BLM's California desert fire restrictions are set to end October 29. Two year-round orders stay.

The seasonal fire order on BLM land in the California desert ends October 29, 2026, unless the BLM ends it sooner. If you are heading to Imperial, Riverside or San Bernardino county for the winter, that date changes what you can burn. Two year-round orders stay in force underneath it.

What ends on October 29

Fire Prevention Order CAD-000-2026-02 covers BLM land in Imperial, southern Inyo, eastern Kern, Los Angeles, eastern Mono, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and San Diego counties. It runs from April 15 and “ends on October 29, 2026, at 23:59 P.M. unless terminated sooner.”

It splits the desert in two. Stage II covers a band roughly south and west of Highways 58, 14, 138, 18, 247, 62, Interstate 10, 111 and 86, all district land in San Diego County, and a block near Highways 178 and 127. There, no open fire of any kind is allowed, and recreational target shooting is off unless you are hunting with a California license. Stage I covers the rest: no open fire except campfires in approved pits and grills at developed recreation sites, in the Imperial County Special Recreation Management Areas, or at Dumont Dunes, with a valid California Campfire Permit.

Under both stages, a stove or lantern with a shut-off valve is allowed with that permit.

What stays after October 29

The statewide order. CA910-2026-001 runs through December 31, 2030. It prohibits a campfire, charcoal, coal or wood stove “outside of a developed campground without a valid California Campfire Permit.” It defines a developed campground narrowly: designated and maintained by the BLM, posted open, with a steel or rock-and-mortar fire ring the BLM built. A fire ring someone stacked at a dispersed site does not count.

The BLM California fire page adds two conditions alongside the permit: a 5-foot circle cleared to bare soil, and a round-point shovel at least 35 inches long within reach. The signed order text we read lists only the permit. Do all three.

The desert district’s own year-round order. CAD-000-2026-01, also through 2030, suspends campfires and all target shooting in any area under a National Weather Service Red Flag Warning or Fire Weather Watch, for as long as the warning lasts. Check the NWS fire weather page before you light anything.

All three orders carry the same ceiling: a fine of up to $100,000, up to 12 months in jail, or both.

The rest of the state, as of October 15

BLM California’s fire page showed a split picture when we read it on October 15. Arcata eased its restrictions October 13 and Redding eased October 1, so only the statewide permit rule applies there. Mother Lode and Ukiah still prohibit a campfire “or open flame of any kind including within established campgrounds.” Bishop and Central Coast allow campfires only in agency fire rings at developed sites. Bakersfield allows no campfires or charcoal at all.

What to do

The order can end early, and the BLM can always issue a new one. When we read the fire page on October 15, it still listed Stage I and Stage II for all five desert field offices, and we found no announcement changing the date. Read the BLM California fire page the day you arrive, or call the field office: El Centro at (760) 337-4400, Palm Springs-South Coast at (760) 833-7100, Needles at (760) 326-7000, Barstow at (760) 252-6000, Ridgecrest at (760) 384-5400. A posted restriction at your site beats any website, ours included.

Our California free camping page covers the land types, and what a California Campfire Permit does not cover covers the national forest side.