Unit 22N (Superstition / Tortilla)

Fire scars below the Mogollon Rim

Start here. AZGFD's own Unit 22 guide calls the areas in and around the fire scars under the Mogollon Rim "an excellent place to hunt," and 22 North is the subunit that holds most of the unit's elk. Its overview describes 22 North as the area north of Payson. The guide also says 22 South carries lower densities.

Look for burns with standing sections of live trees. Those hold elk. The scars are at different stages of forage regeneration, and some of the older ones have grown very thick. Good numbers use the burns, especially during the later hunts. We'd glass the edges where thick regrowth meets open, feeding ground rather than push into the thickest stuff.

The guide says numerous roads run under the Rim off the Control Road. It doesn't give road numbers, so we won't either. Pull a current forest map and pick your spurs before you leave town.

Hardscrabble Mesa and the northern Mazatzal Wilderness

The guide names Hardscrabble Mesa, in the northwest corner of Unit 22, and the northern end of the Mazatzal Wilderness as good "depending on water availability." That's a real caveat. In a dry fall, check where water is holding before you commit to either one. The guide doesn't name any individual tanks or springs for this unit, so you'll have to find those yourself through scouting.

High points for glassing

The terrain data for the area lists a string of public-land summits and ridges, all tagged for glassing. The big ones are Mazatzal Peak at 7,886 feet, Four Peaks at 7,633, Browns Peak at 7,614 and Suicide Ridge at 7,566. Burnt Point (7,554) and Hi View Point (7,500) are listed as cliffs. Lower down you'll see Roberts Mesa (6,666), Cactus Ridge (6,766), Diamond Point (6,371) and Diamond Rim (6,347).

The packet doesn't say which of these sit inside the 22N boundary. Check each one against the hunting regulations' subunit description before you plan a morning around it. Treat them as vantage options, not confirmed elk spots.

Early versus late, and what to skip

The whole unit sits below the Rim. Heavy winter snow pushes elk off the Rim and down into 22N for the November and December hunts, so a snowy year can change where you find them. In the late hunts, the guide says elk can often be found feeding on or just below the Rim.

The guide's other named country is all 22 South: Round Valley, the Lion Springs area, the Green Valley Hills, the Mazatzal foothills west of Rye, and the National Forest south of the Payson Municipal Golf Course. With a 22N tag, skip it. Those areas are for the other subunit.