Unit 033 (Sheldon Refuge, Sage Hen Hills and Catnip Mountain)
Nevada Hunting Guide — Pronghorn, Mule Deer
Unit 033 lies in northwestern Nevada within the Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge, about 850 square miles in Washoe and Humboldt counties. Antelope follow water and forage in August across the refuge's tables and uplands, from Gooch Table to Catnip Mountain. Hunters must camp in developed campgrounds, many areas need four-wheel drive, and the western Little Sheldon portion is closed to hunting.
Build your own PDF hunt guide for Unit 033
Answer a few questions about your tag, your season and your rig, and the Field Intelligence Report builds a print-ready Nevada Unit 033 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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Pronghorn Hunting in Unit 033
Unit 033 lies in northwestern Nevada within the Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge, about 850 square miles in Washoe and Humboldt counties. Antelope follow water and forage in August across the refuge's tables and uplands, from Gooch Table to Catnip Mountain. Hunters must camp in developed campgrounds, many areas need four-wheel drive, and the western Little Sheldon portion is closed to hunting.
Where to Find Pronghorn in Unit 033: Gooch Table, Fish Creek Table and Catnip Mountain
East Rock Springs Table to Catnip Mountain
NDOW names eight places to look: East Rock Springs Table, Gooch Table, Horse Heaven, the Sage Hen Hills, Round Mountain, Blowout Mountain, Fish Creek Table and Catnip Mountain. That's a good spread across the refuge, from tables to high points, and it gives you a scouting list before you ever leave camp.
Water and forage in August
On Sheldon, water and forage tend to matter most to antelope during August. NDOW says you can usually find them in most uplands with good water. So the sheet's areas are a starting map, and the water inside them is where to narrow the search. Check which tables and uplands have water that year and spend your glassing time there.
One boundary shapes the whole hunt. The western portion of Unit 033, known as Little Sheldon, is closed to hunting. Know where it starts before you plan a stalk on that side of the unit.
The sheet doesn't describe how antelope shift later in the season, so if you draw one of the later hunts, the same rule applies: follow the water and the green forage, and keep checking the tables NDOW lists rather than assuming the animals have left.
The ground NDOW draws for this tag
A pronghorn tag for this group is good in unit 033, about 848 square miles measured on NDOW's own boundary, in Humboldt County and Washoe County. The named ranges inside the line are Idaho Canyon Range, Badger Mountains and Sage Hen Hills. The highest named points are Catnip Mountain (7,292 ft), Badger Mountain (7,190 ft) and Alkali Peak (7,128 ft), and the lowest named ground sits near 4,337 feet. We don't print a land-status split for Nevada groups, because the figures we held didn't come from BLM's surface-management data; check BLM's current map for private parcels before you cross a fence or a cattle guard. GNIS names 55 springs inside it, Willow Spring, Cottonwood Spring, Devaney Spring and Rock Spring among them.
Unit 033 terrain and land status
Measured from the unit boundary, not from the agency write-up
Named features inside the unit
Glass from: Catnip Mountain (7,292 ft), Badger Mountains (7,193 ft), Alkali Peak (7,128 ft)
Holding ground: Horse Heaven (6,480 ft), Wild Horse Pasture (6,383 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 Pronghorn in Unit 033: Highways 8A, 34 and 140 into Sheldon
Pronghorn Success Rates
Horns longer than ears, any legal weapon: 14 of 20 hunters afield (70%); Horns longer than ears, any legal weapon: 15 of 21 hunters afield (71%); Horns longer than ears, archery: 2 of 10 hunters afield (20%); Horns longer than ears, muzzleloader: 1 of 3 hunters afield (33%). Figures are NDOW's own, from its 2025 Big Game Hunt Data.
Pronghorn Draw Odds
| Season | Tags | Applicants | Draw % | Pts (n/p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rifle — Early Season buck only (resident) | 40 | 431 | 9.3% | — |
| Rifle — Early Season buck only (nonresident) | 4 | 294 | 1.4% | — |
| Archery — Early Season buck only (resident) | 9 | 17 | 52.9% | — |
| Archery — Early Season buck only (nonresident) | 1 | 21 | 4.8% | — |
| Muzzleloader — Early Season buck only (resident) | 4 | 9 | 44.4% | — |
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 EngineFrom NDOW's 2025 Big Game Hunt Data. Demand is NDOW's count of tags awarded plus first-choice applicants who did not draw; its draw rate is tags over demand.
- Horns longer than ears, any legal weapon — Residents: 300 demand for 20 tags, a 6.7% draw rate; Nonresidents: 226 demand for 2 tags, a 0.9% draw rate.
- Horns longer than ears, any legal weapon — Residents: 131 demand for 20 tags, a 15.3% draw rate; Nonresidents: 68 demand for 2 tags, a 2.9% draw rate.
- Horns longer than ears, archery — Residents: 17 demand for 9 tags, a 52.9% draw rate; Nonresidents: 21 demand for 1 tag, a 4.8% draw rate.
- Horns longer than ears, muzzleloader — Residents: 9 demand for 4 tags, a 44.4% draw rate.
NDOW's hunt data publishes no points-required figure, so none is given here.
Unit Logistics & Expectations
Frequently Asked Questions
Which units does a Nevada pronghorn tag for 033 cover?
What was hunter success for pronghorn on units 033 in 2025?
How hard is the pronghorn draw for units 033?
Which units does a Nevada mule deer tag for 033 cover?
What was hunter success for mule deer on units 033 in 2025?
How hard is the mule deer draw for units 033?
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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 2026-10-25.
- Hunt Information Sheet — Pronghorn antelope, 033 — Nevada Department of Wildlife · supports: Access, Recommended hunting areas, Biologist comments · accessed 2026-10-25
- 2025 Nevada Big Game Hunt Data — Nevada Department of Wildlife · supports: Seasons, quotas and tags issued, Demand and draw rate by residency, Hunters afield, successful hunters and hunter success, Days hunted · accessed 2026-10-25
- NDOW Hunt Unit Boundaries — unit groups (ArcGIS) — Nevada Department of Wildlife · supports: Units 033, 848 square miles · accessed 2026-10-25
- Geographic Names Information System — named features inside the group — U.S. Geological Survey · supports: Idaho Canyon Range, Badger Mountains, Sage Hen Hills, Catnip Mountain 7,292 ft, Badger Mountain 7,190 ft · accessed 2026-10-25
- Hunt Information Sheet — Mule deer, 033 — Nevada Department of Wildlife · supports: Access, Recommended hunting areas, Biologist comments · accessed 2026-10-25