Zone X-7a is located in portions of Lassen, Nevada, Plumas and Sierra counties in the east-central portion of the state north of Lake Tahoe.

Make certain to carry a bear tag in this area as bears are in abundance and may increase your opportunity for a harvest. The bear season in this zone opens after the deer general season opens here. This zone gives up some large bears in the brown color phase annually.This zone is also a beginner’s level off-road vehicle area. During archery weekends, particularly Labor Day weekend, the area can be overrun with noisy, recreational enthusiasts.

The terrain in this zone varies quite a bit from the low valleys to the tops of the mountains. The weather is usually quite hot and dry, but early storms are not uncommon. Snowfall will be a rare occurrence with these storms but heavy rains can make many roads very difficult, if not impossible, to travel.

The vegetation is highly varied throughout Zone X-7a ranging from low sage, sagebrush, bitterbrush, aspen, hardwood-conifer, conifer and juniper to alpine habitats.

This zone has a lot of brush fields and regrowth. It was known as a trophy hotspot for years after the fire that had cleared through this area creating more productive habitat, but that is lessening as the trees are beginning to take back over again.

Major access to Zone X-7a is provided by Highways 80 and 89. North of Highway 80 and west of Highway 89, private lands are checkerboarded throughout much of the Tahoe National Forest. Zone X-7a contains a mixture of both public and private lands.

There is a lot of public land and timber company land with access to hunt within this zone at the higher elevations.

There are several USFS campgrounds within the Zone X-7a and these are shown on the map of the Tahoe National Forest. Informal camping is allowed on both USFS and BLM lands, but campfire permits are required. Permits may be obtained from any USFS, BLM or California Department of Forestry (CDF) office. Commercial lodging facilities are available in Truckee and Portola. Bear Creek campground is a nice campground in the middle of the old Martis Creek fire area regrowth, offering easy access to much of the hunting grounds later in the season.