Arizona Unit 4B: public land, hunts and harvest
Arizona's game management Unit 4B covers 1,335 square miles, and 38.9% 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 and 1 turkey hunt here. On the hunts held only in Unit 4B, AZGFD's 2025 harvest survey counts 122 elk and 6 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 4BNeighboring unitsLake or riverHighway
| AZGFD region | Region 1 (Pinetop) |
|---|---|
| Size | 1,335 square miles (854,571 acres) |
| Public land open to hunting | 38.9% (332,514 acres) |
| Elk hunts, 2026 | 7 hunts, 430 permits |
| Deer hunts, 2026 | 1 hunt, 315 permits |
| Pronghorn hunts, 2026 | 2 hunts, 20 permits |
| Turkey (fall) hunts, 2026 | 1 hunt, 250 permits |
| AZGFD wildlife areas | Chevelon Creek |
| Towns in and near it | Holbrook, Forest Lakes, Joseph City, Winslow, Star Valley and Snowflake |
| Highways | I-40, AZ 87 and AZ 77 |
How much public land is in Unit 4B?
38.9% of Unit 4B is public land open to hunting: 332,514 of 854,571 acres. The largest share is national forest, 196,293 acres or 23% of the unit.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Unit 4B |
|---|---|---|
| National forest | 196,293 | 23% |
| Tribal land (tribal permit) | 150,053 | 17.6% |
| State trust land | 93,101 | 10.9% |
| BLM | 42,529 | 5% |
| AZGFD land | 591 | 0.1% |
| City, county and other | 75 | 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 4B in 2026?
Draw hunts that include Unit 4B, 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 4B | Permits | Earliest season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk | 7 | 6 | 430 | Sep 11 to Sep 24 (hunt 3130) |
| Deer | 1 | 0 | 315 | Oct 23 to Nov 1 (hunt 1005) |
| Pronghorn | 2 | 2 | 20 | Aug 21 to Sep 3 (hunt 2042) |
| 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).
How many elk, deer and pronghorn are taken in Unit 4B?
| Species | Year | Hunts only in Unit 4B | Hunters | Taken | Shared hunts that included it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk | 2025 | 6 | 305 | 122 | 1 |
| Deer | 2025 | 0 | 4 | ||
| Pronghorn | 2025 | 2 | 12 | 6 | 0 |
Sums of AZGFD's per-hunt figures for the hunts held only in Unit 4B. 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 309 archers hunted Unit 4B for 1,912 days and took 8 deer (mule deer bucks 7, whitetail bucks 1) (AZGFD 2024 Over-the-Counter Archery Deer Harvest Summary).
What did AZGFD's 2025 surveys count in Unit 4B?
Elk: 151 classified in 9 groups, 40 bulls and 26 young per 100 cows. Mule deer: 23 classified in 7 groups, 36 bucks and 73 young per 100 does. White-tailed deer: 3 classified in 1 group, 0 bucks and 50 young per 100 does. Pronghorn: 253 classified in 29 groups, 35 bucks and 8 young per 100 does.
Source: AZGFD 2025 Elk Survey Summary, AZGFD 2025 Mule Deer Survey Summary, AZGFD 2025 White-tailed Deer Survey Summary, AZGFD 2025 Pronghorn Survey Summary.
Which AZGFD wildlife areas are in Unit 4B?
Chevelon Creek Wildlife Area (593 acres inside the unit).
How do you get to Unit 4B?
Highways through the unit: I-40 (about 35 miles inside it), AZ 87 (about 16 miles inside it) and AZ 77 (about 2 miles inside it). Towns and places inside: Holbrook, Forest Lakes and Joseph City. Nearby towns: Winslow (2 miles), Star Valley (16 miles), Snowflake (17 miles) and Taylor (19 miles).
Which units border Unit 4B?
Unit 4B 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 2A | 1,423 | 29.8% | 6 | 1 | 1 |
| Unit 3A | 773 | 29.6% | 7 | 3 | 2 |
| Unit 3C | 555 | 82.3% | 12 | 3 | 1 |
| Unit 4A | 754 | 62.7% | 7 | 1 | 2 |
| Unit 23 | 1,185 | 98.1% | 10 | 5 |
Questions hunters ask
How much public land is in Arizona Unit 4B?
38.9% of Unit 4B is public land open to hunting, 332,514 of its 854,571 acres; the largest share is national forest at 196,293 acres. 150,053 acres are tribal land, which needs the tribe's own permit.
What can you hunt in Unit 4B in 2026?
AZGFD's 2026 draw lists 7 elk hunts (430 permits), 1 deer hunt (315 permits), 2 pronghorn hunts (20 permits) and 1 turkey (fall) hunt (250 permits) that include Unit 4B. Over-the-counter seasons are set statewide in AZGFD's regulations.
What is the closest town to Unit 4B?
Holbrook, Forest Lakes and Joseph City are inside the unit. Just outside: Winslow (2 miles), Star Valley (16 miles) and Snowflake (17 miles).
Which AZGFD region is Unit 4B in?
Region 1, run from the Pinetop office. It borders Unit 2A, Unit 3A, Unit 3C, Unit 4A 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 2A Unit 3A Unit 3C Unit 4A Unit 23