Montana hunters have another reason to look forward to the upcoming big game hunting season: easier access to public land. The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation (RMEF) recently completed a 93-acre land transaction that bridges 6,000 acres of public land that was previously difficult to reach, creating a quicker pipeline to public hunting land.

“This particular project permanently secures access to huge tracts of public land that are home to elk, mule deer, antelope, sage grouse, bighorn sheep and other wildlife," Blake Henning, RMEF vice president of Lands and Conservation, told the Billings Gazette.

The newly acquired property provides hunters, hikers and others a shorter path to a larger parcel of land owned by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation. It is located north of the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument and south of the Bear Paw Mountains. Access to the land is off of Cow Island Trail.

According to the Billings Gazette, RMEF will transfer the property to the BLM in 2016 so that the agency can manage the acreage along with neighboring federally-owned properties. Stanley Jaynes, BLM Havre field manager, adds that the acquisition “also secures an important access for natural resource management.”

Henning agrees, saying “Access to our public lands is a key component to RMEF’s mission and is important to sportsmen and women as well as all Americans who seek to enjoy the outdoors.”

With better access to this region, Montana hunters should start scouting now to take advantage of big game hunting opportunities within the state.