CDFW North Central Region: deer, elk and pronghorn hunting
CDFW's North Central Region, run from Rancho Cordova, is 35.4% national forest, BLM or CDFW land (CPAD 2026a). It holds most of the ground of 9 deer zones and 4 elk zones. By CDFW's 2025 estimates, the most deer were taken in Zone D3 (2,509), Zone D5 (2,484) and Zone B3 (1,222).
Data updated October 2026. Harvest: CDFW's 2025 deer harvest report. Land: CPAD 2026a. Region boundary: CDFW.
The North Central Region runs from the northern Sierra Nevada across the Sacramento Valley to the inner coast ranges. The Plumas, Tahoe, Eldorado and Mendocino national forests hold most of its public ground. Zone B-3, zones D-3 to D-5, the X-6 to X-8 zones and the Cache Creek, East Park Reservoir, Bear Valley and Lake Pillsbury tule elk zones lie mostly in it.
Which deer zones are in CDFW's North Central Region?
Each deer zone is listed under the region holding most of its ground. CDFW's 2025 numbers and the public land in each:
| Zone | Square miles | Public land | 2026 tags | Deer taken, 2025 | Hunter success, 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zone B3 | 1,056 | 41.2% | 35,000* | 1,222 | 32.5% |
| Zone D3 | 3,778 | 37.7% | 33,000* | 2,509 | 19% |
| Zone D4 | 2,275 | 22.2% | 33,000* | 905 | 19% |
| Zone D5 | 4,815 | 27.6% | 33,000* | 2,484 | 19% |
| Zone X6a | 1,234 | 48.7% | 330 | 247 | 77.2% |
| Zone X6b | 688 | 75.8% | 310 | 134 | 47.7% |
| Zone X7a | 705 | 56.1% | 230 | 52 | 23.4% |
| Zone X7b | 335 | 57.3% | 135 | 32 | 25% |
| Zone X8 | 520 | 89.4% | 210 | 49 | 24.3% |
* A quota shared by a group of zones (B, C or D3-5). Harvest: CDFW 2025 California Deer Harvest Statistics. Public land measured by FilledTag from California Protected Areas Database (CPAD) 2026a.
CDFW deer hunts with ground of their own in the region: Gray Lodge Shotgun Either-Sex Deer Hunt (G-12), Sutter-Yuba Wildlife Areas Either-Sex Deer Hunt (G-19), Daugherty Hill Wildlife Area Apprentice Either-Sex Deer Hunt (J-8), Little Dry Creek Apprentice Shotgun Either-Sex Deer Hunt (J-9), Bucks Mountain-Nevada City Apprentice Either-Sex Deer Hunt (J-16), Blue Canyon Apprentice Either-Sex Deer Hunt (J-17) and Pacific-Grizzly Flat Apprentice Either-Sex Deer Hunt (J-18).
Elk and pronghorn zones in the North Central Region
Elk: Bear Valley (2 elk taken in 2022), Cache Creek (4 elk taken in 2022), East Park Reservoir (2 elk taken in 2022) and Lake Pillsbury (5 elk taken in 2022).
Sources: CDFW Elk Hunt Statistics; CDFW Pronghorn Hunt Statistics.
How much public land is in the North Central Region?
| Manager | Acres | Share of the region |
|---|---|---|
| National forest | 3,962,716 | 31.7% |
| BLM | 343,692 | 2.8% |
| CDFW land | 116,604 | 0.9% |
| State park | 115,272 | 0.9% |
| Other state or federal land | 71,788 | 0.6% |
| National wildlife refuge | 33,034 | 0.3% |
| National Park Service | 14,401 | 0.1% |
Measured by FilledTag inside CDFW's region boundary from California Protected Areas Database (CPAD) 2026a. "Public land" on this page means national forest, BLM and CDFW land, the three managers whose ground is open to hunting under their own rules. National Park Service land, state parks and most other public ground are listed but not counted: hunting there is closed or limited. Land held by cities, counties, districts and private groups is not shown.
CDFW lands open to hunting in the North Central Region
26 CDFW wildlife areas and ecological reserves in the region have a page here, each with CDFW's 2026 rules:
- Antelope Valley Wildlife Area: 5,721 acres
- Cache Creek Wildlife Area: 2,520 acres
- Clear Lake Wildlife Area: 110 acres
- Colusa Bypass Wildlife Area: 1,358 acres
- Coon Hollow Wildlife Area: 725 acres
- Cosumnes River Ecological Reserve: 4,789 acres
- Crocker Meadows Wildlife Area: 2,988 acres
- Daugherty Hill Wildlife Area: 8,763 acres
- Feather River Wildlife Area: 2,433 acres
- Fremont Weir Wildlife Area: 1,457 acres
- Gray Lodge Wildlife Area: 9,239 acres
- Hallelujah Junction Wildlife Area: 13,520 acres
- Heenan Lake Wildlife Area: 1,660 acres
- Hope Valley Wildlife Area: 2,952 acres
- Indian Valley Wildlife Area: 3,709 acres
- North Table Mountain Ecological Reserve: 3,329 acres
- Oroville Wildlife Area: 11,598 acres
- Red Lake Wildlife Area: 848 acres
- Sacramento Bypass Wildlife Area: 387 acres
- Sacramento River Wildlife Area: 4,098 acres
- Smithneck Creek Wildlife Area: 2,407 acres
- Spenceville Wildlife Area: 11,728 acres
- Sutter Bypass Wildlife Area: 4,110 acres
- Truckee River Wildlife Area: 5,369 acres
- Upper Butte Basin Wildlife Area: 9,749 acres
- Warner Valley Wildlife Area: 702 acres
Get a California hunt plan when they open
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Until then, the free FilledTag app for iPhone has a map that works in every state, California included.
Sources: CDFW California Deer Harvest Statistics (2020 to 2025); California Protected Areas Database (CPAD) 2026a; CDFW terrestrial regions; CDFW 2026-2027 Waterfowl, Upland Game, and Public Use of Department Lands Regulations. FilledTag is not part of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
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