Arizona Mule Deer Pronghorn Elk

Unit 3A (St. Johns)

Arizona Hunting Guide — Mule Deer, Pronghorn, Elk

Unit 3A covers the flat grasslands and juniper woodland near St. Johns in eastern Arizona. The checkerboard pattern of state, BLM, and private land creates a unique mosaic of open-terrain mule deer habitat. Bucks here thrive in the low-elevation sage and juniper country, and the wide-open terrain makes for classic Western glassing. Public land access requires careful navigation of the ownership patchwork.

View Draw Odds Arizona Hunting Guide

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5,229–6,057 ft

Sampled elevation

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Access roads, campgrounds, elevation, monthly weather, stock tanks, cell coverage, and nearest-town services for Unit 3A.

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Mule Deer Hunting in Unit 3A

Where to find 3A mule deer: west of AZ 77, in broken juniper with browse

Start west of AZ 77

AZGFD's own unit guide is blunt about 3A. The deer population is scattered and sparse, and it calls the unit "not for the novice deer hunter." Its first instruction is to concentrate west of State Route 77. There are deer east of it, but the guide calls them few, extremely scattered and hard to find. The only reason to cross over is a pocket of deer or a single buck you've already put eyes on while scouting.

We'd take that at face value. Success rates in the packet are 22 percent for rifle and 15 percent for archery. Plan on long, quiet days.

What the right country looks like

The unit sits between roughly 5,000 and 6,000 feet, and it's grassland and juniper savannah. Most of it is flat. Deer don't spread evenly across flat country, and the guide says what matters is cover and food close together. Look for open juniper woodland with cliffrose and other browse, then favor spots with some relief: broken, hilly or rocky ground. Skip the dead-flat grass.

Draws worth marking on your map

The agency guide doesn't name individual hunting spots for deer. Our terrain data does tag a string of draws as holding country: Long Hollow (about 6,117 feet), Ninemile Draw, Sevenmile Draw, Hay Hollow Draw and Arthurs Meadow Draw in Navajo County. Martinez Draw, Cheney Draw and Goat Ranch Draw are in Apache County. All are flagged as public land in that data. We can't tell you which sit west of AZ 77, so lay them over a BLM map and start with whichever fall on the correct side of the highway.

Two more draws, Bushman Draw and Buckhorn Draw, plus a basin called The Sinks, are flagged as not public. Treat them as landmarks unless you've got landowner permission.

Knolls and buttes for glassing

The public-land high points in our data are Second Knolls, Fourmile Knoll, Sugarloaf, Flattop Hill, Sheza Butte, Point Lookout and the Pink Cliffs. Each is tagged as a glassing spot. Indian Rock, Buckhorn Hill, Red Hill, Monument Hill, Woodruff Butte and Bishops Nose also show as glassing points but aren't flagged public. You can still glass toward them from legal ground.

Reaching it, and who owns what

Paved routes are AZ 277, US 180, AZ 377 and AZ 180A. Graded gravel includes CR 5020 (5.5 miles) and 377g (5 miles), both fine for 2WD. AZGFD also mentions numerous unimproved roads west of 77, plus a few improved dirt ones.

Ownership is a patchwork. Our breakdown lists 60 percent National Forest, 8 percent State Trust and 32 percent private or other. AZGFD, though, puts the forest only in the southwestern corner. Don't rely on either number. The guide says most of the unit is open, some is posted, and you should get permission on private ground and check the Holbrook and St. Johns BLM quadrants. Snowflake, Taylor, Holbrook and Joseph City are the nearest towns.

Unit 3A terrain and land status

Measured from the unit boundary, not from the agency write-up

The lay of it

5,229–6,057 ft on a terrain sample , averaging 5,580 ft ; peaks can run higher.
773.2 sq mi inside the boundary.

Who owns the ground

National Forest — 60%
State Trust — 8%
Private / Other — 32%

Roughly 68% is public. Carry a land-status layer anyway — these are area percentages, not a map of where the boundaries fall.

Water on the ground

445 tanks
195 stream segments
9 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: Second Knolls (6,191 ft), Fourmile Knoll (5,945 ft), Pink Cliffs (5,933 ft), Sugarloaf (5,891 ft)

Holding ground: Long Hollow (6,117 ft), Ninemile Draw (5,597 ft), Martinez Draw (5,553 ft)

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 3A mule deer: glass the open ground, still-hunt the broken stuff

Glass first, then slow down

AZGFD says glassing with binoculars is the most likely way to find a deer here, because the terrain is so open. Pick one of the knolls or buttes on public ground, such as Fourmile Knoll, Sugarloaf or Flattop Hill, and cover the juniper edges and draw heads methodically. Sit longer than feels reasonable. With deer this thin, one buck on a hillside is the whole day's payoff.

