NMAC WITH SMA ACFT TRANSITING THE ARSA WITHOUT CONTACT WITH TRACON.

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CLBING THROUGH 1000' I PUT ON MY FOGGLES; REMINDING MY SAFETY PLT THAT HE HAD THE OUTSIDE OF THE ACFT. (NOTE: VIS HAD BEEN RPTED AS 10 MI; BUT LOOKING WESTERLY INTO THE HAZE; IT WAS MUCH LESS.) MY CLRNC FROM CASTLE APCH WAS TO CLB TO 6000' VIA RADAR VECTORS TO V23. MOMENTS BEFORE THE INCIDENT; A CASTLE CTLR (ON 124.8) INSTRUCTED ME TO CONTACT CASTLE APCH ON 126.5. AT THIS POINT NO TFC ADVISORIES HAD BEEN GIVEN TO ME. AS I LEANED SLIGHTLY TO CHANGE FREQS; OUT OF THE CORNER OF MY FOGGLES I NOTICED SOMETHING. I LOOKED UP AND SAW AN SMA BTWN 1-2 O'CLOCK; AT OUR SAME ALT; IN LEVEL FLT ABOUT 300' AWAY; OPP DIRECTION. MY SAFETY PLT SAW IT ABOUT THE SAME MOMENT I DID. I HAD NO TIME TO TAKE EVASIVE ACTION AND I DID NOT OBSERVE ANY EVASIVE ACTION AND I DID NOT OBSERVE ANY EVASIVE ACTION ON THE PART OF THE SMA. I THEN RPTED IN WITH THE CTLR TO WHICH I WAS BEING HANDED OFF. WHEN I ASKED HER WHY I WAS NOT WARNED OF THE TFC; SHE STATED THAT SHE WAS NOT REQUIRED TO MAINTAIN SEP BTWN IFR AND VFR TFC. I TOLD HER I AGREED. I TOLD HER THAT THE OTHER ACFT WAS OBVIOUSLY IN THE ARSA AND THAT I ASSUMED CASTLE APCH WAS TALKING TO HIM. SHE STATED THAT THEY WERE NOT; AND THAT THE OTHER TARGETS (VFR W/O MODE C) WERE ASSUMED TO BE OUTSIDE THE ARSA. THAT IS WHY SHE FELT NO NEED TO WARN ME OF THE TFC. AFTER MY RETURN FLT TO MERCED; I TALKED TO THE OPS CHIEF AT CASTLE ON THE PHONE AND WE SEEMED TO AGREE ON WHAT HAPPENED AND HOW. HE OFFERED NO SOLUTION TO THE PROB; HOWEVER. I WOULD MAKE THE FOLLOWING OBSERVATIONS/RECOMMENDATIONS: CTLRS BE STRONGLY ENCOURAGED OR REQUIRED TO GIVE TFC ADVISORIES TO IFR FLTS WITHIN THE ARSA. THE CTLR WHO HANDED ME OFF SHOULD HAVE FIRST WARNED ME OF THE TFC. MODE C TRANSPONDERS BE REQUIRED ON ALL ACFT; ESPECIALLY THOSE ACFT FLYING IN; NEAR; OR ABOVE AN ARSA. I WILL DELAY PUTTING MY FOGGLES ON UNTIL AFTER I HAVE CLBED OUT OF THE HAZE/UNTIL AFTER I REACH CRUISING ALT. (NOTE: AT 6000' MSL; MY CRUISE ALT; VIS WAS MUCH BETTER THAN AT LOWER ALTS.) IN THE FUTURE; I WILL TRY TO TAKE 2 SAFETY PLTS ALONG WHEN I PRACTICE SIMULATED INSTRUMENT FLT.