We need to clean up our act

[SDHNTR]

I just got off the phone with a very nice lady from the BLM here in San Diego. I called her aslking for a place to shoot as my old spot is closed down for erosion control after the fire last year. I spoke with her for quite some time and she mentioned that more and more areas may be shut down to target shooting. They seem to be going the way of the Cleveland National Forest. She mentioned instances of people shooting signs, fences and gates, and transistors off power lines. Then of course there is the trash. Everyone brings junk out there to shoot and then leaves it there. There is also the native plant concern. She said that the shooters often drive off designated routes and even shoot at "sensitive" native plant species. Lastly, with all the urban encroachment to BLM land there have been increased instances of errant bullets flying into buildings and residences. I cannot attest to hte veracity of any of this, but this is what they claim.

I know I am preaching to the choir but we need to start policing ourselves. When we go out the the sticks to shoot of course we need to clean up, but I think taking along the local BLM Ranger's phone number would be a good idea. If you see someone damaging property or leaving trash, write down their plate number and call them in. We will lose all places to shoot if us good guys don't start doing ssomething.

 

[JDC]

I generally go out to the shooting area in Hemet at least once a month. I always take one or two of my city provided 55 gal trash cans out there and fill them to the rim with the big trash.

It doesn't even put a dent in the mess, but it makes me feel like I'm at least doing something. I hope someday to see somebody else doing the same.

 

[larrysogla]

I always take a 33 gallon black plastic trash bag & pick up the trash of other people when I go out to hunt or to go plinking. It gives self-satisfaction plus every little bit helps. Kinda' like going out to vote. Your vote counts, so does picking up trash whenever we can. It is never a waste of time to spend 10-15 minutes picking up trash every time we go out. larrysogla.

 

[karstic]

Get yourself one of these

http://www.ezee-reachersupply.com/litter.html

I bought one for the Wister clean-up and they work great. You can even pick up bottle caps and cigarette butts.

 

[Rattler]

Guys,
First, for the ORIG poster, there is (was) a Rod and Gun Club with a range somewhere near you. In SD they have one near Delzura (South Bay Rod and Gun or Lemon Grove Rod and Gun...I forget the name.) It was something like 10 or 15 bucks a day for vistors, but a year membership was the ticket for serious shooters. There's a range master and all that, so it's safe...but you have to wait on the other guys to check your targets so bring a decent spotting scope.
Now, It's true what you say about cleaning up...but don't kid yourselves, there's another agenda here. IF it wasn't for the trash they would figure another angle (Plants? GMAFB). It would be safety, or noise pollution or the Ganges River in India is overflowing! Get it? They WANT YOUR GUNS OUT OF CA! I remember La Posta Rd and Kitchen Creek Rd ranges. Yeah, shooters (NOT SPORTSMEN) ruined those opprtunities because they gave a ready made excuse to stop target shooting. Fact is, it was a goner the moment you got the likes of Feinstein, and Boxer, ETC,ETC,ETC in office. There is NO ONE to stand up for your rights in CA because NO ONE in office can say yes to any one of your concerns. The Governator is a lame duck, SoCal congressmen are outnumbered 2 to 1 by dems...it just gets worse. On top of everything else you have lazy fed workers who KNOW that if you are using the land, they might have to provide a SERVICE for that 30 dollar "Adventure Pass"! What a hoot! You could barely find a roll of TP at any of their campgrounds. They'd rather close it ALL down and sit on their tails. In other states there is hunting in state parks (CA no). Why is it so hard to set aside 40 Acres for a shooting range for the public? Answer...they don't want one!
Let's not forget the great Kansas Turkey blockade. 66 Turkies that Kansas wanted to give CA for supplemental interbreeding and planting. Tree huggers said, "Oh no! It'll hurt the plants!" Now, I am no scientist, but every year I put in corn and tomatoes... and every year I use TURKEY and chicken manure to help fertilize the ground. This case was tied up in the courts FOR YEARS! By the time the EI study stated that turkies wouldn't hurt the land...the KS turkies were no longer on the table. IT's not the turkies they are afraid of, it's the turkey hunters. They want YOU to lay down your arms gentlemen. Sorry guys, but the years have only demonstrated the further decline of the Golden State as a place for sportsmen. So much land, so many different environments, so many game opportunites...wasted. It boggles the mind. Please, no rebuttals...they'd just be lies. I am truly sorry for people who are trapped in CA. Keep the weather...give me freedom. I hope things change, but I just don't see it. What worries me is NOW some of those leftists are moving into my state! There's gonna be a hangin'!

 

[DKScott]

SDHNTR,

You aren't referring to Orozco Ridge are you? I was planning on going down there next week.

Scott

 

[Rattler]

SD Shooters,
Here is a link to the South Bay Rod and Gun Club. It's a decent range in a box canyon near Dulzura, about 10 miles east of Lake Otay. I spent quite a few mornings there way back when.
http://www.southbayrodandgunclub.org/

 

[SDHNTR]

Rattler,
I am well aware of that range. But I just wanted a place to go out in the sticks and shoot. The area I was concerned with was actually some BLM land right near that range.

 

[Rattler]

Best place to go is out near Plaster City (Imperial Cty) near the old quarry OR some on HWY 98(?) Near/outside Ocotillo. There are plenty of canyons out there where you can drive off the road a 1/4 mile and shoot.