Once you've found a pocket, the guide recommends mixing glassing with still-hunting in broken or hilly ground. Tracking can also work where the soil cooperates. Take a step, look, and take another. In juniper you'll often see a bedded deer's antlers or ear before you see the animal.

Scout, because the numbers demand it

The guide leans hard on pre-season scouting, and we agree. Don't burn a hunt learning that an area is empty. Check the draws on your map, particularly Long Hollow, Ninemile Draw and Hay Hollow Draw, and note where cliffrose and cover sit near some relief. The packet shows 445 mapped tanks and 195 stream segments but no springs, so water exists. Still, the guide ties deer to cover and food, not water, so look for those first.

Archery or rifle

Archery success runs 15 percent against 22 percent for rifle, and that fits open country where closing distance is tough. Weather matters too. AZGFD warns that the archery hunt can be hot, while the general firearms hunt tends to be cold and wet. Carry water in September. Pack real rain gear for the rifle season.

Both hunts are combined with Unit 3C, which AZGFD says holds a much higher deer density. Read your regulations to see how that affects where your tag is valid, and whether the better numbers next door are an option for you.

Rules that keep you out of trouble

Your permit is valid for any antlered deer, and there are no whitetails in 3A, so wrong-species mistakes aren't a concern here.
Off-road vehicle travel isn't allowed on State Trust or private land. Stay on roads and walk.
Get permission before hunting private ground, and expect some posted areas.
Check BLM land status maps before you leave town.

A realistic day

Drive a graded road like CR 5020 or 377g before light, park legally, and climb to a glassing point. Glass hard until the light flattens. Then stalk any deer you've spotted, or still-hunt the nearest broken juniper country west of AZ 77. Plan on seeing very few deer, and judge the day by how much country you've ruled out.

Getting in and staying out: unit 3A

Named routes and what they need

AZ 277 — 13.6 mi · Paved (all rigs)
US 180 — 12.7 mi · Paved (all rigs)
AZ 377 — 9.8 mi · Paved (all rigs)
AZ 180A — 8.4 mi · Paved (all rigs)
CR 5020 — 5.5 mi · Graded gravel (2WD / small trailer)
377g — 5 mi · Graded gravel (2WD / small trailer)

Ratings come from road data, not from a drive this season. Check current conditions with the managing office before you commit a trailer.

Nearest services

Snowflake — 9.8 mi · fuel, groceries, lodging
Taylor — 13.1 mi · fuel, groceries
Holbrook — 18.5 mi · fuel, groceries, lodging
Joseph City — 26.5 mi · fuel, groceries
Show Low — 27.5 mi · fuel, groceries, lodging

Developed camps

Silver Sage Trailer Park

Season weather and signal

Jan50° / 21° · 0.7" precip
Aug89° / 58° · 1.8" precip
Sep84° / 50° · 1.1" precip
Oct73° / 38° · 0.9" precip
Nov60° / 27° · 0.7" precip
Dec49° / 20° · 0.8" precip

Best signal is Verizon at about 21% of the unit. Plan on being out of contact and tell someone your route.

Arizona rules that decide your day

Summarised from AZGFD regulations. They change — read the current regulations and your permit-tag before you hunt.

Legal shooting hours

Big game may be taken only during daylight hours — from sunrise to sunset. Check the sunrise and sunset times for your unit, not for Phoenix.

Motorized retrieval

Arizona permits motorized big-game retrieval only where the unit's travel-management decision allows it, and in several units only for elk. Where it is allowed it means one vehicle, one trip, within one mile of a road shown open on the Motor Vehicle Use Map — never inside a quiet area, a wilderness or a closed area. Pull the MVUM for your ranger district and confirm before you shoot somewhere you cannot carry an animal out of.

Tagging

Sign your tag before you go afield and attach it to the animal immediately after the kill. Hunters aged 10–13 must carry their Hunter Education card with the licence and tag.

Leaving meat

Leaving edible meat in the field is illegal. Edible meat means the four quarters and the loins at a minimum.

Where you may not shoot

Occupied structures — No shooting within a quarter mile of an occupied farmhouse, cabin, lodge or building without the owner's permission. That rules out shooting toward most lakeside cabin tracts.
Campsites and developed areas — Forest Service rules prohibit discharging a firearm within 150 yards of a residence, building, campsite, developed recreation site or occupied area.
Roads and water — No shooting from a vehicle, and no shooting on, across or into a road. No shooting across a body of water adjacent to a Forest road.

Mule Deer: where to put the shot

Broadside or quartering away, on the back edge of the front leg about a third of the way up the body.

Shots to refuse

Nothing behind or overlapping the animal you picked.
Your maximum range is the farthest you have shot a three-shot group into a paper plate from the rest you are carrying.
Pass the shot you are talking yourself into.

