Arizona Unit 2A: public land, hunts and harvest
Arizona's game management Unit 2A covers 1,423 square miles, and 29.8% of it is public land open to hunting, mostly state trust land (measured from USGS PAD-US). AZGFD's 2026 hunt lists open 6 elk hunts, 1 deer hunt and 1 pronghorn hunt here. On the hunts held only in Unit 2A, AZGFD's 2025 harvest survey counts 10 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.
BLMState trust landAZGFD landNational park or monument (no hunting)Tribal land (tribal permit)City, county and otherUnit 2ANeighboring unitsLake or riverHighway
| AZGFD region | Region 1 (Pinetop) |
|---|---|
| Size | 1,423 square miles (910,988 acres) |
| Public land open to hunting | 29.8% (271,363 acres) |
| Elk hunts, 2026 | 6 hunts, 260 permits |
| Deer hunts, 2026 | 1 hunt, 40 permits |
| Pronghorn hunts, 2026 | 1 hunt, 15 permits |
| Towns in and near it | Sun Valley, St. Johns and Holbrook |
| Highways | I-40, US 180 and AZ 77 |
How much public land is in Unit 2A?
29.8% of Unit 2A is public land open to hunting: 271,363 of 910,988 acres. The largest share is state trust land, 206,097 acres or 22.6% of the unit.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Unit 2A |
|---|---|---|
| State trust land | 206,097 | 22.6% |
| National park or monument (no hunting) | 147,711 | 16.2% |
| BLM | 65,034 | 7.1% |
| Tribal land (tribal permit) | 17,198 | 1.9% |
| AZGFD land | 232 | under 0.1% |
| City, county and other | 116 | 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.
What can you hunt in Unit 2A in 2026?
Draw hunts that include Unit 2A, 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 2A | Permits | Earliest season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk | 6 | 0 | 260 | Sep 11 to Sep 20 (hunt 3077) |
| Deer | 1 | 0 | 40 | Oct 23 to Nov 1 (hunt 1002) |
| Pronghorn | 1 | 1 | 15 | Sep 4 to Sep 13 (hunt 2002) |
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).
How many elk, deer and pronghorn are taken in Unit 2A?
| Species | Year | Hunts only in Unit 2A | Hunters | Taken | Shared hunts that included it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk | 2025 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Deer | 2025 | 0 | 1 | ||
| Pronghorn | 2025 | 1 | 13 | 10 | 0 |
Sums of AZGFD's per-hunt figures for the hunts held only in Unit 2A. 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.
Over-the-counter archery deer, 2024: AZGFD estimates 13 archers hunted Unit 2A for 67 days and took 1 deer (mule deer bucks 1, whitetail bucks 0) (AZGFD 2024 Over-the-Counter Archery Deer Harvest Summary).
What did AZGFD's 2025 surveys count in Unit 2A?
Pronghorn: 138 classified in 23 groups, 33 bucks and 19 young per 100 does.
Source: AZGFD 2025 Pronghorn Survey Summary.
How do you get to Unit 2A?
Highways through the unit: I-40 (about 35 miles inside it), US 180 (about 25 miles inside it) and AZ 77 (about 11 miles inside it). Towns and places inside: Sun Valley. Nearby towns: St. Johns (on the line) and Holbrook (on the line).
Which units border Unit 2A?
Unit 2A touches 5 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 3A | 773 | 29.6% | 7 | 3 | 2 |
| Unit 3B | 579 | 44.5% | 13 | 2 | 2 |
| Unit 4B | 1,335 | 38.9% | 7 | 1 | 2 |
Questions hunters ask
How much public land is in Arizona Unit 2A?
29.8% of Unit 2A is public land open to hunting, 271,363 of its 910,988 acres; the largest share is state trust land at 206,097 acres. 17,198 acres are tribal land, which needs the tribe's own permit.
What can you hunt in Unit 2A in 2026?
AZGFD's 2026 draw lists 6 elk hunts (260 permits), 1 deer hunt (40 permits) and 1 pronghorn hunt (15 permits) that include Unit 2A. Over-the-counter seasons are set statewide in AZGFD's regulations.
What is the closest town to Unit 2A?
Sun Valley is inside the unit. Just outside: St. Johns (on the line) and Holbrook (on the line).
Which AZGFD region is Unit 2A in?
Region 1, run from the Pinetop office. It borders Unit 2B, Unit 2C, Unit 3A, Unit 3B and Unit 4B.
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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 1 Unit 2B Unit 2C Unit 3A Unit 3B Unit 4B