At the October game commission meeting, the New Mexico Wildlife Federation submitted comments about hunters being locked out of state trust land they should have access to. The commission requested additional information about these instances and we got a lot of responses! We also received instances of hunters being locked out of legitimate public easements to national lands such as USDA (Forest Service) and BLM lands.
Above, you will find a map of the instances we received from our members that included specific locations, pictures, and details about the incident. Click the photo above to go on a virtual tour of all the locations. We also received additional feedback that did not include as many details but still provide valuable feedback on specific areas of issue.
For example, there were multiple comments about hunting Unit 5A. We heard from several hunters who could not find legitimate ways into this unit. Much of this unit is private or reservation land, and feedback from at least three hunters expresses the difficulty of accessing this unit. One hunter specified, “We tried many different side roads to access public land but we were unable to get to it. We believe the public land is on the other side of the gate of the reservation.” In order to respect private and tribal land, we recommend the game commission takes a closer look at this unit, as access is very limited. Similarly, Unit 12 is now hard to access due to rule changes on the Zuni pueblo. This is an area with checkerboarded state land, and changes made within the tribe have closed some roads – making it hard to reach Unit 12.
Additionally comments and feedback included:
- I have stopped Elk hunting in New Mexico for just this [locked out] problem. I was stopped by a rancher in the San Mateo Mountains on a forest road (73 or 549) on what I know was public land (rancher admitted this) and told at GUNPOINT that I could not even be in this area, let alone hunt there.
- Hyatt Ranch is notorious for this in the Cooke’s Peak area in Deming
- Rancher blocking roads in Piñon Draw
We also received comments about public land hunters trespassing on private land. The New Mexico Wildlife Federation respects legitimate private property rights and urges all our membership to do the same! This is why education and updated information about road closures and where state land, private, and public land begin is key to make sure hunting is done safely and respectfully for all New Mexicans.
The New Mexico Wildlife Federation thanks our members for informing us about their experiences and hopes this report helps the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish tackle these access issues.
During your next hunting season, make sure you know locations and take pictures if you run into locked gates again. We will keep a running tally so we can continue to take note of locked out public lands!
