Recreation
- Details
- Written by: Bureau of Land Management
The public must register to participate in the virtual public meeting. Registrants will then receive a link and phone numbers to join the meeting. Please contact the BLM for reasonable accommodations to participate.
“This public meeting will give off-highway vehicle users a chance to visit with BLM staff and discuss changes or improvements to enhance outdoor recreation,” said BLM Ukiah Field Manager Nicholas Lavrov. “The BLM will use public feedback to prepare grant applications to the California State Parks’ Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation Division (Division) Grants and Cooperative Agreements Program for law enforcement, restoration, and ground operations and maintenance projects.”
The Division supports well-managed off-highway vehicle recreation in California by distributing more than $30 million annually collected from gas tax, entrance fees and OHV sticker registrations.
Cities, counties, districts, federal and state agencies, educational institutions, federally recognized Native American Tribes and nonprofit entities can apply for funds to develop, maintain and restore trails; provide law enforcement; and offer safety and training for riders.
Preliminary applications must be submitted to the Division no later than Mar. 6 and will be available on their website at www.ohv.parks.ca.gov for additional public review and comment from Mar. 7 through May 1.
The website will provide detailed instructions for accessing the preliminary applications and submitting comments.
Public comments must be submitted to both the Division and to the BLM Ukiah Field Office by May 1, 2023.
Comments may also be emailed to the BLM at
- Details
- Written by: Anderson Marsh State Historic Park
The walks begin at 8:30 a.m.
Parking is free for those attending. No pets are permitted on the park trails. The leisurely walks are led by volunteer State Parks docents on a 3-mile trail over mostly level terrain.
There is no charge for the guided nature walks and parking is free for those attending.
The next guided nature walk is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 11. The February nature walk will be led by Henry Bornstein, a certified California Naturalist and volunteer State Parks docent.
Bring binoculars and meet in the parking lot at 8:15 a.m. for time to experience the early morning wildlife that can be found in the Ranch House and Barn complex yard. The walk will begin at 8:30 a.m.
Everyone is invited to take a walk in the park and experience the benefits of getting out into nature for some healthy exercise. Rain will cancel the walk.
Anderson Marsh State Historic Park is located on Highway 53, between Lower Lake and Clearlake.
- Details
- Written by: California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Can I shoot a coyote with a compound bow?
Q: I live in a condominium complex in Orange County, and coyotes sometimes run around the building — which worries those of us who have small dogs. Can I legally shoot a coyote with a compound bow if I obtain a California hunting license?
A: Assuming you are asking specific to the condominium complex where you describe seeing the coyote, the quick answer is no. Here’s why:
Per California Code of Regulations, Title 14, section 472(a), a coyote is categorized as a nongame mammal. This means you can hunt them if you have a hunting license and a legal place to hunt.
Coyotes may be taken at any time of the year and in any number, and archery equipment is a legal method of take. However, most cities restrict the discharge of a firearm in urban areas like those with condominium complexes.
Many municipalities further restrict the discharge of archery equipment, and pellet rifles as well. You would have to check your local ordinances to see what is prohibited.
After those possible restrictions, here's the primary law that would prohibit you from hunting a coyote in or very near your condominium complex: California Fish and Game Code section 3004(a) makes it unlawful for a person, other than the owner, person in possession of the premises, or a person having the express permission of the owner or person in possession of the premises, while within 150 yards of an occupied dwelling house, residence or other building, or within 150 yards of a barn or other outbuilding used in connection with an occupied dwelling house, residence or other building, to either hunt or discharge a firearm or other deadly weapon while hunting. The 150-yard area is a “safety zone.”
We encourage you to visit CDFW’s Keep Me Wild page where you’ll find information on how to best coexist with coyotes and prevent attracting them in the first place. You can also reach out to CDFW’s regional offices or submit a Wildlife Incident Report online if you’re experiencing conflicts with coyotes in your community.
Legal buck?
Q: This past deer season, my hunting friends and I got into a heated debate about whether the buck in the photo would be legal to harvest. What would CDFW say? The photo is from a trail camera on a ranch where we have permission to shoot.
