PLWA has a storied history, made up of individuals who believe that access to public lands and waters is fundamental to the identity of Montana.

It was,

“… during a public meeting called by an ad hoc group of public land users in 1984 when Gene Hawkes, a former Gallatin National Forest Supervisor, threw his $25 on a table at the Bozeman Public Library and said, ‘Here’s my start-up dues. Let’s organize a public land access group.’ After more people threw their $25 on the table that night, nine of us from Bozeman, Three Forks, and Livingston signed on as Founders and first Board of Directors of the Public Land Access Association. PLAAI* was incorporated as a Montana Corporation on April 18, 1985 by the Secretary of State.”

- Excerpt of Our Vanishing Roads by Perry Nelson, one of the 9 Founders of PLAII

In 1990 Grace Lichtenstein wrote an article in the Los Angeles Times Magazine about the increasing number of public lands access issues, especially in Montana. Don’t Fence Me Out detailed threats to public access already occurring over thirty years ago.

PLWA Executive Director at the time Gene Hawkes and former President Ron Stevens showed Lichtenstein what public land ownership in Montana was all about.

"It was a warm summer morning, and he and Gene Hawkes were about to show me how one landowner tried to block the public’s entrance to a chunk of Montana that they believe everyone should be able to enjoy. Along a trail between a rocky ridge and granite-faced mountains, we paused to take in the view. “See this?” Hawkes said, sweeping his arm at the landscape. “This is your ranch.”

“All Montanans are ranchers,” Stevens chimed in. “Their ranch is the Big Sky ranch, and it includes 8.1 million acres of BLM land, 10.2 million acres of National Forest and 5.2 million acres of state school-trust land. Our brand is the Flying R, which stands for freedom to recreate.”

That sentiment - that desire to keep access to Montana's public lands and waters open to all who wish to travel them is central to PLWA's purpose, leadership, and base of support.

Sometimes we educate; sometimes we litigate. But we never give up.

*PLAII later became PLWA

Read our PLWA Programs brochure here.

Read our booklet PLWA Who We Are here.

Read our Best in the West stream access booklet here.

PLWA is supported by many incredible organizations and businesses. We encourage you to learn more about them.

PLWA is also supported by the incredible commitment of our Lifetime Members who have pledged to support and safeguard public access in Montana. Please thank them if you meet them and find out why public access work is important to individuals across the nation.

Thank you to our incredible Lifetime Members.

Bernie began his career with the U. S. Forest Service in 1956 as an Engineering Technician. Working at this job for approximately 15 years, Bernie was in charge of locating, surveying, designing and preparing contracts for access roads to be constructed for timber sales, recreation, and other uses of public lands. In 1976, Bernie began work as a Realty Specialist acquiring rights-of ways, which included negotiating with land owners, acquiring title insurance, preparing easements to be signed by landowners. He was also involved in negotiating land exchanges between private landowners and the Forest Service. During his career, Bernie has worked in five different National Forests across Montana and the Nez Perce National Forest in Idaho. After retiring from the Forest Service in 1992, Bernie obtained an Appraisal License and started performing land and right of way appraisals for an additional 25 years, and continues to teach in this field.

Bernie became involved with PLWA in the early 1980's and has served as a Board Member, Officer, and currently serves as President of the organization. Bernie has contributed to several cases PLWA has presented in court for decisions regarding the status of public county roads.

Dylan was born and raised in Anaconda, MT; on the edge of the Pintler Wilderness. By high school age, there were very few lakes in the Pintlers and Pioneers that he hadn’t fished, very few drainages that he hadn’t hunted, and very few peaks that he hadn’t climbed. He completed his undergraduate degree in Bozeman, MT, and later moved to Butte, MT where he still resides.

He says “My dedication and resolve to recreating on public lands and waters is …an asset. To be honest, I believe the ability to hunt, hike, and fish on public lands has had more of an impact on who I am today than anything else. It has taught me community, camaraderie, self-worth and drive, and many other virtues. It’s a place to find one’s self, and without it, I would be a very different person. I’ve experienced an access issue myself, and lost a very close friend to cancer during the process. It was eye opening to see how fast you can lose something and how hard it is to get it back. One of my biggest regrets in life is that I didn’t do more to advocate for public lands until I was forced to. I won’t have that regret again…It’s very important to me that my two children have the same opportunities in life that I have, and for me that starts with public lands. I’ve worked with Drew and Haley on an access issue and couldn’t be any more excited about the accomplishments PLWA has made and where its heading. In my mind, there are few endeavors more righteous.”

Recreating on public lands in Montana has been Carol’s favorite pastime since she came to Montana for graduate school in 1980. Carol enjoys hiking, biking, kayaking, camping, and bird-hunting. Spending precious moments gawking at Montana's majestic mountain and prairie landscapes, birds, & wildlife, and big skies gives her great joy; she’s addicted.

Carol retired in 2014 from the State of Montana where she managed environmental cleanup and restoration programs. Now, through her volunteer work with PLWA both as a Board Member and researcher, she is able to give back to Montana and Montanans by helping to protect and enhance public access to public lands. She feels it is a most enjoyable and satisfying endeavor.

