GMU 51A: public land and hunting map
GMU 51A is one of New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, now New Mexico Department of Wildlife’s 70 Game Management Units in New Mexico. It covers about 795 square miles (508,839 acres), and roughly 86% of it is public land: Forest Service 85%, BLM under 1%, state land under 1%.
- 86%public land
- 795square miles
- 439,128public acres
- 6neighbouring units
Measured Oct 12, 2026 from agency boundaries and USGS PAD-US 4.1 · sources and method
Who manages the land
- Bureau of Land Managementunder 1%
- U.S. Forest Service85%
- State land (wildlife, trust and natural-resource agencies)under 1%
Share of the unit’s area. Federal agencies plus state wildlife, trust and natural-resource land, as the WikiHunt map classifies it. The rest is private, tribal, local or other land.
Units next to GMU 51A
New Mexico season dates, 2026
Statewide general seasons. Many units have their own dates, quotas or draw-only hunts, so check the unit in the regulations before you go.
| Species | Season | 2026 dates |
|---|---|---|
| Deer | Archery Deer | Sep 1 – Sep 24 |
| Deer | Rifle Deer | Oct 25 – Nov 5 |
| Elk | Archery Elk | Sep 1 – Sep 24 |
| Elk | Rifle Elk | Oct 18 – Nov 12 |
| Pronghorn | Rifle Antelope | Aug 10 – Aug 14 |
| Black bear | Bear | Aug 16 – Nov 15 |
Full notes on the New Mexico page · New Mexico regulations.
Questions
How much of GMU 51A is public land?
About 86% of GMU 51A (439,128 of 508,839 acres) is federal or state public land in USGS PAD-US 4.1, mostly U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management and State land (wildlife, trust and natural-resource agencies). Public land is not always open land: check access and closures before you go.
Who manages the land in GMU 51A?
U.S. Forest Service: 85%; Bureau of Land Management: under 1%; State land (wildlife, trust and natural-resource agencies): under 1%. The rest is private, tribal, local government or other land.
Which units border GMU 51A?
GMU 4, GMU 50, GMU 51B, GMU 52, GMU 5B and GMU 6C.
Where are the season dates and rules for GMU 51A?
New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, now New Mexico Department of Wildlife sets them. Start at the New Mexico hunting regulations. WikiHunt shows the statewide general seasons on the New Mexico page and in the app.
Sources and method
- Boundary: New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, now New Mexico Department of Wildlife (owner keary.howley@dgf.nm.gov_nmdgf), the same layer the WikiHunt map draws.
- Public land: USGS Protected Areas Database (PAD-US) 4.1, Fee Managers layer (public domain).
- Method: the unit and PAD-US polygons are simplified to about 100 m and measured on a grid of about 250 cells across the unit, so overlapping records are counted once. Expect about ±1 percentage point.
- Season dates: WikiHunt’s season table, updated Sep 2, 2026, checked against each state’s published regulations. Dates change; the regulations win.
- Last updated: Oct 12, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.