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Public Lands Foundation Annual Meeting

September 25-26, 2023

Little America Hotel & Resort

Cheyenne, Wyoming

Theme:  Public Land Access & Corner Crossing.

Monday, September 25                                                                               

8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.           Board of Directors Meeting

6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.           Evening Barbecue at the Terry Bison Ranch

Tuesday, September 26, 2023

8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.  General meeting with BLM & public attendance.

8:00 a.m.       Welcome/Logistics—Mary Jo Rugwell, PLF President

8:15 a.m.       Don Simpson, Moderator—Wyoming Panel (mitigation banking, public lands access, isolated public land issues, NACO public lands center)

  • Jerimiah Rieman-Wyoming County Commissioners Association Executive Director
  • John Espy-Carbon County Commissioner, First Vice President of NACO Western Interstate Region, Chairman of WCCA Ag/Water/State/Public Lands Committee, and County rep on the Wy Sage Grouse Implementation Team.
  • Ryan Lance-Pathfinder Ranch President

9:45 a.m.       Break

10:00 a.m.       Isolated Public Lands (no legal access)

  • Joel Webster, TRCP

10:45 a.m.       BLM Wyoming Panel (current issues on public lands)

  • Andrew Archuleta, BLM Wyoming SD.
  • Duane Spencer, DSD, Minerals & Land
  • Jennifer Fleuret McConchie, DSD, Resource Policy & Management

11:15 a.m.       Final discussion of morning issues

12:00 p.m.     Lunch on your own.

1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.  PLF Board & member meeting

  • Member’s vision
  • Advocacy
  • Restructuring of the Board
  • Annual Meeting structure
  • PLF membership fee structure

6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.  Cash bar

7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.  Banquet, Remembering BLM, and awards.


Public Land Access & Corner Crossing

The topic of public land access and corner crossing is the subject of recent litigation in Federal court. Corner crossing involves stepping from one piece of public land to another at the common corner with two pieces of private property, all arranged in a checkerboard pattern. Corner crossing avoids setting foot on private land. On May 26, 2023, Chief U.S. District Judge Scott Skavdahl ruled that four Missouri hunters did not trespass when they corner crossed and passed through the airspace above Fred Eshelman’s Elk Mountain Ranch.

For a summary of the case, read this article published by WyoFile.com. Read the court decision below.