New Study Shows 9.52 Million Acres of Western Public Lands Are Landlocked

[npaden]

Just the way most of the state land sections are isolated would lead me to believe that a much higher % of state land is landlocked especially in Wyoming and Montana.

I wouldn't be surprised if the state lands that were landlocked were as high at 20 or 25%.

 

[TLowell02]

New Mexico state trust lands are pretty bad, especially in the northeast part of the state. There are several 1000+ acre blocks of prime elk and deer habitat that are completely inaccessible.

 

[Bberg]

Joelweb, that's a good point. I wonder if this includes areas with connecting corners (i.e. classic BLM-private checkerboard), where 'corner-hopping' may become an issue / semi-legal, or just public land completely surrounded by private?

 

[Yellowstoner]

For reference - Yellowstone National Park is 2.2 million acres. I'd love to see the US pass a law requiring an easement into any public lands the way private lands have access through public land.

 

[1_pointer]

Joelweb, that's a good point. I wonder if this includes areas with connecting corners (i.e. classic BLM-private checkerboard), where 'corner-hopping' may become an issue / semi-legal, or just public land completely surrounded by private?

Even more complicated in states that allow access through unsigned, uncultivated private land...

 

[Matt R]

Bberg
Joelweb, that's a good point. I wonder if this includes areas with connecting corners (i.e. classic BLM-private checkerboard), where 'corner-hopping' may become an issue / semi-legal, or just public land completely surrounded by private?

From looking at the report (see link below), it looks like checkerboard public/private lands are included within its definition of landlocked lands.

http://www.trcp.org/wp-content/themes/trcptheme/assets/images/lwcf/TRCP onX Landlocked Report.pdf

This thread dovetails nicely with an article I just read last night in RMEF's latest issue of Bugle as a recent 5,900 acre BLM acquisition of private land along and around Alamocita Creek in Catron County, New Mexico that was facilitated by the RMEF and funded largely by the LWCF is highlighted. This parcel not only provides excellent hunting and other outdoor-related opportunities in itself, it provides a much less arduous way to access 30,000 acres of the Cibola National Forest just to the south and is on track to open up a new and much more scenic path for the Continental Divide Trail that currently uses the shoulder of an adjacent highway in this area of the trail. Negotiations for this property had been ongoing for seven years unsuccessfully but with help from the RMEF and the LWCF, which funded 90% of the $2.7M price tag, this gem is now permanently protected from development and is now open to be explored by its 330M plus landowners.

See short clip about this parcel here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkgePT67R14

I'm glad to see this study done and have long mulled, as others have, the virtues of working on increasing access opportunities to our existing public lands via small access easements and reforming access laws.

 

[GearJunky]

Will the data on the landlock sections be made public? Potentially as an ONX layer? Seems like this would be a great resource for programs like Block Management - try to work to encourage the land owners adjacent to these areas. Also, as we e-scout sure would be nice if you had the layer to see if in fact the area you are trying to access is landlocked.

 

[Mallardsx2]

Seems to me that there should be legal access to every single piece of landlocked land.

For instance. Landlocked land cannot be transferred in many eastern states unless there is a means of access to the said property attached to the deed.

This would be hard to do on the checkerboard states....

 

[Ben Long]

Funny thing. Because of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, any landowner that is surrounded by public land has legal right to "reasonable" access to their ground. Many roads have been built across national forest for this purpose. However, the reverse is not guaranteed. Access is eroding fast and we have to work and or fight for every scrap of it.

 

[sweetnectar]

Surprised to see Montana public land is only 1.618 percent land locked. Would have thought more of it was.

 

[LopeHunter]

In Missouri, if you encircle a 3rd party's private land with your private land, you have to allow an easement for then to access their otherwise land-locked land. That is a royal pain when is a small private land parcel exists since a wide road could take up quite a bit of the property. Also a pain if the easement passes by the front porch and a hundred vehicles a day zoom by kicking up dust and scaring the cattle.

Overall, the easement approach seems reasonable. A buyer of land never has to worry is they will be able to access the land. Encircled public land benefits from the same reasoning. The easement should be required through the private property and the resulting road is a public road. Or a public path if a road is not feasible.

So, I think is fair. How do we go about getting laws changed? Who will bankroll this since the private landowner has reason to ante up money for lobbyists as does outfitters. 1000s would benefit from access to the encircled land though I have seen these fights before where almost everyone who could benefit from a grass roots movement whistles in the dark past the cemetery hoping everyone else will ante up. There is a reason the biggest corporations and unions in America have powerful laws protecting their activities from attack.

 

[joelweb]

Surprised to see Montana public land is only 1.618 percent land locked. Would have thought more of it was.

Or is that the percentage of all lands in Montana?

There are about 27.58 million acres of federal public lands in Montana if you combine USFS, BLM, NPS, USFWS, and Bureau of Reclamation. I get 5.5% of that is landlocked.

 

[sweetnectar]

Yes, I quickly calculated it using all land in Montana. So only 5.5% landlocked seems low to me too.

 

[Yellowstoner]

Yes, I quickly calculated it using all land in Montana. So only 5.5% landlocked seems low to me too.

I think it seems like more because much of the interior is landlocked from one side, but accessible by much, much longer hikes from the other side of the range. For example, see the eastern portion of the Crazies - most of that would seem "landlocked" but you could theoretically come up and over the top of the range and access many of those chunks, even though it would be a 15+ mile trip each way.

 

[Trial153]

There is plenty of lobbying to keep the status quo. De facto private overrship of public land. Go look at real estate ranch listing and they count landlocked public land as useable acres in ranch listing.

Corner crossing made legal would be the first step towards acesss. This needs to be high on our list.

 

[antelopedundee]

There is plenty of lobbying to keep the status quo. De facto private overrship of public land. Go look at real estate ranch listing and they count landlocked public land as useable acres in ranch listing.

Corner crossing made legal would be the first step towards acesss. This needs to be high on our list.

And the bastards sometimes brag [among themselves] about having exclusive access to public land/s. Some enterprising individual should offer charter flight helicopter access just to piss them off.

 

[Trial153]

And the bastards sometimes brag [among themselves] about having exclusive access to public land/s. Some enterprising individual should offer charter flight helicopter access just to piss them off.

I had this happen in NM, I was being pitched a LO tag for a ranch. The quoted size was about half of what they owned. They happily explained that a huge section of BLM land was landlocked and they use it like their own

 

[Sytes]

A good 10 years ago a private property owner allowed me to hunt his land and access some public land that otherwise was checkerboard, unable to access. In turn, I assisted with a day or two moving cattle from one section to another. A great guy/family and a fun relation.

It's interesting to think how much I enjoyed the idea of accessing this public land and I certainly understand and fully respect that all public lands be available to everyone. I have to say though, I enjoyed the idea that I was one of only a couple people able to access his private land and unfortunately have to admit access to our public land.
Well, now this is my checkerboard Corner Crossing quandary as he passed away and his sons took over the property. After speaking with them to see if I could still access the property I am back in the situation where it has now been leased to an Outfitter and part of their agreement is no one else can hunt that land (their private land and as we know without said, our public land).

The good news on the other side of that public land is a block management enrolled land. However, last I spoke with the owners of that land they're a little frustrated with the disrespect of their property and this may no longer remain block management.

So, I am back to the same position of access to that public land that will soon again be inaccessible to other public land owners mainly in part because other public land owners failed to respect the private land. Thankfully, it appears I *may still have access... though that same outfitter from the other side also expressed interest...

Now that checkerboard conundrum sits heavy on my mind.