Deer Hunting on State Land in Central California Allowed for First Time in Decades

A mule deer at Dos Rios State Park in the San Joaquin Valley. Brian Baer/California State Parks

A handful of hunters will be allowed to bag a deer in Central California this year, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife announced July 9.

Sections of the Los Baños and North Grasslands wildlife areas were opened for deer hunting for the first time since the department started regulating hunting in 1945 after the deer population in the area grew to a huntable number, according to the department’s spokeswoman Krysten Kellum.

The California Fish and Game Commission, a five-member board that regulates recreational, commercial, scientific, and educational uses of state-managed land, approved a department request to have deer added as a harvestable species on the wildlife areas. The change was put into place July 1, Ms. Kellum told The Epoch Times in an email.

Hunters are encouraged to apply for permits to hunt deer in the Los Baños and North Grasslands wildlife areas, located about 70 miles north of Fresno.

The fish and wildlife department will select 11 permits—five on Los Baños, three on Salt Slough, and three on China Island--during this year’s deer season, which runs from Sept. 16 through Sept. 22. The drawing will be held at 11 a.m. Aug. 6. The chosen applicants will be notified by mail within five working days after the drawing.

Those who apply must already have a valid hunting license, a deer tag for a specific zone, and must follow all hunting regulations, according to the department.

A license for a California resident age 16 or over costs $62. A deer tag costs an additional $41.

Hunters must also stick to regulations regarding parking and driving through the area. Each hunter is allowed to bring one non-hunting guest with them, and the areas will be closed to all other visitors throughout the week.