Eastern flank of the Jemez Mountains, volcanic terrain in the Santa Fe NF between roughly 6,000 and 10,000 feet. The lower margins are PJ woodland and open grassland on volcanic mesas. Climb higher and you hit dense mixed conifer and spruce-fir. The Valles Caldera National Preserve borders or overlaps portions of the unit, and that place has its own access rules, so don't assume you can just wander in. Rocky canyons, basalt rimrock, and eroded volcanic features define the landscape—its the kind of country where you can glass into a canyon and see five elk feeding on the opposite wall and still need two hours to get there. Land is primarily USFS, but Bandelier National Monument, Santa Clara Pueblo, and Cochiti Pueblo all border or overlap the unit, and every one of those is closed to hunting. NM 4 and NM 501 are your paved access; forest roads are variable and can become impassable when wet. Los Alamos and White Rock are the closest real towns. Cell service is decent near Los Alamos but drops off fast in the forest. Weather mirrors 6A—cold mornings, with heavy snow possible on late-season hunts. If you draw a November tag here, bring the kind of gear you'd pack for an elk camp in Colorado, because thats essentially what this is. Unit 6B IS the Valles Caldera National Preserve — 89,000 acres of volcanic grassland managed by the National Park Service, not the Forest Service. Hunting here is nothing like hunting on national forest. The elk and turkey hunts are part of the regular NMDGF state draw (not a separate lottery), but once you draw you must pay a $35 special-use permit fee plus a $20 entrance fee, attend a mandatory orientation at Banco Bonito staging area, and hunt between 4am and 9pm only. Only elk and Merriam turkey are hunted — no deer, no bear, no lion. Vehicle access is restricted to authorized routes; you get a vehicle tag and gate combinations at check-in. Roughly 2,500-3,000 elk live on the preserve. The NPS designates no-hunting zones around Valle Grande, South Mountain, and Rabbit Mountain. September through November hunts may overlap with prescribed burns — expect smoke, fire crews, and road closures. All hunters except turkey shotgunners must wear 244 square inches of blaze orange. This is one of the most unique hunting experiences in the state.