Victor family gifts community with public access

One local family’s longtime vision to conserve their 540-acre ranch and provide permanent public access for the community to enjoy forever has finally come to fruition, thanks in part to funding received from the Ravalli County Open Lands Program and the collaboration between several local partners in conservation.

The Hackett family, in partnership with Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, the Bitter Root Land Trust, Bitterroot National Forest, Ravalli County Fish and Wildlife Association, Montana Fish and Wildlife Conservation Trust, and the Ravalli County Open Lands Bond Program, have provided the public with a diversity of recreational opportunities, including hunting and fishing access on private lands and recreational access to adjacent National Forest lands including the trail to the scenic Sweathouse Falls, one of the most popular day hiking destinations in the Bitterroot National Forest. 

“Our family wanted to preserve the property for future generations but needed to receive some compensation for retirement,” says landowner Scott Hackett. “The conservation easement was able to accomplish both goals.”

Located approximately 3.5 miles west of Victor, the conservation easement on the property maintains the family’s history of providing hunter access through Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks’ Block Management Program, ensures permanent protection of the rolling foothills that serve as winter range habitat for elk and mule deer. The property’s shared boundary with the Bitterroot National Forest ensures that the wildlife that currently benefit from this habitat will continue to use this property long into the future. The property also includes three-quarters of a mile of Sweathouse Creek and a small stretch of Gash Creek, both of which are important westside tributaries of the Bitterroot River and serve as habitat for native westslope cutthroat trout. 

“We are grateful for the Hackett family’s longstanding commitment to maintaining their property as natural open space and allowing public recreational access, in perpetuity,” says Randy Arnold, Regional Supervisor for Fish, Wildlife & Parks, Region 2. “Conserving this special piece of the Bitterroot Valley permanently secures public access for hunting, fishing, hiking, and recreating, while conserving critical aquatic and terrestrial habitat, for the benefit of wildlife and for future generations of Bitterroot residents, visitors, and sportspeople.”

A small celebration to honor the Hackett family and the newly conserved property was held on Friday, November 17, 2023. The Sweathouse Trailhead is located on the west side of Victor off Sweathouse Creek Road. For trail information, visit www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/bitterroot/recarea/?recid=60334.