I wish you luck. Depending on where in California, I do know some people who do that type of work on a regular basis.
Just a side note here - from experience - some BLM people in California DO think they are afforded the title of "Enforcement Agency".
Try not to tick them off - but make sure everything is in order - they will escort you away, by gunpoint - guaranteed. So will some of the Park Rangers, even if you are on BLM land - again - guaranteed. (no, they have no authority, but its impossible to argue with 4 armed officers, and their bail requirements suck.)
Also, the BLM offices in some areas are absolutely fantastic. Others wouldn't give you the time of day unless they had to. They will show you where the microfische machine is, hand you an extremely unorganized pile of michofische, and say - there it is. Other offices will be great, show you how things are filed (these are the offices that actually file the stuff), will show you how to look up maps, etc., who and where claims are located according to your findings, etc.
It all depends, again, on where you go, and what offices you hit.
B