May 17, 2023
(press release)
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Central Montana’s newest wildlife management area opened to the public for the first time Monday, breaking the lock that once blocked access to tens of thousands of acres of mountain foothills and prairie grasslands that had been off limits to most Montanans for decades. “It’s a great day in
“We have a vested interest in seeing land conserved for wildlife habitat while also keeping ranchers on the landscape,” Gianforte remarked during Monday’s opening ceremony. “This project accomplishes both, and it’s something to be proud of.” The foundation story of the Big Snowy Mountains WMA begins with
Shodair Children’s Hospital was founded as result of a similar donation 127 years ago. In 1896 pioneer grocer Louis W. Shodair gifted a home in
Allen’s gift was a great windfall for Shodair, but also presented something of a dilemma. The hospital was not equipped to manage a large farming/ranching operation and was simultaneously wading into a
“We knew form the very beginning this was not going to be land we were going to take and hold onto,” said Shodair Chief Executive Officer
The hospital fielded several inquiries from potential out-of-state buyers but held back hoping to find a buyer who would guarantee public access to the property. “We’re a
In 2020 Shodair contacted the
The Allen ranch sat at a key chokepoint to a much larger complex of “landlocked” public lands, largely blocked to public entry by private land holdings with no public road or trail access. Directly north lay the 7,000-acre Twin Coulee Wildlife Management Area administrated by the
Officials at Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) were intrigued by the possibilities, due in some degree to the department’s longstanding difficulty in managing elk populations in the
“Elk herd management in the Big Snowies is a major concern, said FWP Wildlife Biologist
Montana’s current Elk Management Plan calls for a target population of 800 elk in the Snowies. Current estimates are that more than 8,000 Roosevelt elk inhabit the area; a herd that is now 20-times larger than the one recorded 30 years ago when fewer than 400 elk wandered the area. “Public access is a big portion of that,” Taylor said of the elk herd management challenges in the Big Snowies. “We manage a lot of our elk number with public hunting. Getting those public hunters on to where the elk are located has been a challenge.” In 2020 the
The
As part of the purchase agreement, Gianforte proposed a covenant requiring the state keep the land available for cattle grazing. Closure on the deal was announced last fall. “I can’t say thank you enough to all the partners involved in this project,” said Aasved at the grand opening. “I grew up in the
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