Unit 39/40A/40B (Galiuro–Pinaleno Foothills)
Arizona Hunting Guide — Mule Deer
The combined GMU 39/40A/40B hunt covers a multi-unit area in southeastern Arizona spanning the Galiuro Mountains, Pinaleno foothills, and surrounding desert grassland. This is a multi-GMU draw hunt managed by AZGFD with a single tag valid across all three units, giving hunters extensive range across a diverse landscape of desert mountains, oak woodland, and semi-desert grassland. Mule deer bucks in this region are known for wide, heavy-framed antlers typical of the Sonoran Desert foothills.
Build your own PDF hunt guide for Unit 39/40A/40B
Answer a few questions about your tag, your season and your rig, and the Field Intelligence Report builds a print-ready Arizona Unit 39/40A/40B guide around your hunt: three ranked spots with morning, afternoon and evening plays, a day-by-day plan, topo maps with every pin numbered, a camp and access plan, the legal and retrieval rules for this unit, shot discipline, a meat-care and pack-out plan, and a pre-trip checklist. Every coordinate sits on land recorded as public.
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Mule Deer Hunting in Unit 39/40A/40B
The combined GMU 39/40A/40B hunt covers a multi-unit area in southeastern Arizona spanning the Galiuro Mountains, Pinaleno foothills, and surrounding desert grassland. This is a multi-GMU draw hunt managed by AZGFD with a single tag valid across all three units, giving hunters extensive range across a diverse landscape of desert mountains, oak woodland, and semi-desert grassland. Mule deer bucks in this region are known for wide, heavy-framed antlers typical of the Sonoran Desert foothills.
Where the Deer Are: Gila River Bottoms, the Wilderness Ranges and the Mohawks
First, a flag. The unit name on this page says Galiuro–Pinaleno foothills. AZGFD's guides for 39, 40A and 40B describe something else: Sonoran Desert country around Gila Bend, Ajo and the Mohawk Mountains. We're working from what the guides say. Don't pack for oak woodland.
Gila River and the farm edges (39 and 40A)
AZGFD's Unit 39 guide is blunt. Most deer stay near the Gila River and next to agricultural fields. Hunt those areas and your odds go up. Skip them and the guide calls finding deer in 39 and 40A "difficult." We'd start here. The guide doesn't name specific fields or river reaches, so you'll have to find them on aerial imagery. Remember that only 15% of the unit is BLM and the rest is private or other, so confirm who owns the ground before you walk a field edge.
Mountain bases and washes: Tabletop, Sand Tank, Maricopa
The guides place general-season desert mulies along mountain bases, low rolling hills and the network of washes. The wilderness blocks they list are Tabletop, Estrella, Maricopa, Woolsey and Signal Peak, all BLM-administered, plus Sonoran Desert National Monument. For glass-from-above country, the landform data gives Table Top at 4,377 feet, Maricopa Peak at 4,058, Butterfly Mountain at 4,043 and the Sand Tank Mountains at 3,986. Woolsey Peak is lower, at 3,164. Pick a high point, then work the washes below it.
Water is worth marking. The data shows about 280 tanks and three springs. Named water includes Bull Pasture Spring, Aguajita Spring, Burro Spring, Dripping Springs, Williams Spring, and wells such as Red Tanks, Bandeja, Valentine and South Vekol. The packet doesn't say where each one sits, so verify locations before you plan a hike around them.
Mohawk Mountains, 40B West
This is the one place the agency names as your best bet in 40B. Deer numbers there are very low, arid conditions limit them, and AZGFD says to plan on a hard hunt. The Mohawks pull more rain than the rest of the unit, which helps feed. To get there, leave I-8 at the Avenue 40E (Tacna) exit and go south. Several roads reach the range. The easiest is the frontage road heading east along the interstate. AZGFD recommends four-wheel drive.
Country to skip
- 40B East. It's all tactical range with no deer-hunter access. Opportunity is limited to the area around Ajo. Deer hunting isn't allowed in BMGR-East portions of 40B, and you can't transit BMGR-East to 46A or 46B for deer.
- North of SR 238/Maricopa Road into the Monument. Access is closed. So is the east end of the gas pipeline road north of North Maricopa Mountain.
- Restricted Areas on the range. They're closed to all public recreation.
Early season, the ag edges and river hold the most animals. Later, the guide points to rut movement, when bucks join does and become easier to spot.
Unit 39/40A/40B terrain and land status
Measured from the unit boundary, not from the agency write-up · figures are for GMU 39
The lay of it
- 596–1,975 ft on a terrain sample , averaging 1,040 ft ; peaks can run higher.
- 1,943.1 sq mi inside the boundary. Big enough that picking one drainage beats driving three.
Who owns the ground
- BLM — 15%
- Private / Other — 85%
Roughly 15% is public. Carry a land-status layer anyway — these are area percentages, not a map of where the boundaries fall.
Water on the ground
- 280 tanks
- 3 springs
- 355 stream segments
- 34 lakes
Counts from mapping data, so this is how many exist, not how many hold water in a dry year. Sitting water only pays where you find fresh tracks.
Named features inside the unit
Glass from: Table Top (4,377 ft), Sauceda Mountains (4,080 ft), Maricopa Peak (4,058 ft), Butterfly Mountain (4,043 ft)
Holding ground: Blue Plateau (2,835 ft), Pozo Redondo Valley (2,175 ft), Burro Gap (1,822 ft), Bull Pasture Spring, Aguajita Spring
Every one of these was tested against the unit polygon before it went on the map. They are starting points, not agency recommendations.
How to Hunt It: Glass High, Beat the Crowds, Get Range Access Right
Mule Deer Success Rates
Mule Deer Draw Odds
| Season | Tags | Applicants | Draw % | Pts (n/p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rifle — Late Rifle Nov bull/buck only (combined pool) | 450 | 952 | 42.8% | — |
| Rifle — Late Rifle Nov either sex (combined pool) | 450 | 952 | 42.8% | — |
Data from 2025 draw results. Each row is one residency pool — read the label before the number. This agency publishes no point thresholds, so the Pts column stays blank and these are pool odds, not what a point total draws.
Open in Draw Odds EngineUnit Logistics & Expectations
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the GMU 39/40A/40B tag let me hunt all three units?
How do I apply for a mule deer tag in the 39/40A/40B combined unit?
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Upgrade to Pro — $49/yrSources & Verification
Every fact on this page is tied to a primary source below. Last fact-checked 2026-04-17.
- AZGFD 2026 Mule Deer Hunt Regulations — Arizona Game and Fish Department · supports: Multi-unit hunt structure for 39/40A/40B, Season dates, Tag quotas · accessed 2026-04-17
- AZGFD Draw Portal — Hunt Drawing Information — Arizona Game and Fish Department · supports: Draw odds, Bonus point system, Historical applicant data · accessed 2026-04-17
- AZGFD Hunting — Unit Information — Arizona Game and Fish Department · supports: Unit boundary and species management overview · accessed 2026-04-17