Welcome from a fellow Californian. I'm in Monterey county. The closest I ever got to hunting up your way, was in Eureka & Ferndale area. Got a mid 1840s coin in Ferndale.
You're in a pretty remote and sparsely populated (relatively speaking) area, so not sure how many hobbyists you'll find from on-line. Sometimes dealers though will know other hobbyists in the area (if there's even a dealer in your area )
If you're into meteorites, all you're going to find with a metal detector are iron-containing ones. The really good ones, like pallasites (<1% of the falls), can't be detected although some of the nickel-based ones will stick to a strong magnet.
I lucked out about two years or so ago. Why I picked up the rock, other than its color, I'll never know as the detector didn't make a peep. I soon discovered it would stick to a magnet (that is how my big digger shovel is attached to my pouch). It weighs in at just 7 ounces, but is worth about $1,500.
Your really don't need good luck, as meteorites fall all over. What you need is a sharp eye, and a bit of knowledge of what to look for.