Where is BLM land in San Bernardino?

[cornholio1]

I heard I can shoot at Manzanita Flats for free. I am tired of shooting at the normal range. I called BLM and they said I can't use rifles south of the Barstow area! Can someone fill me in here, and where are other places I can shoot for free? I even rtied to buy a land use permit, but she said I don;t need one.

[glen avon]

you need to buy a BLM desert access guide for the area. that's the best way to find BLM land.

bunghole.

[HillBilly]

you need to buy a BLM desert access guide for the area. that's the best way to find BLM land.

bunghole.

Does the desert access guide specifically outlined shooting restrictions and such? I have yet to find any definitive answers for BLM areas, but I am not sure if I have seen one of these guides. Most everything I have seen only mentions shooting in a broad sense, or at least not exact enough to make me feel comfortable with the legality of shooting out there.

[glen avon]

"desert access guides" are maps showing BLM land and some restrictions. there can be other issues, i.e., BLM land that has been reserved, and others that are closed to shooting.

the riverside co local BLM office has an informational packet on shooting. maybe other offices do too.

you also have to cope with local (e.g., county) ordinances.

[MaxQ]

The BLM Barstow Field Office page about shooting:

http://www.blm.gov/ca/barstow/recshoot.html

The office is just off the 15 in Barstow, and they were well informed about shooting the last time I was in a few years ago. The West Mohave Plan they've worked out over the past few years has impacted a lot of shooting/OHV areas, particularly southeast of Barstow.

The Desert Access guides were great, but I think they're out of print, and the older ones are a bit outdated. The Surface Management Maps replaced them and can be ordered here:

http://www.blm.gov/ca/caso/iac/maps_pubroom.html

or, more maps and books here:

http://www.publiclands.org

[MaxQ]

Does the desert access guide specifically outlined shooting restrictions and such? I have yet to find any definitive answers for BLM areas, but I am not sure if I have seen one of these guides. Most everything I have seen only mentions shooting in a broad sense, or at least not exact enough to make me feel comfortable with the legality of shooting out there.

As glen avon said, the Desert Access Guides are regular folded paper maps. So are the Surface Management maps. They show terrain and are color coded by use - public, private, etc. I think they're 1:100,000 scale, so they aren't detailed like a Thomas Bros. map. But, you are typically dealing with large undeveloped areas, so a big yellow patch of public land on the map where shooting is allowed, is easy to physically identify.

Oh, maybe this should be moved to The Great California Outdoors Forum?

[Benellishooter]

Get the maps. Then, anything north of Hwy 58/40 is generally good for rifles.

[Oldtimer]

Try these:

https://www.socalcamping.com/shooting/shoot_info.html

https://www.desertsusa.com/placestogo/du_california.html

The "Desert Access Guide" is informative, but not exactly up-to-date. For current info, it's best to contact the BLM regional office that covers the area you wish to use.

The last that I heard, Manzanita Flats WAS an open shooting area, but it MAY have changed, for that info is several months old.