Spring has officially sprung! Although the high country is still very much covered in snow, bears are already making their highly anticipated first appearances of the year. Our valley floors are beginning to show the first signs of the season: aspen, chokecherry, and snowberry leaves are slowly unfolding; osprey, sandhill crane, and red-tailed hawk eggs are carefully incubating; and trumpeter swans are beginning to build the platforms atop which their nests will sit.

The many migratory antelope, deer, elk, and moose are beginning their migration from winter refuge throughout public lands across southeastern Idaho to summer habitat, primarily in Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park. 

And here at the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, our Idaho team is eagerly preparing for the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to release its final plan for the Upper Snake East Travel Management Planning Area later this season – a landscape that includes winter wildlife refuges and migratory corridors to summer habitat. 

Through the travel management planning process, the BLM’s Upper Snake Field Office is taking a critical look at routes, trails, and recreation on BLM lands and how they impact wildlife, wildlife habitat, soil, water, and the resources that define this place. After evaluating both motorized and non-motorized routes, and accepting public comment, the BLM makes management decisions about how these routes will be used in the future.

For GYC, travel management planning is an opportunity to advocate for a variety of travel routes on BLM land that offer high quality recreation while protecting critical wildlife habitat.   

This travel management planning process is the BLM’s first attempt to analyze the routes and trails within the BLM’s Upper Snake Field Office. In July 2023, the Greater Yellowstone Coalition submitted comments on the draft Environmental Assessment for the Upper Snake East Travel Management Plan. We advocated for an alternative that ensured the continued protection of critical wildlife habitat, especially winter range, while balancing recreation opportunities. We also asked for improvements to the alternative that would reduce route density and implement more seasonal closures for wildlife in the winter months.       

We look forward to seeing what elements the BLM will select for implementation in the Final Upper Snake East Travel Management Plan in the coming months.  

And we are always looking ahead. Whether it’s travel management planning for the other three sections of the Upper Snake Field Office or initiating a Resource Management Plan revision for these same BLM lands, we are identifying new and exciting opportunities to advocate for the protection of vital wildlife habitat and high-quality recreation opportunities. The Medicine Lodge Resource Management Plan – the current governing resource management plan for this area of the Upper Snake Field Office – was written in 1985 and is exactly as old as I am at 38 years. 

Make sure to check back for accurate and up-to-date information about the travel management planning process as we receive and review the final documents for the Upper Snake East Travel Management Plan and work with the BLM and our other partners in the region to help implement the selected plan. The best way to stay in touch is by signing up for our emails! 

—Allison Michalski, Senior Idaho Conservation Associate (Driggs, Idaho)