ROCK SPRINGS – The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Rock Springs Field Office (RSFO) is temporarily closing the Steamboat Mountain area, northeast of Rock Springs, to motorized vehicles from May 1 to June 30. The purpose of this annual closure is to help protect sensitive elk calving and deer fawning areas.
Signs will be posted to notify the public of the temporary closure. BLM law enforcement rangers and other employees will also patrol the area to inform the public and enforce the seasonal vehicle restriction.
The annual closure takes effect each spring, but does not affect access to private or state lands. The closure includes both sides of Steamboat Rim as well as the Johnson, La Fonte and Box canyons. These locations are protected from human activity to improve calving and fawning success which helps produce healthy big game populations.
BLM Supervisory Wildlife Biologist Mark Snyder appreciates the public’s continued cooperation. “We’ve had tremendous support over the years and are thankful that people are respecting the closures,” Snyder said.
A map of the protected area is available online at www.blm.gov/wy/st/en/field_offices/Rock_Springs/wildlife.html.
Please note that the Rock Springs Field Office is currently closed to the public. For more information about the temporary road closure, contact Mark Snyder at 307-352-0368. To learn more about BLM Wyoming, please visit www.blm.gov/wyoming.
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The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. In fiscal year 2018, the diverse activities authorized on BLM-managed lands generated $105 billion in economic output across the country. This economic activity supported 471,000 jobs and contributed substantial revenue to the U.S. Treasury and state governments, mostly through royalties on minerals.