Plan the carry: roughly 40– 120 lb of boned-out meat, before head and hide — two large coolers. ProHunt planning estimate, not an agency figure.

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Mule Deer Success Rates

Unit 3A mule deer hunts produce solid success rates in the 35-50% range for rifle hunters. The open terrain makes locating deer easier than in heavy-timber units. Buck quality is respectable for the area, and the wide-open grasslands reward dedicated glassers.

Mule Deer Draw Odds

Season	Tags	Applicants	Draw %	Pts (n/p)
Rifle — General Rifle Oct bull/buck only (combined pool)	60	2,335	2.1%	—
Rifle — Late Rifle Dec bull/buck only (combined pool)	10	1,392	0.7%	—
Rifle — Early Rifle bull/buck only (combined pool)	20	328	4.6%	—
Rifle — General Rifle Oct either sex (combined pool)	60	2,335	2.1%	—
Rifle — Late Rifle Dec either sex (combined pool)	10	1,392	0.7%	—
Early Archery — bull/buck only (combined pool)	40	441	6.8%	—
Early Archery — either sex (combined pool)	20	328	4.6%	—

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 Engine

Unit 3A mule deer tags are competitive but slightly more accessible than Unit 1. Expect to need 8-15 bonus points depending on weapon type. Archery tags may draw with fewer points. The unit's quality-to-accessibility ratio makes it an excellent mid-point target for Arizona mule deer applicants building points.

Pronghorn Hunting in Unit 3A

The open grasslands and sage flats near St. Johns provide ideal pronghorn habitat in Unit 3A. The flat, expansive terrain makes for classic Western pronghorn hunting with long-range glassing and spot-and-stalk approaches. Pronghorn numbers fluctuate with precipitation and forage conditions but the unit consistently produces quality bucks in the 70-80 inch class.

Where to Find Pronghorn in 3A: West of Highway 77 and the Public Draws

AZGFD's own unit guide says 3A is made up almost entirely of antelope habitat, and that finding a place to hunt isn't hard. The animals are well dispersed across open country. The hard part is access. The guide doesn't break the unit into hot spots, so we're working from its access notes and the mapped terrain.

Start west of State Route 77

The guide says hunter access is generally better west of SR 77 than in the eastern half. That's where we'd put the first scouting days. Two improved dirt roads, the Zeniff Road and the old Holbrook Highway, connect State Route 277 to State Route 377 through the western part of the unit. Between them and the paved boundary routes, you can cover a lot of ground without leaving a legal road. Cross-country travel is prohibited, so stay on the roads you scout.

Hay Hollow and the eastern draws

East of 77 the guide names the Old Woodruff Road, the Woodruff-Hay Hollow Road and Hay Hollow Road as the main routes. Improved dirt roads are numerous in the southeastern portion. Homes are widely scattered out there, so expect to work around them.

The mapped drainages that read as public ground include:

Hay Hollow Draw (5,293 ft) and Sevenmile Draw (5,368 ft)
Ninemile Draw (5,597 ft) and Long Hollow (6,117 ft), the high end of the list
Martinez Draw, Cheney Draw and Goat Ranch Draw, all in Apache County and all between roughly 5,330 and 5,550 ft
Arthurs Meadow Draw (5,195 ft), the lowest of the group

We'd treat these as places to find animals, not promises. Check each against a BLM map before you commit, because the checkerboard can put a private section across a draw.

Public knobs for glassing

The map flags several public high points as glassing stations: Second Knolls (6,191 ft), Fourmile Knoll (5,945), Pink Cliffs (5,933), Sugarloaf (5,891), Flattop Hill (5,845), Sheza Butte (5,713) and Point Lookout (5,611). The whole unit sits between about 5,229 and 6,057 ft, so none of these is a big climb. They're enough to see across the flats.

Land you'd better skip

Indian Rock, Buckhorn Hill, Lower Knolls, Graveled Hill, Red Hill, Monument Hill, Woodruff Butte and Bishops Nose are all flagged as not public. So are Bushman Draw, The Sinks and Buckhorn Draw. They may be great vantage points, but don't walk onto them. Along SR 77 and 180, some land is posted or locked up. Landowners may grant access, but you need written permission covering your hunt dates.

One data warning. A computed ownership breakdown for this unit shows National Forest as the largest share. The agency guide says only a small southwestern block is Apache-Sitgreaves, with the rest State Trust, private and BLM. We'd trust the guide and buy the Holbrook and St. Johns quad maps.

Unit 3A terrain and land status

Measured from the unit boundary, not from the agency write-up

The lay of it

5,229–6,057 ft on a terrain sample , averaging 5,580 ft ; peaks can run higher.
773.2 sq mi inside the boundary.

