheep, 2025: hunt 6507 (23/24A), 2 hunters, 2 rams taken (AZGFD 2025 Bighorn Sheep Harvest Summary).
Over-the-counter archery deer, 2024: AZGFD estimates 946 archers hunted Unit 23 for 4,608 days and took 63 deer (mule deer bucks 28, whitetail bucks 35) (AZGFD 2024 Over-the-Counter Archery Deer Harvest Summary).
What did AZGFD's 2025 surveys count in Unit 23?
Elk: 169 classified in 15 groups, 17 bulls and 9 young per 100 cows. Mule deer: 111 classified in 27 groups, 23 bucks and 16 young per 100 does. White-tailed deer: 80 classified in 40 groups, 36 bucks and 24 young per 100 does.
Source: AZGFD 2025 Elk Survey Summary, AZGFD 2025 Mule Deer Survey Summary, AZGFD 2025 White-tailed Deer Survey Summary.
Which AZGFD wildlife areas are in Unit 23?
Roosevelt Lake Wildlife Area (17,592 acres inside the unit).
How do you get to Unit 23?
Highways through the unit: AZ 260 (about 13 miles inside it) and AZ 288 (about 7 miles inside it). Towns and places inside: Young, Christopher Creek, Hunter Creek, Haigler Creek, Kohls Ranch and Rock House. Nearby towns: Star Valley (5 miles), Payson (9 miles), Miami (16 miles) and Globe (17 miles).
Which units border Unit 23?
Unit 23 touches 7 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 3C | 555 | 82.3% | 12 | 3 | 1 |
| Unit 4A | 754 | 62.7% | 7 | 1 | 2 |
| Unit 4B | 1,335 | 38.9% | 7 | 1 | 2 |
| Unit 5A | 692 | 68.5% | 9 | 2 | 2 |
| Unit 22 | 1,574 | 95.5% | 13 | 6 | |
| Unit 24A | 812 | 82.7% | 2 | 5 | |
| Unit 24B | 779 | 94.3% | 5 |
Questions hunters ask
How much public land is in Arizona Unit 23?
98.1% of Unit 23 is public land open to hunting, 743,832 of its 758,423 acres; the largest share is national forest at 743,728 acres. 193 acres are tribal land, which needs the tribe's own permit.
What can you hunt in Unit 23 in 2026?
AZGFD's 2026 draw lists 10 elk hunts (785 permits), 5 deer hunts (800 permits), 1 bighorn sheep hunt (2 permits) and 1 turkey (fall) hunt (325 permits) that include Unit 23. Over-the-counter seasons are set statewide in AZGFD's regulations.
What is the closest town to Unit 23?
Young, Christopher Creek and Hunter Creek are inside the unit. Just outside: Star Valley (5 miles), Payson (9 miles) and Miami (16 miles).
Which AZGFD region is Unit 23 in?
Region 6, run from the Mesa office. It borders Unit 3C, Unit 4A, Unit 4B, Unit 5A, Unit 22, Unit 24A and Unit 24B.
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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.
Arizona hunting Region 6 Unit 3C Unit 4A Unit 4B Unit 5A Unit 22 Unit 24A Unit 24B