The Corner-Crossing War Is (Mostly) Over…For Now

[lukew]

Big news! It looks like this chapter of the corner-crossing saga has finally come to a close, or at least as close as it’s going to get for now... read more
https://blog.eastmans.com/the-corner-crossing-war-is-mostly-overfor-now/

 

[ScottR]

Thanks for posting this @lukew ! Good overview @heyjbales !

 

[tim]

it would be nice to know, if it is legal in the other 44 states, that are not in the 10th circuit.

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

it would be nice to know, if it is legal in the other 44 states, that are not in the 10th circuit.

The action ONLY applies to the 10 Circuit Federal Court and the states that in it's area.

 

[Ikeepitcold]

Hopefully the other states that have the same problem will follow suit

 

[ScottR]

So one thing that Jaden didn't cover in depth in this article is that finding the actual corner can be tough. Mapping systems can be off by 10-15 feet and that is 10-15 feet of trespassing. Unless there is a spike at the corner it's going to be tough, the reason those guys were able to prove this out in court is the marker was present. Unfortunately this may lead to a LOT more trespassing cases.

 

[Ikeepitcold]

I would think that would be up to the landowner to prove property lines if they are that worried about trespassing?

 

[idcwby]

I would think that would be up to the landowner to prove property lines if they are that worried about trespassing?

Depends on how the state’s trespass law reads.
A few years ago Idaho changed theirs, so now it’s up to the hunter to know the boundaries.

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

Depends on how the state’s trespass law reads.
A few years ago Idaho changed theirs, so now it’s up to the hunter to know the boundaries.

Lots of states are doing this. Especially since GPS are now so cheap and there are many programs out there that tell where you are and who owns the land...public & private.

 

[JimP]

One problem with the GPS land quadrants is that they may be off just enough to confuse people. I can stand on one of my corner stakes and both of my mapping devices show it slightly off. One is OnX on my phone and the other is the chip in my GPS.

But both show it close enough that I need to pay attention as to where I'm at.

 

[heyjbales]

So one thing that Jaden didn't cover in depth in this article is that finding the actual corner can be tough. Mapping systems can be off by 10-15 feet and that is 10-15 feet of trespassing. Unless there is a spike at the corner it's going to be tough, the reason those guys were able to prove this out in court is the marker was present. Unfortunately this may lead to a LOT more trespassing cases.

This is so true. And there aren’t corner markers at EVERY corner. Which can mean the total acres of landlocked ground that are now accessible is a lot smaller than we thought… it would take a LOT of leg work to figure out which corner markers exist and which ones don’t. I’m not planning any hunts around it, that’s for sure.

 

[heyjbales]

For these situations where a corner marker is not known, for the landowner or the hunter who needs to know the boundary (let’s say for a legal case), do you think they’d have to bring out survey equipment and redefine the corner publicly for folks to know where it is in the future?

 

[JimP]

This is so true. And there aren’t corner markers at EVERY corner. Which can mean the total acres of landlocked ground that are now accessible is a lot smaller than we thought… it would take a LOT of leg work to figure out which corner markers exist and which ones don’t. I’m not planning any hunts around it, that’s for sure.

I believe that this case was brought because some hunters built a portable ladder that they could use to go over a fence at the corner of private and public lands. Think of a square with 4 squares inside this square. With the top squares being public and private and the bottom squares being private and public. They used their ladder at the center where all 4 squares meet to cross from public to public without touching any of the private or the private property owners fence, just crossing in the private properties air space

 

[tim]

I would think that would be up to the landowner to prove property lines if they are that worried about trespassing?

Personally i like idaho's way. The individual needs to know where they are. Not the property owner let the indvidual know where they are. But i own property and have had some trespass issues in the past, so i definately have a different perspective. It is not always hunters that trespass. The professional glamour photo shoot that happened in my field was interesting.

 

[dan maule]

Personally i like idaho's way. The individual needs to know where they are. Not the property owner let the indvidual know where they are. But i own property and have had some trespass issues in the past, so i definately have a different perspective. It is not always hunters that trespass. The professional glamour photo shoot that happened in my field was interesting.

Agree 100% it should be up to you to know where you are, it shouldn't be the responsibility of the landowner.

 

[JimP]

In all my years hunting I have pretty much known just where I was, there were a few instances where I was slightly confused. But as far as private property was concerned I always knew if I was on it or not and always tried to avoid it if I could.

When I first started hunting over 50 years ago in Utah the private needed to be posted, and I got called on it a few times when I would come into the property from the backside where the owners didn't think that they needed to post it and to my surprise when I got to a fence along a county road and saw all the No Trespassing signs.

Colorado on the other hand you need to know where you are at, no fence required or signage. But I do appreciate those who do take the time to actually put up and maintain their signs.