A: Great question! Thanks for the photo. Yes, the buck – or male deer – in your photo is legal to take during deer season with a proper deer tag for the zone and a valid hunting license.
A California deer tag that allows the harvest of a buck has a minimum requirement of a buck that is forked horn or better. California Code of Regulations, Title 14, section 351 defines a forked-horn buck as a “male deer having a branched antler on either side with the branch in the upper two-thirds of the antler. Eyeguards or other bony projections on the lower one-third of the antler shall not be considered as points or branches.”
While the deer in your photo is missing an antler on one side, it clearly has a branched antler on the other side with the branch in the upper two-thirds of the antler, which makes it legal. If the buck is still out on the landscape, he will likely look much different next season.
Male deer shed their antlers annually and regrow them through the spring and summer. Deer antlers get bigger each year so this should be a fine-looking animal if you’re lucky enough to encounter it next deer season.
Spearfishing
Q: Can I spearfish in freshwater inland lakes, streams and rivers?
A: There are only a few inland waters where spearfishing is allowed, and the species that can be taken by spearfishing is limited. Information on location and species can be found in CDFW’s California Freshwater Sport Fishing Regulations booklet.
The definition of “spearfishing” comes from California Code of Regulations, Title 14, section 1.76:
The taking of fish by spear or hand by persons who are in the water and may be using underwater goggles, face plates, breathing tubes, scuba or other artificial underwater.
Locations for spearfishing can be found in California Code of Regulations, Title 14, section 2.30. Spearfishing is permitted only in:
(a) The Colorado River District for carp, tilapia, goldfish and mullet, all year.
(b) The Valley District and Black Butte Lake (Tehama County) for carp, tilapia, goldfish, striped bass, western sucker, Sacramento blackfish, hardhead, Sacramento pikeminnow and lamprey, from May 1 through Sept. 15, except that no spearfishing is permitted in:
(1) Shasta County (see Section 2.12).
(2) Tehama County except Black Butte Lake.
(3) Butte Creek (Butte Co.).
(4) Feather River below Oroville Dam (Butte Co.).
(5) Designated salmon spawning areas (See California Fish and Game Code section 1505).
(c) The Kern River from the Kern-Tulare county line upstream to the Johnsondale Bridge for carp, goldfish, western sucker, hardhead and Sacramento pikeminnow, from May 1 through Sept.15.
(d) See bullfrogs (Section 5.05).
- Details
- Written by: California Department of Fish and Wildlife
The new regulations were adopted by the Pacific Fishery Management Council in June 2022 and the California Fish and Game Commission in November 2022 and are expected to take effect on or around Jan. 1, 2023.
As in previous years, the boat-based fishery for most groundfish species will be closed statewide beginning Jan. 1, while spear divers and shore-based anglers will continue to have year-round fishing opportunities for groundfish.
For groundfish including Rockfish, Cabezon and Greenling, or RCG, as well as lingcod, the boat-based seasons will bring a mix of increased and reduced fishing opportunities, depending on the species.
Unlike prior years, all Groundfish Management Areas will have a portion of the season when ‘all-depth’ fishing is allowed and anglers are not subject to the Rockfish Conservation Area, or RCA, depth constraints. This allows new fishing opportunities for deeper-water shelf and slope rockfish, which are most abundant in areas that have been previously closed to recreational groundfish fishing.
The following is a summary of the new boat-based regulations for RCG species and lingcod in each management area:
Southern Management Area between 34°27' N. latitude (Point Conception) and the U.S./Mexico border:
• For nearshore rockfish, cabezon and greenlings: closed Jan. 1 through March 31, open at all depths April 1 through Sept. 15, closed Sept. 16 through Dec. 31.
• For all other rockfish (shelf and slope species) and lingcod: closed Jan. 1 through March 31, open at all depths April 1 through Sept. 15. From Sept. 16 through Dec. 31, take of shelf and slope rockfish and lingcod is open seaward of the 50 fathom RCA line. Take is prohibited shoreward of the 50 fathom RCA line.
• Additional regulations still apply within the Cowcod Conservation Areas.
