East Crazy Mountains Land Exchange submitted to Forest Service
We've reached another major milestone in our effort to protect the wild, working, and sacred lands in the Crazy Mountains.
The East Crazy Mountains land swap proposal has been submitted to the Forest Service!
In July, our partners with the Crazy Mountain Access Project handed over the land swap proposal to the Forest Service for consideration. The “East Crazy Mountains and Inspiration Divide Land Exchange'' swaps private and public land in the Crazy Mountains and in the Madison Range near Big Sky.
If finalized, the proposal would consolidate checkerboard ownership along the eastern edge of the Crazy Mountains by exchanging 3,614 acres of Forest Service land for 5,205 acres of private land in the Crazy Mountains. This would result in a net gain of 1,591 acres of National Forest and nearly 30 square miles of consolidated public land.
Additionally, it would reroute the controversial “East Trunk” trail between Big Timber and Sweet Grass canyons to public land. The trail would be non-motorized and non-mechanized, in line with our conservation goals of protecting the quiet solitude and wildlife habitat of this sacred landscape.
This land exchange has been years in the making and PCEC has been an active participant. While the original proposal was strong we knew it could be better with more input. We poured over maps, hosted listening sessions, created a comment portal, walked the proposed trail on the ground and observed the project area from the air. We considered countless ways to improve the conservation and public benefits of the land swap proposal and engaged people in the process.
The proposal is better than it was a year ago. Hearing ideas and input from community members encouraged landowners to consider permanent development restrictions on their private land. Riparian Sections 8 and 10 in Sweet Grass Creek (pictured below) and Section 7 covering Crazy Peak, the tallest mountain in the Crazy Mountains and of special significance to the Crow Nation, are all now in consideration for conservation easements or deed restrictions as conditions of the exchange.
PCEC is committed to working with our community to ensure that this land exchange proposal is as strong as possible for conservation of this treasured landscape. Thanks to the input from our members, community and partners we think this robust proposal is ready for the next phase: an in-depth review from the Forest Service. We expect to hear in the coming months whether the Forest Service will initiate a formal analysis and public scoping. There will be more opportunities for public input and engagement in the near future.
Thank you for your support, and we hope you stay engaged!
Want to learn more? Have specific thoughts, questions or concerns? Please reach out to Erica at erica@pcecmt.org.
Finally, our hearts go out to firefighters and neighbors that are impacted by the American Fork Fire in the Crazy Mountains. Due to hazardous fire conditions, many of the trails are currently closed in the range. Please heed the closures so that fire crews can do their jobs and everyone can remain safe. Construction of the Porcupine Ibex trail reroute is nearly complete, so hopefully trail crews can resume construction soon!