Bear killed in campground highlights need for education, regulation
May 2025 Update
We've had some conversations...with the USFS, Fish and Wildlife, hunters, and the County of Los Angeles. Where we are at as of May 13, 2025 is asking the County if their firearms ordinances, last modified in 1983, last printed in 1994, are still valid and in effect. There is no obvious indication that these ordinances have been rescinded or abandoned, so the conversation we are seeking with Supervisor Kathryn Barger's office now is to clarify if these ordinances still stand...and if so, can we get them back out in front of the public. We found the full record of all ordinances and corresponding regions online. Here is the link, which includes the description of the Charlton-Chilao area as well as many others.
lacounty-ca.elaws.us/code/coor_title13_div8_ch13.66_pt2
What happened in October 2024
Our 2024 hunting season opened with a hunter fatally shooting a bear in Manzanita Campground. The hunter had a bear tag. He said the bear "startled him." The hunter was unable to retrieve the bear from where it collapsed, and went to the USFS fire station for help. On October 12, it was a bear. Typically, deer are taken from the campground, often dressed out on the campground road. There is no dedicated law enforcement presence in the area. There is no signage indicating that hunting is not allowed. Hunters are expected to know where they are, know the areas where hunting is restricted, and to follow the rules without needing law enforcement supervision. Some hunters do follow the rules. Some don't.
Every autumn, hunting season opens in the Angeles, and every autumn, hunters flock to the recreation areas to hunt. This is not legal. Unfortunately, it is also widely misunderstood, by hunters, by other forest users, by USFS employees, USFS volunteers, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the public in general. By law, all firearms and bows/arrows should be cased/unloaded when in a campsite or developed recreation area. The boundaries of our local recreation area are delineated in the diagram below and include lands on both sides of Angeles Crest Highway that are frequently hunted, from Charlton Flat Picnic Area and Mooney Road all the way to the Santa Clara Divide.
Why is this so misunderstood? Because finding maps that show the no hunting zone is very difficult. The map service that the USFS links out to on their website does not show the no hunting zone. The pdf maps available online from Fish and Wildlife do not show the no hunting zone. And on the ground, in the forest, information kiosks do not address the no hunting zone. It is very difficult to find this information.
So we begin the work of taking responsibility for the place where we are, the place that we love, the Angeles National Forest...Charlton Flat, Mooney Road, Chilao, Horse Flats, Bandito, the Santa Clara Divide...we begin by addressing the education deficit and seeking engagement from the County of Los Angeles, USFS and Fish and Wildlife to address hunting in designated recreation areas and developed areas and occupied areas. What we know as of May 2025 is that the County of Los Angeles is the agency which needs to clarify if they continue to embrace their ordinances; and if so, those ordinances need to be presented in a way that they are publicly accessible.
Updated Update...
May 2025 - The USFS will not post firearms regulations, and they will not post the regulations of any other agency in their information kiosks. If you would like further clarification via the actual email exchange that ensued, please email us at [email protected]. The USFS manages the land and not game animals, hence the shift in focus to clarification from the County of Los Angeles. So the part below about new maps...not going to happen.
In an email conversation with USFS Recreation Officer David Cline in November 2024, David told us that there is a cartographer who can create more legible maps, and in sizes that can be used in information kiosks throughout the forest. We can begin the process of creating those maps now and have them in place for the 2025 hunting season. (The most popular hunting season is deer rifle season, which is when we see the most hunting activity in places that are both legal and restricted).
An email response from California Department of Fish and Wildlife on November 19, 2024:
Hi Corina,
I received your email below and can provide some clarification. CDFW provides regulatory information pertaining to our state laws and regulations. We do not post all local and county ordinances for counties in the state. The map you are referring to is related to LA County ordinances pertaining to areas where firearms can and cannot be discharged. These areas do not only pertain to hunting, but to the general discharge of firearms as well. This map was produced by LA County because it is for their county ordinances and to my knowledge, like you said, has not been printed in 20+ years. This map also does not include all campgrounds and campsites, those laws/regulations fall under government code enforced by the US Forest Service. The LA County map includes more inhabited areas and major roadways. When hunting near campgrounds, our Fish & Game laws can apply, which we do post on our website, because you are not allowed to hunt or discharge a deadly weapon with 150 yards of an occupied dwelling. We are often contacted by hunters and our officers provide refer them where to find the digital copies of the map online, and send to them if needed.
I have a digital version of the map that was provided to me from the County and I attached that map to this email for your reference.
Thank you,
Kory
Captain Kory Collins
CA Dept. of Fish and Wildlife – North Los Angeles, Ventura, & Santa Barbara County
(The map can be found below in the slide show images)
Personal note from Corina
Regarding the people potentially most affected by ordinances and regulations, which are hunters - I reached out to the D11 and D13 Hunters group on Facebook in the spring of 2025. I was allowed to join the group, and I did initiate a conversation, but the overall tone of the interaction was tense. After several days I got busy with other projects, and didn't return to the group. When I recently tried to follow up on the conversation, I found that I am no longer part of the group, and that the group is no longer visible to me. I'm grateful that I got to ask questions, even though at the time I was still uncertain what those questions should be, and I think it was important to make an effort to be inclusive; to listen and learn from the population most affected by firearms regulations. It wasn't very much due diligence as far as being inclusive goes...but it was all the group wanted, and I think it was better than not trying to communicate.
(Header image - Line fire smoke plume on left and Bridge fire smoke plume on right
as seen from Chilao School, September 2024. Please note, the sixth image below is graphic and includes the bear which was shot on October 12)