It looks Montana like timber land long held by private timber companies, recently purchased by a new out-of-state owner, will remain open to hunting and other recreational activity. Georgia-based Southern Pines Plantations recently purchased 630,000 acres of forestland from Weyerhaeuser.
“I don’t plan to cancel the open lands policy. We had the opportunity to cancel it and we decided to re-enroll in the block management agreement,” Pat Patton, Southern Pines Plantations vice president, told the Flathead Beacon. “That is the plan.”
Montana outdoorsmen and women expressed deep concern after Weyerhaeuser announced plans to sell the land.
(Photo source: Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation)