Deer Hunt Area DG-02 (Devils Garden 02)
Oregon Hunting Guide — Deer (Buck)
Devils Garden 02 covers the Paulina WMU and the southern part of Upper Deschutes, from the Cascade crest near Maiden Peak to Christmas Valley. Buck ratios sit above objective for this herd range.
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Deer (Buck) Hunting in Unit DG-02
Devils Garden 02 covers the Paulina WMU and the southern part of Upper Deschutes, from the Cascade crest near Maiden Peak to Christmas Valley. Buck ratios sit above objective for this herd range.
Where to Find Buck Deer in Devils Garden 02: the Flat Top fringes, the reservoirs and Fox Butte
Crest to desert in one tag
This hunt area is mostly the Paulina WMU, with a smaller piece of Upper Deschutes. ODFW says hunters with this tag can hunt from the crest of the Cascades around Maiden Peak all the way to Green Mountain by Christmas Valley.
The named high points are Paulina Peak, Maiden Peak, North Paulina Peak, Galo Butte and Kawak Butte. Low ground sits just under three thousand feet. East Lake, Cinder Hill and Little Crater campgrounds sit in the Paulina Lake basin.
Where ODFW points you
The forecast says buck ratios remain above management objective for this herd range, at twenty-three bucks per hundred does over the last five years. For places to go, it lists the fringes of the Flat Top fire, areas around Wickiup and Davis reservoirs, and the Fox Butte Travel Management Area.
It also says forest management stands and areas without road access increase your odds. US 97, OR 31 and OR 27 are the main highways, with National Forest Development Road 9775 and County Road 5-12B on the backside.
The area includes a youth hunt as well as the standard rifle and archery seasons.
The ground ODFW draws for this hunt
ODFW's Deer Hunt Area DG-02 covers about 2,561 square miles measured on ODFW's own polygon, and ODFW rates it 77% public land. It takes in parts of these WMUs: Paulina (about 85%) and Upper Deschutes (about 15%). Named features inside the line fall in Deschutes County, Lake County, Klamath County and Crook County. Elevation runs from about 2,967 to 7,972 feet. The highest named points are Paulina Peak (7,972 ft), Maiden Peak (7,789 ft) and North Paulina Peak (7,684 ft). ODFW's line is the legal one, so check it against a current land-ownership map, and get permission before you cross private ground or a locked gate inside it.
Unit DG-02 terrain and land status
Measured from the unit boundary, not from the agency write-up
The lay of it
- 3,313–5,500 ft on a terrain sample , averaging 4,636 ft ; peaks can run higher.
- 2,560.9 sq mi inside the boundary. Big enough that picking one drainage beats driving three.
Who owns the ground
- National Forest — 60%
- BLM — 15%
- State Trust — 8%
- Private / Other — 17%
Roughly 83% is public. Carry a land-status layer anyway — these are area percentages, not a map of where the boundaries fall.
Water on the ground
- 275 tanks
- 6 springs
- 193 stream segments
- 43 lakes
Counts from mapping data, so this is how many exist, not how many hold water in a dry year. Sitting water only pays where you find fresh tracks.
Named features inside the unit
Glass from: Paulina Peak (7,972 ft), Maiden Peak (7,789 ft), North Paulina Peak (7,684 ft), Kawak Butte (7,363 ft)
Holding ground: North Canyon (6,748 ft), Long Meadow (5,481 ft), Coyote Flat (5,312 ft)
Every one of these was tested against the unit polygon before it went on the map. They are starting points, not agency recommendations.
How to Hunt Buck Deer in Devils Garden 02: hunt the roadless pockets and the stands
Get away from the roads
ODFW says to look for forest management stands and areas that don't have road access. In a hunt area this big, most hunters stay close to the truck, so a mile of walking puts you on quieter ground.
Thinning units and old burn fringes give deer feed next to cover. Sit on the edge of one in the first and last light and glass slowly.
Match the tactic to the terrain
Near the crest, the ground is wooded and still-hunting works. Out toward Fox Butte and the Christmas Valley side, the country opens and glassing takes over. Pick one end and learn it rather than trying to cover everything.
The reservoirs at Wickiup and Davis draw deer in a dry fall, so watch the draws that run to the water. If the weather stays hot and dry, expect deer to move at night and bed in shade by day.
The area offers a rifle hunt, a long archery season and a youth hunt. Archers have the most time to wait for a mature buck, and rifle hunters have a short window that rewards scouting.
Check fire closures with the Deschutes National Forest and BLM before you go. After a kill, quarter the deer and cool the meat promptly.
ODFW's 2026 buck deer hunts on this ground
Seasons, bag limits and tags come from ODFW's 2026 regulations. Check the current book before you apply or go, because these change every year.
- DG102 Devils Garden 02, Oct. 3 - Oct. 14: 1,430 tags, one buck with visible antler.
- DG102R Devils Garden 02 Bow, Aug. 29 - Sep. 27: 385 tags, one buck with visible antler.
- DG102T Devils Garden 02 Youth, Sep. 28 - Oct. 14: 28 tags, one buck with visible antler.
The 2025 harvest in ODFW's numbers
ODFW has no harvest figures on the new hunt areas yet. Its 2025 statistics are by WMU, for all deer hunters, every season and tag type, so these are the units this area was drawn from, and each covers more or less ground than the area does.
- Paulina (about 85% of this area): 696 hunters, 183 animals, 26% success over 3,761 hunter days.
