AmmoSight

California Deer · Zone D12

California Zone D12 spans 5,332,968 acres, centered 61 miles south-east of Twentynine Palms. 71% of it is public land, mostly BLM (52%) and national park (14%). In 2025, hunters took 121 deer here; hunter counts not published. Its most applied-for hunt, D12, put up 950 tags (all residencies) in the 2025 draw for 1,078 first-choice applicants (one pool for residents and nonresidents).

Tags, 2025
950

1 license

Applicants
1,078

first choice, NR

Hunter Success
13%

2025, all licenses

Public Land
71%

74% BLM

Size
8,333 mi²

5,332,968 acres

Twentynine Palms Temecula Escondido Baker Chula Vista D12
13%hunter success 2025

Boundaries are drawn for orientation only. The written boundary description in the regulations governs.

Best Bets at 0 Points

Ranked by your odds times how often that license type's hunters filled their tag in 2025. Nonresident, first choice, 2025 draw; licenses with at least 10 tags that anyone can buy.

D12
Standard · buck
85%
Zone D12 Archery and General Seasons - Buck
Success
13%
Season
Nov 1–23
Tags / Apps
950 / 1,078
If Drawn
$588.01

Every License in Zone D12

90–100% 50–89% 10–49% 1–9% under 1% fewer than 5 tags: one applicant swings it
D12 85% —

First-choice nonresident odds at your points, 2025 draw. Cut = points the last tag went at; ▲ = points added since the earliest draw on file.

Draw results: CDFW 2025 Deer Tag Drawing Statistics, retrieved Sep 1, 2026.

If you draw (2025 nonresident fees): $588.01 ($588.01 to apply). Open Apr 15 – Jun 2, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.

Harvest

Year Deer Success
2025 121 13%
2024 170 18%
2023 113 12%
2022 78 8%
2021 106 11%

What California Department of Fish and Wildlife publishes after each season, for everyone who hunted the area: harvest statistics, not draw odds. Hunter counts not published for 2025. Source: CDFW 2025 Deer Harvest Statistics; CDFW 2024 Deer Harvest Statistics; CDFW 2023 Deer Harvest Statistics.

The Ground

BLM 2,781,241 ac 52%
National Park Service 772,478 ac 14%
State land 98,366 ac 2%
Other public 56,108 ac 1%
County or city land 31,429 ac <1%
National Wildlife Refuge 23,827 ac <1%
Private or other non-public land 1,569,516 ac 29%

Source: GreenInfo Network 2026 Protected Areas Database a.

Next Door

▸ Sources 9
  1. CDFW 2025 Deer Tag Drawing Statistics draw results, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
  2. CDFW 2025 Big Game Hunting Digest fees, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
  3. CDFW 2025 Deer Harvest Statistics harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
  4. CDFW 2024 Deer Harvest Statistics harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
  5. CDFW 2023 Deer Harvest Statistics harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
  6. CDFW 2022 Deer Harvest Statistics harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
  7. CDFW 2021 Deer Harvest Statistics harvest, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
  8. CDFW 2014 Deer Hunt Zones boundary, area description, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
  9. GreenInfo Network 2026 Protected Areas Database a land ownership, retrieved Sep 1, 2026

About These Numbers

Odds are from the 2025 draw, the latest on file, computed from California Department of Fish and Wildlife's published results. They are what happened in that draw, not a forecast. Under five tags a percentage carries a *, because one applicant either way swings it. A dash means the agency did not publish the number, and a date marked expected is last cycle's schedule rolled forward. How we compute these.

Report an error on this page

Every report is checked against the agency source before we change anything.

We don't take applications: check California Department of Fish and Wildlife's site and apply there.

Prior-draw odds from California Department of Fish and Wildlife's results, not a forecast · Methodology · All California deer hunts