Who owns the ground

National Forest — 60%
State Trust — 8%
Private / Other — 32%

Roughly 68% is public. Carry a land-status layer anyway — these are area percentages, not a map of where the boundaries fall.

Water on the ground

445 tanks
195 stream segments
9 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: Second Knolls (6,191 ft), Fourmile Knoll (5,945 ft), Pink Cliffs (5,933 ft), Sugarloaf (5,891 ft)

Holding ground: Long Hollow (6,117 ft), Ninemile Draw (5,597 ft), Martinez Draw (5,553 ft)

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 3A Pronghorn: Glass, Plan the Road Network, Respect the Checkerboard

Open country makes this a glassing hunt first and a stalking hunt second. The success figures we have show rifle at 82 percent and archery at 48 percent. That gap is what you'd expect, and it should shape how you plan each weapon.

Glass from the knobs, then drive the grid

Park at a legal pull-off and climb a public high point like Sugarloaf, Flattop Hill or Fourmile Knoll before the sun gets up. Glass the flats and the mouths of the draws first. Pronghorn that look like white dots at a mile are worth a second look, so don't rush it. Once you've found a buck, work out which section he's standing on before you plan anything. Public or private is the first question, not the last.

Then use the roads. The guide says vehicle access is generally good and four-wheel drive isn't required while roads are dry. Rain and wet roads are possible, though, so check the sky before you drive a dirt road like the Zeniff or the old Holbrook Highway.

Archery: heat and tanks

AZGFD says to expect hot temperatures during the archery hunt. The mapped data shows 445 tanks, 195 stream segments and 9 lakes in the unit, but no springs. We don't know which of those hold water, so scout them. A tank that's actually wet in the heat is where we'd set up. Plan on a blind or a concealed approach along a draw like Hay Hollow or Sevenmile. Walking at an animal across a flat gets you nowhere.

Rifle: use the terrain

Temperatures are warm to moderate for the general hunt. A rifle hunter has a bigger margin, but the checkerboard still limits where you can shoot and where you can walk. Spot from the public knobs, pick a draw that gives you cover, and keep the wind in your face. If the buck crosses onto posted land, let him go.

Rules and river crossings

Cross-country travel is prohibited. Stay on roads.
Camping while hunting is allowed on State Trust and BLM land. Get permission before camping on private land.
Don't discharge a firearm within a quarter mile of an occupied structure. East of SR 77 there are many scattered homes, so check before you shoot.
The Little Colorado River and Silver Creek cut through the eastern half. The guide warns that the sandy riverbed can be saturated below the surface even when it looks dry. Don't try a vehicle crossing.

A realistic day is simple. Glass at first light, drive or walk to the next public vantage point, then spend the rest of the day on one animal or one tank. Hold the permission slip in your pocket if you've asked a landowner. It's the difference between a hunt and a trespass.

Getting in and staying out: unit 3A

Named routes and what they need

AZ 277 — 13.6 mi · Paved (all rigs)
US 180 — 12.7 mi · Paved (all rigs)
AZ 377 — 9.8 mi · Paved (all rigs)
AZ 180A — 8.4 mi · Paved (all rigs)
CR 5020 — 5.5 mi · Graded gravel (2WD / small trailer)
377g — 5 mi · Graded gravel (2WD / small trailer)

Ratings come from road data, not from a drive this season. Check current conditions with the managing office before you commit a trailer.

Nearest services

Snowflake — 9.8 mi · fuel, groceries, lodging
Taylor — 13.1 mi · fuel, groceries
Holbrook — 18.5 mi · fuel, groceries, lodging
Joseph City — 26.5 mi · fuel, groceries
Show Low — 27.5 mi · fuel, groceries, lodging

Developed camps

Silver Sage Trailer Park

Season weather and signal

Jan50° / 21° · 0.7" precip
Aug89° / 58° · 1.8" precip
Sep84° / 50° · 1.1" precip
Oct73° / 38° · 0.9" precip
Nov60° / 27° · 0.7" precip
Dec49° / 20° · 0.8" precip

Best signal is Verizon at about 21% of the unit. Plan on being out of contact and tell someone your route.

Arizona rules that decide your day

Summarised from AZGFD regulations. They change — read the current regulations and your permit-tag before you hunt.

Legal shooting hours

Big game may be taken only during daylight hours — from sunrise to sunset. Check the sunrise and sunset times for your unit, not for Phoenix.

Motorized retrieval

Tagging

Sign your tag before you go afield and attach it to the animal immediately after the kill. Hunters aged 10–13 must carry their Hunter Education card with the licence and tag.

Leaving meat

Leaving edible meat in the field is illegal. Edible meat means the four quarters and the loins at a minimum.

