Arizona Unit 4A: public land, hunts and harvest
Arizona's game management Unit 4A covers 754 square miles, and 62.7% of it is public land open to hunting, mostly national forest (measured from USGS PAD-US). AZGFD's 2026 hunt lists open 7 elk hunts, 1 deer hunt, 2 pronghorn hunts, 1 bighorn sheep hunt and 1 turkey hunt here. On the hunts held only in Unit 4A, AZGFD's 2025 harvest survey counts 204 elk and 14 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 forestBLMState trust landAZGFD landTribal land (tribal permit)City, county and otherUnit 4ANeighboring unitsLake or riverHighway
| AZGFD region | Region 1 (Pinetop) |
|---|---|
| Size | 754 square miles (482,588 acres) |
| Public land open to hunting | 62.7% (302,670 acres) |
| Elk hunts, 2026 | 7 hunts, 612 permits |
| Deer hunts, 2026 | 1 hunt, 315 permits |
| Pronghorn hunts, 2026 | 2 hunts, 10 permits |
| Bighorn sheep hunts, 2026 | 1 hunt, 2 permits |
| Turkey (fall) hunts, 2026 | 1 hunt, 250 permits |
| AZGFD wildlife areas | Chevelon Canyon Ranch, Chevelon Creek |
| Towns in and near it | Winslow, Star Valley and Payson |
| Highways | AZ 99, I-40 and AZ 87 |
How much public land is in Unit 4A?
62.7% of Unit 4A is public land open to hunting: 302,670 of 482,588 acres. The largest share is national forest, 205,796 acres or 42.6% of the unit.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Unit 4A |
|---|---|---|
| National forest | 205,796 | 42.6% |
| State trust land | 94,877 | 19.7% |
| Tribal land (tribal permit) | 41,857 | 8.7% |
| BLM | 1,765 | 0.4% |
| AZGFD land | 232 | under 0.1% |
| City, county and other | 40 | 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 4A in 2026?
Draw hunts that include Unit 4A, 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 4A | Permits | Earliest season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk | 7 | 7 | 612 | Sep 11 to Sep 24 (hunt 3129) |
| Deer | 1 | 0 | 315 | Oct 23 to Nov 1 (hunt 1005) |
| Pronghorn | 2 | 2 | 10 | Aug 21 to Sep 3 (hunt 2041) |
| Bighorn sheep | 1 | 0 | 2 | Oct 1 to Oct 31 (hunt 6504) |
| Turkey (fall) | 1 | 0 | 250 | Oct 2 to Oct 8 (hunt 4503) |
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 6504 (Oct 1 to Oct 31, 2 permits, with 5A).
How many elk, deer and pronghorn are taken in Unit 4A?
| Species | Year | Hunts only in Unit 4A | Hunters | Taken | Shared hunts that included it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk | 2025 | 13 | 528 | 204 | 0 |
| Deer | 2025 | 0 | 4 | ||
| Pronghorn | 2025 | 4 | 14 | 14 | 0 |
Sums of AZGFD's per-hunt figures for the hunts held only in Unit 4A. 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 6504 (04A/05A), 2 hunters, 1 ram taken (AZGFD 2025 Bighorn Sheep Harvest Summary).
Over-the-counter archery deer, 2024: AZGFD estimates 174 archers hunted Unit 4A for 771 days and took 7 deer (mule deer bucks 7, whitetail bucks 0) (AZGFD 2024 Over-the-Counter Archery Deer Harvest Summary).
What did AZGFD's 2025 surveys count in Unit 4A?
Elk: 339 classified in 22 groups, 17 bulls and 7 young per 100 cows. Pronghorn: 95 classified in 19 groups, 24 bucks and 10 young per 100 does.
Source: AZGFD 2025 Elk Survey Summary, AZGFD 2025 Pronghorn Survey Summary.
Which AZGFD wildlife areas are in Unit 4A?
Chevelon Canyon Ranch Wildlife Area (137 acres inside the unit) and Chevelon Creek Wildlife Area (80 acres inside the unit).
How do you get to Unit 4A?
Highways through the unit: AZ 99 (about 28 miles inside it), I-40 (about 5 miles inside it) and AZ 87 (about 4 miles inside it). Nearby towns: Winslow (on the line), Star Valley (12 miles), Payson (16 miles) and Holbrook (19 miles).
Which units border Unit 4A?
Unit 4A touches 6 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 4B | 1,335 | 38.9% | 7 | 1 | 2 |
| Unit 5A | 692 | 68.5% | 9 | 2 | 2 |
| Unit 5B | 810 | 83.6% | 13 | 2 | 2 |
| Unit 7 | 1,390 | 75.4% | 16 | 3 | 2 |
| Unit 22 | 1,574 | 95.5% | 13 | 6 | |
| Unit 23 | 1,185 | 98.1% | 10 | 5 |
Questions hunters ask
How much public land is in Arizona Unit 4A?
62.7% of Unit 4A is public land open to hunting, 302,670 of its 482,588 acres; the largest share is national forest at 205,796 acres. 41,857 acres are tribal land, which needs the tribe's own permit.
What can you hunt in Unit 4A in 2026?
AZGFD's 2026 draw lists 7 elk hunts (612 permits), 1 deer hunt (315 permits), 2 pronghorn hunts (10 permits), 1 bighorn sheep hunt (2 permits) and 1 turkey (fall) hunt (250 permits) that include Unit 4A. Over-the-counter seasons are set statewide in AZGFD's regulations.
What is the closest town to Unit 4A?
No town is inside it. The nearest are Winslow (on the line), Star Valley (12 miles) and Payson (16 miles).
Which AZGFD region is Unit 4A in?
Region 1, run from the Pinetop office. It borders Unit 4B, Unit 5A, Unit 5B, Unit 7, Unit 22 and Unit 23.
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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 4B Unit 5A Unit 5B Unit 7 Unit 22 Unit 23