INLAND EMPIRE – Illegal pot growers are finding more mountain and foothill areas suitable for expanding their operations. In Riverside County, investigators have found 10,616 marijuana plants in four separate grow sites. Camping equipment and an abundance of trash was added evidence that several growers were living within the sites and caring for the crops. None have been arrested. The largest sites were in the San Bernardino National Forest and in the Santa Rosa Mountains on public land. The sites were in rugged terrain, concealed in the mountainside canyons. More cultivations have been eradicated in the San Bernardino Mountains from Crest Park to Day Creek Canyon. The growers have been diverting water from streams and creek into the marijuana gardens.