Just returned from a successful antelope hunt.....we had a great time and will definitely be applying to go again. Just want to say maybe to the nonresidents or any huntr for the matter....luckily we went out 3-4 days earlier to do some scouting....we had the onx maps downloaded so we had a good game plan to check out all yhe public land we could.....come to find out many of the blm lands are locked up cause the trail into the lands start at a small piece of private....so when we get to the entrance...the signs read "not a public road, private land, no hunting and keep out" ok i get it but why does the trailhead start at the front of a private piece of land and not just have the trail route on the outside of the private? So many of the blm pieces were land locked by private and yhe entrance signs say not a public road. We contacted a few of the owners and they wouldn't let us access the blm cause they said they had hunters of their own coming....just need to do your homework if huntn blm.....just because theres a road into the public doesn't mean ur gettn in.....one entrence we encountered was literally blocked by gates that were 30ft apart that said private was in the middle....we had to drive all the way back out the othr way....why doesn't the state take some of the revenue from licenses ect and pay to either make access through the private or route the trails around the private instead of through the middle? All in all we atill had a great time and i just want to say just about every truck that we passed that had a cowboy hat driving... waved to us..lol
BLM beware!!
- Thread starter chopperz
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Prerylyon
Veteran member
Patchwork, "landlocked" or otherwise inaccessible public BLM is unfortunately a fact of life DIY hunting out west; sounds like you got a good taste of it. 
Some hunters even go so far as to charter private pilots to airlift them legally into a large tract of public land. In WY some of the walk in areas are adjacent to BLM, and if open during your hunt, provides a means of legal access. I think they try via the WIA and HMA programs, both open up access to a lot of BLM. Could they do more? I guess, but its big country and it takes time and money to get all that set up.
Some hunters even go so far as to charter private pilots to airlift them legally into a large tract of public land. In WY some of the walk in areas are adjacent to BLM, and if open during your hunt, provides a means of legal access. I think they try via the WIA and HMA programs, both open up access to a lot of BLM. Could they do more? I guess, but its big country and it takes time and money to get all that set up.
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ore hunter
Very Active Member
- Jul 25, 2014
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colorado seems tight with there access also,,last year in unit 21 there were some public land areas blocked off by literally a couple hundred feet of creek valley that was private,,a real p i a.
Bonecollector
Veteran member
For the right hunt, I'd pay for access to be airlifted. I've seen it done a few times. A group of 3-4 guys with minimal gear and the trip is feasible.Patchwork, "landlocked" or otherwise inaccessible public BLM is unfortunately a fact of life DIY hunting out west; sounds like you got a good taste of it.
Some hunters even go so far as to charter private pilots to airlift them legally into a large tract of public land. In WY some of the walk in areas are adjacent to BLM, and if open during your hunt, provides a means of legal access. I think they try via the WIA and HMA programs, both open up access to a lot of BLM. Could they do more? I guess, but its big country and it takes time and money to get all that set up.
Yell Co AR Hunter
Very Active Member
Hunting public land out West requires a lot of research on maps. Just cause you see a lot of public land does not mean you can access it to hunt. Wyoming does a good job letting you know a unit is hard to access public land. I think they also do a good job with access Yes program. You have to realize some of those land owners with that small strip of road to public can demand big money if it opens up thousands of acres of public. I can not blame someone for profiting off their land.
Oh and where are the photos? We all like photos of successful hunts.
Oh and where are the photos? We all like photos of successful hunts.
Bonecollector
Veteran member
Received the snippet of information in an email today and just thought I would leave it here. I know this has been discussed a number of times and some of the data has been in the Eastman magazine in the past. Just a refresher on statistics.
shootbrownelk
Veteran member
Good luck with that in Wyoming. The ranchers/outfitters pretty much control the legislature and they always get what they want.
billdoe708
Member
BigSexy
New Member
I guess I'm surprised that this surprised you. I just got back as well, but did a lot of research prior and just because there are big chunks of land, doesn't mean there is always access. Have to do your homework for sure not only finding the public lands, but also public access. Just because there is a two track to it doesn't make it public if it starts on private land.
If you don't have the blm maps from blm, I wouldn't rely on them. If you can access blm from a county or state road you can hunt it; no one can charge you or exclude you from hunting it. Otherwise it's at the landowner's discretion to let you cross. Not unusual in the west. It's also not unusual for ranchers to try to bluff you out of an area. Happened to me on blm two years ago just west of Wheatland. I took his tag no and pic and called 911 and he left. I went to town and met the local deputy to see if I could cite him. They know him, so far the guy's smart enough to stop short of harassment.
dan maule
Veteran member
A few years back we received permission to cross private land to access about 1,000 or so acres of State and BLM in Wyoming. We did everything right and while we hunting on it we ran in to a different rancher who was none to pleased with our presence. He told me that he leased all of this land and I very politely apologized and showed him where I thought I was on the map and that it was State land. He didn't argue but stressed again that he "leased" all of this, apparently because he had grazing rights he felt that we had no right to be there. i explained to him that we were staying in one of his neighbors cabins and that a second one of his neighbors had given us permission to cross his property to access the public land. He left, still upset and he called the neighboring rancher to verify my story. When he realized that he could not keep us off he brought in about 10 guys to trample through the property and for the next 5 or so years every opening day of deer season they would show up and trample through it. He was quite the jerk and I explained the situation on one of the hunter surveys that they send each year but never heard anything back.
Y'all should check out the Wyoming Public Land Access Guide from the BLM, everything you need to know about crossing private, corner hopping, state land lessee rights, and the rest. I got one with the maps I ordered for the unit we're hunting, plan to keep it in the truck. Maps from BLM are about the best deal in the government; $4 each shipped with the access brochure and other local info.
Bonecollector
Veteran member
For every good 100 residents, you have 1 of these wingnuts. I see others posting on other forums the ranches information so everyone can 'thank' him by calling or stopping by. Not saying it's right.... but I see no laws being broken either.
shootbrownelk
Veteran member
I take it that you know little about Wyoming politics. Good luck in the voters booth too.
Apstore
Member
Exactly right. I was talking with one of the state biologists a few years back. He told me basically the ranchers are running the state. That's why there is more landlocked "public" land in WY than anywhere else. What they do is trade a 40 acres parcel in the middle of their ranch for the road frontage public parcel and the state(which is rancher run) signs off on it no questions asked. It closes off millions of acres that we all pay for so the public(who owns it) cant access it. It's quite the scam they have going there.
Prerylyon
Veteran member
This.
(Happened to me last yr-but I politely stood my ground as I knew I was in the right-still-no one likes having to deal with
during their hunt)I want to say that this interaction was the exception to about every other interaction I've had in WY, which along with MT, is the most hunter-friendly state I've been in. We're just talking about the importance of good maps and knowing where you stand.