Where you may not shoot

Occupied structures — No shooting within a quarter mile of an occupied farmhouse, cabin, lodge or building without the owner's permission. That rules out shooting toward most lakeside cabin tracts.
Campsites and developed areas — Forest Service rules prohibit discharging a firearm within 150 yards of a residence, building, campsite, developed recreation site or occupied area.
Roads and water — No shooting from a vehicle, and no shooting on, across or into a road. No shooting across a body of water adjacent to a Forest road.

Pronghorn: where to put the shot

Broadside, straight up the front leg, a third of the way into the body. Pronghorn are shallow-chested and the lungs sit forward.

Shots to refuse

Range it, then range it again. Open country makes 400 yards look like 250.
Wait for the buck to stop. Nobody kills a running pronghorn cleanly on purpose.
Mind the backdrop. A miss carries a long way across a flat.

Plan the carry: roughly 30– 45 lb of boned-out meat, before head and hide — one large cooler with ice already in it. ProHunt planning estimate, not an agency figure.

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Pronghorn Success Rates

Pronghorn success rates in Unit 3A typically range from 60-80% for rifle hunters. The open terrain makes locating pronghorn relatively straightforward, and tag numbers are kept low enough to maintain quality encounters. Archery success is considerably lower at 15-30% due to the difficulty of stalking within bow range on open ground.

Pronghorn Draw Odds

Season	Tags	Applicants	Draw %	Pts (n/p)
Rifle — General Rifle Oct bull/buck only (combined pool)	5	805	0.5%	—
Early Archery — bull/buck only (combined pool)	5	75	2.7%	—

Open in Draw Odds Engine

Arizona pronghorn tags are competitive statewide. Unit 3A typically requires 5-12 bonus points depending on the weapon type. Rifle tags are hardest to draw. Pronghorn applications in Arizona should be treated as a long-term investment — apply every year and build your bonus points steadily.

Elk Hunting in Unit 3A

Unit 3A encompasses the central and western portions of the North Kaibab Plateau, covering dense ponderosa and mixed-conifer forest on one of Arizona's most celebrated elk ranges. The Kaibab is known for producing large-bodied bulls, and 3A represents the most accessible portion of the North Kaibab unit complex. With limited tags against several hundred applicants per hunt code, this is a significant bonus-point commitment for resident and nonresident hunters alike. The unit's well-maintained road network and high public-land percentage make logistics easier than many comparable Arizona elk hunts.

Where the Elk Are in 3A: West of Highway 77 and Nowhere Else

Start west of Highway 77

AZGFD's own unit guide is blunt: very few elk live east of Highway 77, and hunters do better west of it. We'd take that at face value. Most of 3A is classed as Minimal Occurrence Elk Management Zone. This isn't a unit where elk are everywhere, so don't spread yourself thin over 773 square miles.

The guide names three main ways into western 3A: Zeniff Road, the Oasis Trail (Old Holbrook Highway) and the Wind Farm Road. Start there. AZ 77, US 180 and AZ 377 are all paved and cross the unit boundary, so reaching the country is easy. Staying on ground you can legally hunt is the hard part.

The draws and knolls on the map

The guide doesn't tell you which drainage holds elk, so we won't pretend it does. What the terrain data gives us is a set of public-land draws and knolls. Treat them as places to scout, not as proven elk spots.

Draws: Ninemile (5,597 ft), Martinez (5,553), Sevenmile (5,368), Cheney (5,363), Goat Ranch (5,329), Hay Hollow (5,293) and Arthurs Meadow (5,195). Long Hollow is the high one in the group.
Glassing points: Fourmile Knoll (5,945), Pink Cliffs (5,933), Sugarloaf (5,891), Flattop Hill (5,845), Sheza Butte (5,713) and Point Lookout (5,611). Second Knolls is also flagged public.

We can't say from the packet which of these sit west of 77. Lay the highway over your map before you commit to any of them. Then pick a knoll that overlooks a draw.

Know whose ground you're on

The guide says BLM and State Trust are legal to hunt with a valid AZ hunting license. The ownership figures show State Trust at 8% and National Forest at 60%, with 32% private or other. That doesn't match the guide, which puts the Apache-Sitgreaves only in the far southwest corner. Trust the guide and your onX or BLM map over the percentage.

Several ranches north of Highway 277 are locked. Some private land isn't posted well, so don't assume a fence line means anything. Indian Rock, Buckhorn Hill, Red Hill, Monument Hill, Woodruff Butte, Bishops Nose, The Sinks and Bushman Draw are all flagged non-public in our terrain data. Skip them.

The southwest corner

The Forest in the far southwest is Winter Range Elk Management Zone. It's also the one place the guide says you can camp dispersed. The unit has no listed campgrounds. Otherwise you'll be sleeping in Snowflake, Taylor, Holbrook or Joseph City.

