Big Fin?

[2rocky]

regarding aircraft and wilderness...

The Federal Aviation Administration has issued a Notice to Airmen that a minimum altitude of 2,000 feet above the terrain (or above the uppermost rim of a canyon or valley) over wilderness and National Parks be voluntarily observed by all aircraft.

Montana Public land rules Link

THE LEGALITY AND LIABLITY ISSUES OF LANDING
ON PUBLIC LAND AND PUBLIC AIRSTRIPS
The Recreational Airstrip Committee has looked into the legality of
landing on off-airport locations and also the liability aspect of
landing on public airstrips for recreational purposes. The research
for both is listed below.
An off-airport landing in Montana on BLM administered land.
LEGALITY OF LANDING ON OFF-AIRPORT LOCATIONS
The following is taken directly from the NOAA Airport/Facility
Directory:
AIRCRAFT LANDING RESTRICTIONS
Landing of aircraft at locations other than public use airports may be
a violation of Federal or local law. All land and water areas are
owned and controlled by private individuals or organizations, states,
cities, local governments, or U.S. Government agencies. Except in
emergency, prior permission should be obtained before landing at any
location that is not a designated public use airport or seaplane base.
Landing of aircraft is prohibited on lands or waters administered by
the National park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest
Service, and on many areas controlled by the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers, unless prior authorization is obtained from the respective
agency.
(It is notable that lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management
(BLM) are not included in the above listing.)
The following is taken from a Sectional Aeronautical Chart. It offers
a little more guidance:
REGULATIONS REGARDING FLIGHTS OVER CHARTED NATIONAL PARK SERVICE AREAS,
U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE AREAS, AND U.S. FOREST SERVICE AREAS
The landing of aircraft is prohibited on lands or waters administered
by the National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or U.S.
Forest Service without authorization from the respective agency.
Exceptions include:
1) when forced to land due to an emergency beyond the control of the
operator
2) at officially designated landing sites, or
3) on approved official business of the Federal Government.
All aircraft are requested to maintain a minimum altitude of 2000 feet
above the surface of the following: National Parks, Monuments,
Seashores, Lakeshores, recreation Areas and Scenic Riverways
administered by the National Park Service; National Wildlife Refuges,
Big Game Refuges, Game Ranges and Wildlife Ranges administered by the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; and Wilderness and Primitive areas
administered by the U.S. Forest Service. FAA Advisory Circular (AC)
91-36C, "Visual Flight Rules (VFR) Flight Near Noise-Sensitive Areas,"
defines the surface as: the highest terrain within 2000 feet laterally
of the route of flight, or the upper-most rim of a canyon or valley.
Federal regulations also prohibit airdrops by parachute or other means
of persons, cargo, or objects from aircraft on lands administered by
the three agencies without authorization from the respective agency.
Exceptions include:
1) emergencies involving the safety of human life, or
2) threat of serious property loss.
Bold italics added.
MONTANA STATE LAW CONCERNING LANDING ON PUBLIC ROADS
The following is taken directly from the Montana Code; MCA 67-1-204 (3)
Lawfulness of Flight and Landings:
Aircraft landings and takeoffs from public roads in this state are
lawful if proper safety precautions, as approved by the governing
jurisdiction of the roads, are taken prior to the landing or takeoff,
except as otherwise provided in this section. However, the local
governing jurisdiction may not incur liability as a result of an
approval under this subsection.

 

[1_pointer]

You are full of shit and don't have a clue what you are talking about.


I have accessed Wilderness Areas hundreds of times by means other than foot or horseback.

But didn't you have to walk the raft to the river first?

 

[bkondeff]

FYI - From Idaho Regs, pg 73.

It is Unlawful To:

Use aircraft to locate game or furbearing animals and
communicate location to persons on the ground, or to use
any helicopter to transport hunters, gear, or game except at
established landing fields.

I have no idea, legally, what an established landing field is. This has peaked my intereste because I was under the impression, prior to this post, that you could NOT use a helicopter to take you into land locked parcels. Seems that is just the practical result of requiring "established" landing fields.

 

[Outdoor Junkie]

Big Fin,

Did the ranchers who own the land around that area give you crap? I suppose you had the camera on at most times and the last thing they wanted was to become famous for telling you that you couldn't hunt on your public land.

Just wondering.

Last year, we made a mistake and went onto a road that we thought was public (lesson learned) in Wyoming. Two hunters came up to us and told us that we were on private ground. I showed him my GPS with the huntinggpsmap and I told him that my GPS showed we were on public. Then he clarified and told me that the road we used to access the land was private. This was our first time hunting out west and it was agreat learning experrience. We assumed that since it had a road name on all of our maps and there were no "Private road" signs that we were good to go.... not so! We acknowledged our mistake and got out of there ASAP! The two hunters were very understanding and polite about the matter. They actually told us that they paid a tresspass fee to the rancher to hunt that area . They also went on to say that they only hunted about half of the BLM land area because the other rancher doesn't let anyone on the land he leases. This is BLM land that was connected to the BLM land that they accessed legally via a tresspass fee.

Prior to getting the boot, we saw a massive bull elk (at least to this guy from Minnesota) down in a drainage (on the other rancher's BLM land). It was all BLM land and in a general unit, so this has got me thinking about chartering a helicopter into that area. I guess my only concern would be that some renegade rancher might flip out if I was hunting on public land that I legally accessed via helicopter.

I respect your approach to things. Have you had this happen and how would you respond to that kind of situation?

I'm thinking that you could put 50-60 pounds of dry ice into a cooler and that should take care of a couple animals for a 4-5 day hunt.

Thanks and keep up the great work! You represent us well!