BOHNTR Report post Posted March 16, 2016 D-12 zone archery season is generally the month of October.....rifle season is the month of November. That's it.....no late season rut season here. Generally the deer rut the month of January in the eastern portion of the zone (CA/AZ line). 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
naturebob Report post Posted March 16, 2016 I have friday off. will look into the Cal web site .Might be something different a challenging. I allways look East and North of Az. to hunt ,I thought why not west..Thanks again.........BOB! 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cowkiller Report post Posted March 17, 2016 Bob, I really enjoyed your enthusiasm leading up to your elk hunt last year. I also had an early rifle elk tag last year. The anticipation was incredible! Well I was interested in the CA D-12 hunt and decided to give it a try last fall. Even the CA Dept of Wildlife folks were incredulous that a guy from CO would even consider hunting in CA. I made the trek for the rifle season during Thanksgiving week. I love hiking the desert and I enjoy the warm weather down south that time of year. I was excited to get deep into some of the wilderness areas. The deer hunting was mostly just an excuse to go exploring. I was extremely disappointed to find deer hunters driving vehicles up and down every wash. That was the case everywhere I went even 10 miles into multiple wilderness areas. It seems that driving washes is the primary method of hunting there and few obey the law. I did not kill a buck but I didn't really expect to. There were just enough deer around to keep me alert. I still enjoyed hiking the desert and seeing the wildlife like desert rams and lots of quail. I would go again but I would like to keep looking for an area the vehicles aren't getting into. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
naturebob Report post Posted March 17, 2016 Sad to hear about everyone driving every where. In New Mexico at least they stay on the main dirt roads and drink their Bud Light.........BOB! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ivhunter Report post Posted March 17, 2016 yup cowkiller has hunted the zone describing it pretty good.... I forgot to mention the bad from D12, let see in the 4 years I hunted it I've ran into.. drunks hunting, hidden meth labs, guys chasing a buck on a quad until they tired it and then they shot it, wash hunters, naked tweeker in middle of nowhere, guys that shoot towards you even though they see you, 8-10 hunters bunched up hunting 1 wash. It's pretty hardcore in some areas. Good thing that one can use all these bads and turn them into good, just play off of the mistakes they do. I like walking in at o'dark thirty and sit back and watch the show from a distant if I get lucky a buck will swing my way ;-). Don't get me wrong one can walk a few miles and find yourself in a beautiful place enjoying the outdoors to the max. Far from the people and the roads are the giant bucks that roam and only move at night, so I keep trying and enjoy my backyard and make the best of it. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
vogel002 Report post Posted July 9, 2017 I've been hunting the deserts of D16 for a few years now and my pops drew the D12 tag, we've always been curious about it as we drive by on our way to yuma a fair amount. IVhunter which I now I presume mean imperial valley, is there areas not to go, but to stay away from, the classic hot beds for road type, drunk hunters? I'm waiting for it to cool down a bit and then I'll start scouting and trying to figure out a spot. any thoughts on if hunting near the river or AG land would be fruitful or does everyone and their uncle already do that? 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jessedlc2 Report post Posted July 10, 2017 Dont mean to hijack, but i have a d17 tag... scouted once saw 4 does. I was going to put some serious time into it, but my cc got hit for Az!!!! And now my priorities change, any tips on hunting this unit, i was thinking north of 15 near clarke mountain or mid hills where i saw deer Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ivhunter Report post Posted July 10, 2017 vogel, yes everyone hits the AG areas and river first but don't mean squat if they don't know how to hunt the area. I've seen bucks slip by hunters all the time, to bad I wasn't in the right spot at the right time to capitalize on their mistakes at that moment... and that's if you like to be around other hunters and quads/side by sides driving by all day. Also don't be afraid to venture outside the box, your pops might just be rewarded. Good optics and patience will always prosper in this vast area. good luck. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