Unit 3A terrain and land status

Measured from the unit boundary, not from the agency write-up

The lay of it

5,229–6,057 ft on a terrain sample , averaging 5,580 ft ; peaks can run higher.
773.2 sq mi inside the boundary.

Who owns the ground

National Forest — 60%
State Trust — 8%
Private / Other — 32%

Roughly 68% is public. Carry a land-status layer anyway — these are area percentages, not a map of where the boundaries fall.

Water on the ground

445 tanks
195 stream segments
9 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: Second Knolls (6,191 ft), Fourmile Knoll (5,945 ft), Pink Cliffs (5,933 ft), Sugarloaf (5,891 ft)

Holding ground: Long Hollow (6,117 ft), Ninemile Draw (5,597 ft), Martinez Draw (5,553 ft)

Every one of these was tested against the unit polygon before it went on the map. They are starting points, not agency recommendations.

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How to Hunt 3A: Glass the Open Country, Call the Junipers

Success rates in the packet are 25% for rifle and 18% for archery. That's a hard unit, and the elk density explains it.

Glass first, then commit

AZGFD says binoculars are very effective for finding elk in the open areas, and that's most of this unit. Elevation runs only 5,229 to 6,057 feet, so there's no high country to hide in. Get on a public knoll like Fourmile, Sugarloaf or Flattop Hill before light and look down into the draws. Then wait. If nothing shows by mid-morning, move to the next knoll rather than burning the day on one.

Pre-season scouting matters more here than in a unit full of elk. The guide pushes it for two reasons: finding animals, and finding out whether the ground you're glassing is open to hunting.

Junipers and water

In the juniper woodland, the guide's list is calling, still-hunting and sitting near water. The mapped data shows 445 tanks, 9 lakes and no springs. Those tanks are your best shot at a pattern in dry country. Check the ones on public ground in the western part of the unit, and look for fresh sign before you settle in. Where you can't glass, move slowly and stop often.

Weather and roads

The guide calls the weather moderate, but plan for snow and cold on late hunts. Early hunts can see monsoonal storms. Roads can go muddy and slick fast. CR 5020 and 377g are graded gravel, fine for 2WD with a small trailer when dry. After rain, don't count on that.

Rules that matter

Hunt structure: Standard, Limited Opportunity, Population Management and OTC hunts all exist here, each with its own boundary. Check yours before you drive anywhere.
Cross-country travel is prohibited. Stay on roads.
Packing out: If your elk is down away from a road, expect to carry it out.
Vandalism: Cut fences, property damage and shot-up signs are strictly enforced.

A realistic day

Glass at dawn from a public knoll west of 77. Spend midday checking tanks and calling in the junipers. Glass again at dusk. Expect several days of finding nothing. A National Forest map is available from any District office or from AZGFD's Region I office in Pinetop.

Getting in and staying out: unit 3A

Named routes and what they need

AZ 277 — 13.6 mi · Paved (all rigs)
US 180 — 12.7 mi · Paved (all rigs)
AZ 377 — 9.8 mi · Paved (all rigs)
AZ 180A — 8.4 mi · Paved (all rigs)
CR 5020 — 5.5 mi · Graded gravel (2WD / small trailer)
377g — 5 mi · Graded gravel (2WD / small trailer)

Ratings come from road data, not from a drive this season. Check current conditions with the managing office before you commit a trailer.

Nearest services

Snowflake — 9.8 mi · fuel, groceries, lodging
Taylor — 13.1 mi · fuel, groceries
Holbrook — 18.5 mi · fuel, groceries, lodging
Joseph City — 26.5 mi · fuel, groceries
Show Low — 27.5 mi · fuel, groceries, lodging

Developed camps

Silver Sage Trailer Park

Season weather and signal

Jan50° / 21° · 0.7" precip
Aug89° / 58° · 1.8" precip
Sep84° / 50° · 1.1" precip
Oct73° / 38° · 0.9" precip
Nov60° / 27° · 0.7" precip
Dec49° / 20° · 0.8" precip

Best signal is Verizon at about 21% of the unit. Plan on being out of contact and tell someone your route.

Arizona rules that decide your day

Summarised from AZGFD regulations. They change — read the current regulations and your permit-tag before you hunt.

Legal shooting hours

Big game may be taken only during daylight hours — from sunrise to sunset. Check the sunrise and sunset times for your unit, not for Phoenix.

Motorized retrieval

Tagging

Sign your tag before you go afield and attach it to the animal immediately after the kill. Hunters aged 10–13 must carry their Hunter Education card with the licence and tag.

Leaving meat

Leaving edible meat in the field is illegal. Edible meat means the four quarters and the loins at a minimum.