Central Management Area between 37°11' N. latitude (Pigeon Point) and 34°27' N. latitude (Point Conception):
• For nearshore rockfish, cabezon and greenlings: closed Jan. 1 through April 30, open at all depths May 1 through Sept. 30, closed Oct. 1 through Dec. 31.
• For all other rockfish (shelf and slope species) and lingcod: closed Jan. 1 through April 30, open at all depths May 1 through Sept. 30. From Oct. 1 through Dec. 31, take of shelf and slope rockfish and lingcod is open seaward of the 50 fathom RCA line. Take is prohibited shoreward of the 50 fathom RCA line.
San Francisco Management Area between 38°57.5' N. latitude (Point Arena) and 37°11' N. latitude (Pigeon Point):
• For nearshore rockfish, cabezon and greenlings: closed Jan. 1 through July 15, open at all depths July 16 through Dec. 31.
• For all other rockfish (shelf and slope species) and lingcod: closed Jan. 1 through May 14.
• From May 15 through July 15, take of shelf and slope rockfish and lingcod is open seaward of the 50 fathom RCA line. Take is prohibited shoreward of the 50 fathom RCA line. From July 16 through Dec. 31, open at all depths.
Mendocino Management Area between 40°10' N. latitude (near Cape Mendocino) and 38°57.5' N. latitude (Point Arena):
• For nearshore rockfish, cabezon and greenlings: closed Jan. 1 through July 15, open at all depths July 16 through Dec. 31.
• For all other rockfish (shelf and slope species) and lingcod: closed Jan. 1 through May 14.
• From May 15 through July 15, take of shelf and slope rockfish and lingcod is open seaward of the 50 fathom RCA line. Take is prohibited shoreward of the 50 fathom RCA line. From July 16 through Dec. 31, open at all depths.
Northern Management Area between the California/Oregon state line and 40°10' N. latitude (near Cape Mendocino):
• For rockfish, cabezon, greenlings and lingcod: closed Jan. 1 through May 14, open at all depths May 15 through Oct. 15, closed Oct. 16 through Dec. 31.
Anglers will need to identify rockfish species they catch, and beginning in 2023, be able to determine if the fish is categorized as a nearshore, shelf or slope rockfish species, as different seasons and depths apply to each category depending on the Groundfish Management Area and month.
The RCG bag limit will remain at 10 fish in combination of rockfish, cabezon and greenlings, with sub-bag limits of not more than four vermilion rockfish, one copper rockfish and one quillback rockfish. Take and possession of cowcod, yelloweye and bronzespotted rockfish will remain prohibited.
The new groundfish regulations are a significant departure from the fishing seasons and depth limits that anglers are accustomed to and are necessary due to scientific information suggesting that copper rockfish and quillback rockfish populations are in severe decline.
The season structures for each management area were developed in consultation with fishing industry representatives, non-governmental organizations and state, federal and tribal governments, and were designed to provide the greatest amount of groundfish fishing time and opportunity to anglers throughout the year.
“While recognizing there are concerns with copper and quillback rockfish that will reduce nearshore fishing time in the near-term, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) is excited to offer recreational anglers new deeper-water and offshore bank and reef opportunities for groundfish that have been closed for more than two decades,” said CDFW Environmental Program Manager Marci Yaremko. “We look forward to seeing the diversity of healthy species come across the docks in the coming years as significant new fishing grounds will now be available to recreational angling.”
There are also changes for several species that have been subject to boat-based closures in the past, which may offer new alternatives for boat-based anglers as early as January. They include:
• New year-round opportunities: ocean whitefish, California scorpionfish, leopard shark, soupfin shark, Dover sole, English sole, arrowtooth flounder, spiny dogfish, skates, ratfish, grenadiers, finescale codling, Pacific cod, Pacific whiting, sablefish and thornyheads will now be open year-round in all depths, statewide.
• Boat-based fishing for California sheephead, will be open from March 1 through Dec. 31, statewide. The bag limit, regardless of fishing mode, will decrease from five fish to two fish.
To meet harvest goals, the recreational groundfish fishery is subject to in-season regulatory changes. Please stay informed by visiting CDFW’s summary of recreational groundfish fishing regulations webpage before fishing.
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