Arizona Unit 9: public land, hunts and harvest
Arizona's game management Unit 9 covers 1,066 square miles, and 76.5% 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, 3 deer hunts, 2 pronghorn hunts and 1 bighorn sheep hunt here. On the hunts held only in Unit 9, AZGFD's latest harvest surveys count 446 elk (2025), 69 deer (2021) and 19 pronghorn (2025) 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 landNational park or monument (no hunting)Tribal land (tribal permit)Unit 9Neighboring unitsLake or riverHighway
| AZGFD region | Region 2 (Flagstaff) |
|---|---|
| Size | 1,066 square miles (682,014 acres) |
| Public land open to hunting | 76.5% (521,730 acres) |
| Elk hunts, 2026 | 7 hunts, 1,225 permits |
| Deer hunts, 2026 | 3 hunts, 1,250 permits |
| Pronghorn hunts, 2026 | 2 hunts, 30 permits |
| Bighorn sheep hunts, 2026 | 1 hunt, 1 permit |
| Towns in and near it | Tusayan and Valle |
| Highways | AZ 64 and US 180 |
How much public land is in Unit 9?
76.5% of Unit 9 is public land open to hunting: 521,730 of 682,014 acres. The largest share is national forest, 326,737 acres or 47.9% of the unit.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Unit 9 |
|---|---|---|
| National forest | 326,737 | 47.9% |
| State trust land | 193,708 | 28.4% |
| BLM | 1,285 | 0.2% |
| Tribal land (tribal permit) | 520 | 0.1% |
| National park or monument (no hunting) | 113 | 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: Kaibab National Forest.
What can you hunt in Unit 9 in 2026?
Draw hunts that include Unit 9, 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 9 | Permits | Earliest season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk | 7 | 7 | 1,225 | Sep 11 to Sep 24 (hunt 3140) |
| Deer | 3 | 0 | 1,250 | Oct 23 to Oct 29 (hunt 1180) |
| Pronghorn | 2 | 2 | 30 | Aug 21 to Sep 3 (hunt 2048) |
| Bighorn sheep | 1 | 0 | 1 | Oct 1 to Dec 31 (hunt 6001) |
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 6001 (Oct 1 to Dec 31, 1 permit, with 10).
How many elk, deer and pronghorn are taken in Unit 9?
| Species | Year | Hunts only in Unit 9 | Hunters | Taken | Shared hunts that included it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk | 2025 | 7 | 1,008 | 446 | 0 |
| Deer | 2025 | 0 | 2 | ||
| Pronghorn | 2025 | 2 | 22 | 19 | 0 |
Sums of AZGFD's per-hunt figures for the hunts held only in Unit 9. 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 6001 (09/10), 1 hunter, no harvest reported (AZGFD 2025 Bighorn Sheep Harvest Summary).
Over-the-counter archery deer, 2024: AZGFD estimates 60 archers hunted Unit 9 for 248 days and took 2 deer (mule deer bucks 2, whitetail bucks 0) (AZGFD 2024 Over-the-Counter Archery Deer Harvest Summary).
What did AZGFD's 2025 surveys count in Unit 9?
Elk: 264 classified in 36 groups, 43 bulls and 23 young per 100 cows. Pronghorn: 150 classified in 25 groups, 32 bucks and 18 young per 100 does.
Source: AZGFD 2025 Elk Survey Summary, AZGFD 2025 Pronghorn Survey Summary.
How do you get to Unit 9?
Highways through the unit: AZ 64 (about 32 miles inside it) and US 180 (about 21 miles inside it). Towns and places inside: Tusayan and Valle.
Which units border Unit 9?
Unit 9 touches 2 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 7 | 1,390 | 75.4% | 16 | 3 | 2 |
| Unit 10 | 2,252 | 39.3% | 10 | 2 | 2 |
Questions hunters ask
How much public land is in Arizona Unit 9?
76.5% of Unit 9 is public land open to hunting, 521,730 of its 682,014 acres; the largest share is national forest at 326,737 acres. 520 acres are tribal land, which needs the tribe's own permit.
What can you hunt in Unit 9 in 2026?
AZGFD's 2026 draw lists 7 elk hunts (1,225 permits), 3 deer hunts (1,250 permits), 2 pronghorn hunts (30 permits) and 1 bighorn sheep hunt (1 permits) that include Unit 9. Over-the-counter seasons are set statewide in AZGFD's regulations.
What is the closest town to Unit 9?
Tusayan and Valle are inside the unit.
Which AZGFD region is Unit 9 in?
Region 2, run from the Flagstaff office. It borders Unit 7 and Unit 10.
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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.