Where you may not shoot

Occupied structures — No shooting within a quarter mile of an occupied farmhouse, cabin, lodge or building without the owner's permission. That rules out shooting toward most lakeside cabin tracts.
Campsites and developed areas — Forest Service rules prohibit discharging a firearm within 150 yards of a residence, building, campsite, developed recreation site or occupied area.
Roads and water — No shooting from a vehicle, and no shooting on, across or into a road. No shooting across a body of water adjacent to a Forest road.

Elk: where to put the shot

Broadside or quartering away, on the back edge of the front leg about a third of the way up the body. That is lungs, and on a quartering-away angle it picks up the far shoulder.

Shots to refuse

No straight-on and no straight-away shots. An elk's chest is deep and the margin is small.
Nothing standing behind or overlapping the animal you picked. A pass-through kills the elk behind it too.
Your maximum range is the farthest you have put three shots in a paper plate off the sticks you are actually carrying. Not the farthest you have ever hit anything.
Scope on 3–4x. A herd fills a 12x field of view and you lose the animal you picked.

Identification:On an antlerless tag, legal means no antler of any kind through the skin. A spike looks exactly like a cow until it turns its head. If you can't see the head, don't shoot.

Plan the carry: roughly 150– 220 lb of boned-out meat, before head and hide — two to four large coolers, plus bagged ice from town. ProHunt planning estimate, not an agency figure.

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Elk Success Rates

North Kaibab elk hunts routinely produce success rates in the 50–75% range for rifle seasons, and lower but solid rates (25–40%) for archery hunts. Unit 3A's high elk density and quality bulls give hunters realistic opportunities across weapon types. The plateau's open character allows glassing and spot-and-stalk hunting that experienced hunters execute efficiently.

Elk Draw Odds

Season	Tags	Applicants	Draw %	Pts (n/p)
Rifle — Early Rifle antlerless (combined pool)	5	5	60.0%	—
Rifle — Early Rifle either sex (combined pool)	5	11	18.2%	—
Rifle — Late Rifle Dec either sex (combined pool)	20	6	100.0%	—
Rifle — Early Rifle antlerless (combined pool)	5	11	45.5%	—
Rifle — Early Rifle either sex (combined pool)	5	25	4.0%	—
Rifle — Late Rifle Dec either sex (combined pool)	20	30	43.3%	—

Data from 2023 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 Engine

Unit 3A elk tags are some of the most sought-after in Arizona. Arizona's weighted bonus-point system means each point entered in your name once more in the draw pool — not squared — with a partial random component. Most rifle tags require 10–20+ bonus points depending on the hunt code. Archery and muzzleloader codes are somewhat more drawable. Apply consistently, accumulate points, and pursue the Hunter Education bonus to improve your draw position.

Unit Logistics & Expectations

Planning Notes

🚐

RV Sites

Limited developed sites. Some RV-accessible dispersed camping on BLM and state land near St. Johns.

⛺

Camp Sites

Dispersed camping available on BLM parcels within the checkerboard. Flat, open ground makes finding sites easy. Verify land ownership before camping.

🛻

Trailer Access

County roads handle trailers. Side roads and two-tracks may require high clearance.

💧

Water

Carry all water. St. Johns has basic services for water fill. This is arid grassland country.

🛣️

Road Conditions

County roads are maintained gravel. Ranch roads and two-tracks vary from decent to rough. Generally passable for 2WD in dry conditions but 4WD is recommended.

🥾

Terrain Difficulty

Easy. Open, flat to gently rolling grassland and juniper terrain. The challenge is closing distance on deer, not navigating terrain.

👥

Hunting Pressure

Low to moderate. The checkerboard land ownership pattern can limit access and distribute hunters unevenly.

🌦️

Weather

Fall temps range 25-65°F. Significant temperature swings between day and night. Wind can be relentless across the open grasslands.

📱

Cell Service

Some coverage near St. Johns. Spotty to none in the backcountry grasslands. Satellite communicator recommended.

🏘️

Nearest Town

St. Johns (basic services — fuel, groceries). Springerville/Eagar (20 min east) for more services. Show Low (45 min) for full services.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How does Unit 3A compare to Unit 1 for mule deer?

Unit 3A offers slightly easier draw odds and more open, glassable terrain. Trophy ceiling is a notch below Unit 1 but the wide-open grasslands near St. Johns make for a different hunting experience. Good option for hunters who want eastern Arizona deer without extreme point requirements.

Is there public land in Arizona Unit 3A?

Unit 3A has a checkerboard pattern of BLM, state trust, and private land. Public land access is available but requires careful navigation of ownership boundaries. Use the AZ Game & Fish Hunt Arizona app or a GPS mapping app to verify land status before hunting.

How big do pronghorn get in Arizona Unit 3A?