- Upper deschutes (about 15% of this area): 1,235 hunters, 261 animals, 21% success over 6,642 hunter days.
Roads in and the nearest towns
The longest named roads through this ground are OR 27, Millican Road, CR 5-12B and National Forest Development Road 9775. The nearest towns are La Pine (17 mi), Sunriver (18 mi) and Bend (25 mi), measured from the centre of the unit.
Getting in and staying out: unit DG-02
Named routes and what they need
- OR 27 — 15.5 mi · Paved (all rigs)
- Millican Road — 14.3 mi · Graded gravel (2WD / small trailer)
- CR 5-12B — 14.2 mi · Graded gravel (2WD / small trailer)
- National Forest Development Road 9775 — 12.8 mi · High-clearance
- US 20 — 12.6 mi · Paved (all rigs)
- OR 31 — 12.4 mi · Paved (all rigs)
Ratings come from road data, not from a drive this season. Check current conditions with the managing office before you commit a trailer.
Nearest services
- La Pine — 17.3 mi · fuel, groceries, gear
- Sunriver — 18.2 mi · fuel, groceries, gear
- Bend — 25 mi · fuel, groceries, lodging, gear
- Deschutes — 31 mi · no services listed
- Tumalo — 31.1 mi · fuel, groceries
Developed camps
- Chief Paulina Horse Camp · reservable
- Cinder Hill Campground · reservable
- East Lake Campground · reservable
- Little Crater Campground · reservable
- McKay Crossing Campground · Fee · reservable
Season weather and signal
- Jan40° / 21° · 2.5" precip
- Aug83° / 43° · 0.5" precip
- Sep76° / 37° · 0.6" precip
- Oct62° / 30° · 1.2" precip
- Nov47° / 26° · 2.2" precip
- Dec39° / 21° · 3" precip
Best signal is Verizon at about 26% of the unit. Plan on being out of contact and tell someone your route.
Oregon rules that decide your day
Summarised from ODFW regulations. They change — read the current regulations and your permit-tag before you hunt.
Legal shooting hours
Big game may be taken from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset.
Motorized retrieval
Oregon has no general off-road retrieval allowance; several travel-management areas close roads during hunting season.
Tagging
Validate the tag and attach it to the carcass before leaving the kill site.
Leaving meat
Wasting edible meat is illegal.
Where you may not shoot
- Occupied structures — No shooting from or across a public road, and no shooting within range of an occupied dwelling without permission.
Deer (Buck): where to put the shot
Broadside or quartering away, on the back edge of the front leg about a third of the way up the body.
Shots to refuse
- Nothing behind or overlapping the animal you picked.
- Your maximum range is the farthest you have shot a three-shot group into a paper plate from the rest you are carrying.
- Pass the shot you are talking yourself into.
Plan the carry: roughly 40– 120 lb of boned-out meat, before head and hide — two large coolers. ProHunt planning estimate, not an agency figure.
Deer (Buck) Success Rates
Unit 35: 183 of 696 hunters, 26%; Unit 34: 261 of 1,235 hunters, 21%. Figures are ODFW's own 2025 harvest statistics, by WMU, because the new hunt areas have no history yet.
Deer (Buck) Draw Odds
Draw odds data not available for this specific unit/species combination in our database.
Search Oregon Draw OddsODFW's eastern deer hunts carry new numbers from 2026, so the regulations list them as NEW, with no applicant history to quote. Treat any older WMU draw figures as a different hunt.
Unit Logistics & Expectations
Planning Notes
Camp Sites
Developed campgrounds: Chief Paulina Horse Camp, Cinder Hill Campground, East Lake Campground, Little Crater Campground.
Road Conditions
OR 27, Millican Road and CR 5-12B are the longest named roads.
Terrain Difficulty
Named features run from 2,967 to 7,972 ft. More than 4,000 feet of relief, so plan the pack-out before the shot.
Weather
Season normals: Sep 76/37°F, 0.6 in.; Oct 62/30°F, 1.2 in.; Nov 47/26°F, 2.2 in.; Dec 39/21°F, 3 in..
Nearest Town
La Pine (17 mi), Sunriver (18 mi), Bend (25 mi)
Permit Notes
Check ODFW's 2026 regulations for hunt boundaries, seasons and tag rules before you go.
Frequently Asked Questions
What ground does this Oregon buck deer page cover?
What's the biggest 2026 buck deer hunt here?
What was hunter success for buck deer here in 2025?
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Upgrade to Pro — $49/yrSources & Verification
Every fact on this page is tied to a primary source below. Last fact-checked 2026-10-30.
- 2026 Oregon Big Game Hunting Regulations — Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife · supports: Hunt areas and boundary descriptions, Seasons, bag limits and 2026 tags · accessed 2026-10-30
- Big Game hunting forecast, 2026/27 — Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife · supports: Field reports by hunt area and WMU · accessed 2026-10-30
- Devils Garden Hunt Area DG-02 — Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife · supports: Boundary description, Public-land share · accessed 2026-10-30
- Big game hunting harvest statistics, 2025 — Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife · supports: Hunters, harvest and success · accessed 2026-10-30
- 2026 Eastern Oregon Deer Hunt Areas (ArcGIS) — Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife · supports: 2,561 square miles · accessed 2026-10-30
- Geographic Names Information System — named features inside the boundary — U.S. Geological Survey · supports: Paulina Peak 7,972 ft, Maiden Peak 7,789 ft · accessed 2026-10-30