TALK ABOUT coming full circle. In December 2023, hunters and others who enjoy the outdoors gained perpetual public access to nearly 55,000 acres of private land in eastern Kentucky.
The landscape-scale conservation agreement by the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR), The Nature Conservancy (TNC), National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) and Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation (RMEF) is the largest conservation easement in state history. KDFWR now manages the land as the Cumberland Forest Wildlife Management Area for wildlife habitat, public recreation, sustainable forestry and clean water. The transaction also connects 274,000 acres of elk range stretching into neighboring Tennessee and conserves important riparian habitat as many streams cross the property. Bottom line, it’s a win for elk, deer, wild turkeys, black bears, hunting, fishing, public access, natural…