Unit 3A consistently produces bucks in the 70-80 inch range with occasional trophies pushing past 80 inches. The quality habitat and limited harvest allow bucks to reach maturity.

Can I hunt pronghorn with a bow in Unit 3A?

Yes, Arizona offers archery pronghorn tags. However, the open terrain makes closing within bow range extremely challenging. Spot-and-stalk to within 60 yards requires excellent use of terrain features, decoys, or water-source ambush setups.

Is the North Kaibab Unit 3A a good Arizona elk hunt?

Yes — Unit 3A is one of Arizona's premier elk destinations. The North Kaibab Plateau produces large-bodied, well-antlered bulls, and the elk density is among the highest in the state. The bonus-point requirement reflects this quality.

How many bonus points do I need for Arizona Unit 3A elk?

Rifle tags in Unit 3A typically require 10–20+ bonus points depending on the hunt code. Archery and muzzleloader tags are somewhat more accessible. Apply every year, accumulate points, and use Arizona's Hunter Education bonus to improve your draw position.

What is the best time to hunt elk in Unit 3A?

Archery in mid-September targets the peak rut with bugling bulls. Rifle hunters in October and November find elk concentrated in predictable feeding areas and timber after the rut. Water-hole hunting in August archery season is also highly productive on the plateau.

Free Hunt Planning Tools

🎰 Arizona Draw Odds Unit-level tag success rates 📅 Application Timeline Deadlines for all 9 states 🦌 Rut Forecast Peak rut timing by species 💰 Hunt Cost Calculator Budget your entire hunt

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Sources & Verification

Every fact on this page is tied to a primary source below. Last fact-checked 2026-04-18.

GMU 1 — Expanded Hunt Information (May 2025) — Arizona Game and Fish Department · supports: Unit boundaries and land ownership categories, Species present in the unit, Seasonal distribution and hunt areas, Habitat and access notes · accessed 2026-04-16
GMU 1 — Unit Landing Page — Arizona Game and Fish Department · supports: Canonical unit info page · accessed 2026-04-16
2026 Arizona Pronghorn and Elk Regulations — Arizona Game and Fish Department · supports: Season structure, Tag quotas, Hunt area boundaries · accessed 2026-04-16
2025-26 Arizona Hunting Regulations — Arizona Game and Fish Department · supports: Season structure, Bag limits, Legal equipment · accessed 2026-04-16
AZGFD Draw Portal — Hunt Drawing Information — Arizona Game and Fish Department · supports: Bonus point system, Draw application portal, Historical draw data · accessed 2026-04-16
GMU 3A — Expanded Hunt Information (April 2023) — Arizona Game and Fish Department · supports: Unit boundaries and land ownership categories, Species present in the unit, Seasonal distribution and hunt areas, Habitat and access notes · accessed 2026-04-16
GMU 3A — Unit Landing Page — Arizona Game and Fish Department · supports: Canonical unit info page · accessed 2026-04-16
Kaibab National Forest — North Kaibab Ranger District — USDA Forest Service · supports: Road network and MVUM, Dispersed camping regulations, Kaibab NF boundary · accessed 2026-04-18

Unit 3A (St. Johns)

Build your own PDF hunt guide for Unit 3A

Mule Deer Hunting in Unit 3A

Where to find 3A mule deer: west of AZ 77, in broken juniper with browse

Start west of AZ 77

What the right country looks like

Draws worth marking on your map

Knolls and buttes for glassing

Reaching it, and who owns what

Unit 3A terrain and land status

The lay of it

Who owns the ground

Water on the ground

Named features inside the unit

How to hunt 3A mule deer: glass the open ground, still-hunt the broken stuff

Mule Deer Success Rates

Mule Deer Draw Odds

Pronghorn Hunting in Unit 3A

Where to Find Pronghorn in 3A: West of Highway 77 and the Public Draws

Start west of State Route 77

Hay Hollow and the eastern draws

Public knobs for glassing

Land you'd better skip

Unit 3A terrain and land status

The lay of it

Who owns the ground

Water on the ground

Named features inside the unit

How to Hunt 3A Pronghorn: Glass, Plan the Road Network, Respect the Checkerboard

Pronghorn Success Rates

Pronghorn Draw Odds

Elk Hunting in Unit 3A

Where the Elk Are in 3A: West of Highway 77 and Nowhere Else

How to Hunt 3A: Glass the Open Country, Call the Junipers

Elk Success Rates

Elk Draw Odds

Unit Logistics & Expectations

Explore Related Units

Unit 1 — Springerville Mule Deer

Unit 3A — St. Johns Pronghorn

Unit 4A — Mogollon Rim Mule Deer

Unit 19A — Paulden Pronghorn

Frequently Asked Questions

Free Hunt Planning Tools

Plan Your Hunt with ProHunt Pro

Sources & Verification