Hunters and outdoors gear-makers working together could put to rest longstanding tensions between hunters and landowners in Wyoming and across the West — or at least that’s the hope of some Casper-based entrepreneurs.
“We are hoping that the private sector and the outdoors industry can get onboard and expand this throughout the West,” Sam Seeton, the founder and CEO of Infinite Outdoors, told Cowboy State Daily.
Infinite Outdoors recently launched its Access Granted app aimed at getting hunters access to parcels of public land that are “landlocked” or surrounded by previously inaccessible private property.
So far, they’ve cut deals with landowners in Wyoming and Colorado, and are close to securing access to land in Idaho, he said.
Avoiding Messes Like The ‘Corner-Crossing’ Case
Wyoming has no shortage of big game animals, particularly elk, but many hunters feel increasingly frustrated over finding access to good hunting spots.
Meanwhile, landowners worry about trespass and their property rights being respected, particularly if their property borders public lands.
Tensions between landowners and hunters were the flashpoint of Wyoming’s high-profile “corner-crossing” case.
Four out-of-state hunters claimed that they didn’t trespass when they crossed the pinpoint at the corners of parcels of federal public land adjoining Elk Mountain Ranch property in Carbon County, owned by Fred Eshelman of North Carolina through Iron Bar Holdings LLC.
The hunters used a ladder-like device to clamber over a fence at the pinpoint in September 2021. Eshelman and Iron Bar Holdings initially pursued a criminal trespassing case against the hunters, but a Carbon County jury found them not guilty.
The case then went to civil court, going all the way to the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver, which in March ruled in the Hunters’ favor.
There’s still a chance the case could go to the next, and final, level — the U.S. Supreme Court.
Outdoor Companies Joining In
The corner-crossing case “was a huge issue” that is still frequently talked about in hunting circles, said Jason Dyer, marketing manager for Primos Hunting, a game call company.
Primos, along with HUSH, which makes hunting clothing, were the first outdoors companies to get onboard with Infinite Outdoors for the Access Granted program.
Seeton hopes to attract many more. Outdoors companies can put up the money to pay landowners access fees for allowing hunters to cross their properties to get to the public land parcels on the other side.
That’s the key to making the whole thing work.
It’s helping Primos to get its name out there, but the company also has higher motives for getting onboard, Dyer said.
“We love hunting. We’re about bringing hunters up, that next generation of hunters, and giving them opportunities,” he said.
How It Works
Seeton and Michael Maroney launched Infinite Outdoors a few years ago.
Hunters use the company’s smartphone app to book access to prime hunting spots on private property, for which they pay fees.
Seeton said they recently decided to apply that model to getting hunters access to public land parcels blocked in by private property.
Except this time, access is free to the general public. Hunters can use the Infinite Outdoors app or website to book specific days and/or times to cross the private property.
That way, the landowners are able maintain control over how many people are crossing their property, and when, Seeton said. Infinite Outdoors pays the landowners a fee for granting access.
The program started with access to roughly 40,000 acres of Bureau of Land Management ground, made accessible by passing through private property near Kaycee.
At first, money Infinite Outdoors gets from its paying subscribers was enough to cover the landowners’ access fees. But as the idea has caught on to include more properties, that well started to run dry.
That’s why Infinite Outdoors partnered with Primos and HUSH, and hopes to get more private companies involved, Seeton said.
The companies can put up money for the landowner’s access fees, keeping the program free for public users, he said.
But because access must be scheduled by booking on a first-come, first-served basis through Infinite Outdoors, it keeps it from being a free-for-all, with people trooping across the private property at unexpected times, he added.
“It’s providing access that predictable for the landowner,” Seeton said.
The model fits Infinite Outdoors’ mission. And if it catches on across the West, it could be a game-changer, Seeton said.
“We’ve always described ourselves as a conservation access program,” he said.
Eager To Get After Those Antelope
Dyer lives in Utah, and in years past, has hunted antelope in the vicinity of the Kaycee-area property.
He said that not having access to the BLM land on the other side of the private property has frustrating.
“There were some landlocked spots,” he said. “And man, they looked good, but you’ve got to respect that landowner and the law.”
He plans on applying for an antelope hunting tag in the same area this year and is excited about the prospect of getting access to the previously landlocked BLM parcel.
As one of the first companies to get aboard with Access Granted, Primos is taking some risk, but the payoff could be huge, he said.
“It’s slow and steady,” Dyer said. “You’ve got to make sure this model is done well. But in theory it’s amazing,” and could eventually take off all across the country.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