Katy Ross grew up in Columbus, Ohio and studied English, history and philosophy at Ohio State before doing graduate studies in English at Hunter college in New York. Although she grew up in the east, the mountain west always called to her and she and her family fell in love with Montana through countless trips to the parks and national forests around the state. They soon settled on a small ranch outside of Bozeman in Bridger Canyon.

Katy loves running, long days on the trail, skiing, horseback riding, climbing, backpacking and exploring the gorgeous open spaces of Montana with her family. Katy believes that Montana’s public lands are what makes the state such a special place and protecting public access to those spaces should be important to all Montanans. She found the PLWA while trying to research a public access issue in the Bridgers and is happy to serve on the board to help protect access to the wild spaces that drew her to Montana in the first place.

Born and raised in Montana, Codi is inspired by the organization's mission and the critical work it undertakes to educate and advocate to protect access to our public lands. With her background in business management, Codi brings years of experience that aligns to support the goals of PLWA. Codi completed PLWA's Access Investigation Certificate program in the spring of 2023 and looks forward to utilizing that knowledge to support the mission. She has experienced firsthand the frustration of being intimidated off public land not knowing what resources were available to address the situation. Now more than ever with Montana's growth there is a need for education and awareness surrounding rights and access to public lands.

Codi says, “I am particularly drawn to the collaborative spirit that PLWA embodies. In my current role as a business owner in the outdoor industry, I have the opportunity to collaborate with several like-minded organizations and individuals to share PLWA's message. Furthermore, I am impressed by the positive impact that PLWA has achieved in the past, and I am eager to be part of the team that will guide the organization toward even greater success in the future…I firmly believe that my combination of professional experience, leadership qualities, and a genuine passion for Montana's public lands will enable me to make meaningful contributions to the board's efforts and help shape the direction of PLWA.”

Amelia settled in Montana in 2020, after she accepted a position with the State while finishing up her graduate degree in civil engineering at Virginia Tech. Prior to graduate school, she received her undergraduate degree in environmental science at the State University of New York (SUNY) Plattsburgh. Growing up, Amelia lived all over the country, spending the most time in New Hampshire.

Amelia grew up experiencing many outdoor activities throughout the U.S. Her hobbies adapted depending on the accessibility of the public lands that supported them within the state she lived. One of the biggest draws for moving to Montana was the access to the abundance of public lands and waters. Since moving here, she’s been spending her time gardening, backpacking, biking, hunting, fishing, cross-country skiing, or trying out something new.

The fight to keep public lands and water accessible is something that she became interested in while in college. Since then, she’s been working to find a way to both give back to her community and support our public lands and waters, and she is honored to play a bigger part in advocating for access by being a Board Member for PLWA.

Beth runs TREAD Agency, a marketing and PR agency based in Bozeman, Montana. Her marketing focus is in the outdoor recreation industry, and Beth also uses her role in the industry to advocate for conservation, public lands and public land access. Beth is involved in Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, Tread Lightly and also serves on the board on the Specialty Equipment Manufacturing Association Board as part of the SEMA Business Women’s Select Committee.

Beth says, “I believe that my marketing and PR background can help spread the word and assist greatly in the promotional side of PLWA whether it be publicizing events or seeking media placements that will help cast a wider net in telling the PLWA story. I am also able to help in other marketing arenas such as branding and messaging. I am passionate about public land access and how I might contribute my skills and background to help further PLWA’s mission.”

Coby brings over 12 years of experience in executive leadership and environmental conservation working with Federal and State agencies across the West.  As a dedicated conservation professional he has successfully built and scaled sustainable and diverse portfolios of attractive conservation programs to stakeholders, from internal staff, state and Federal land management agencies, to individual donors and multimillion-dollar foundations.  In addition to leading two organizations as an Executive Director, Coby has held key roles at organizations such as the Selway Bitterroot Frank Church Foundation, Colorado Fourteeners Initiative, the National Park Service, and the US Forest Service.  A strong business acumen and entrepreneurial thinking for mission-driven businesses is something he's excited to offer to the PLWA. 

Coby can be found enjoying the outdoors of Montana and the west on his raft, bike, or boots whenever the opportunity is available.

Brian moved to Montana after 24 years of working overseas in International Development.   As a career US Diplomat for the US Agency for International Development (USAID), Brian and his family spent years working in environmental, agriculture, and economic development, using weekends to explore game parks and the wild beauty of Africa. After retiring from the foreign service, his family settled in the Madison Valley, where Brian became involved in local access issues while campaigning for County Commissioner.  For the last two years he has consulted with organizations around the world to build their capacity to deliver results and impact in their local communities. 

Brian and his family moved to Ennis because of the incredible beauty of Montana, and the opportunity to fly fish, hunt and enjoy the wild places around them.  The attraction of Montana is its forward looking constitution that provides public access to rivers and public areas.  One of the first things he saw when he moved to Ennis was an article in Outside Bozeman about a successful fight led by PLWA to unblock fishing access in the Ruby Valley.  

“I was immediately drawn to support an organization that was having such an important impact in my community. It is so important to have a group that holds our federal, state, and local officials (as well as landowners) accountable to protect our valuable public access.  Without PLWA, these rights would erode and disappear.”

We’re always looking to add to PLWA’s leadership team. If you think you would be a good fit, reach out using this form and let us know how you would like to contribute.