Stories

Unlike most land trusts, PPLT is rooted in trails. In 1995, neighbors gathered in a Helena living room to talk about protecting the forest and trails behind the state’s Capitol from subdivision. Bit by bit, they protected Mt. Ascension and Mt. Helena and built the South Hills trail system. This 80-mile trail system gives residents and visitors alike unparalleled singletrack access to public lands.

“We knew that we wanted to be relevant in the hearts and minds of everyone in our region, but we weren’t necessarily going to touch everyone with singletrack trails in the South Hills. In order to broaden our conservation tent, we started to build parks and trails for places and communities in our region that PPLT hadn’t served yet.”

– Mary Hollow, Executive Director

In 2018, PPLT opened Tenmile Creek Park in the Helena Valley. The 180-acre park features accessible trails, an off-leash dog area, and creek access. It’s popular with local residents as well as soldiers and veterans from neighboring Fort Harrison. 

PPLT also has two parks in East Helena – The Grove and Prickly Pear Park – and is working on opening a greenway from Montana City to East Helena.

“We talk a lot about connecting land and people and we really want to deepen that connection here in the East Helena area, just like we’ve done in the South Hills and through our Ten Mile Creek Park in Helena.”

– Nate Kopp, Program & Trails Director

Nationwide, we lose three acres of agricultural land every minute, and forests and wildlife habitat on private land are shrinking as well. Landowners can buck that trend and pass on the gift of working lands, open space, and wild landscapes to future Montanans with a land protection agreement.  

Land protection agreements help landowners protect what they treasure about their property. From family farms and ranches to forests and grasslands, land protection is our most effective tool for conserving the clean water, wildlife habitat, and agricultural heritage of our region.

“Our private land conservation program took off in the early 2000s as we started to work with farmers and ranchers whose lands were under immense development pressure.”

– Mary Hollow, Executive Director

Our role at the land trust is to encourage land conservation that will benefit our communities by protecting the incredible outdoor heritage, recreation, wildlife, and agricultural legacy that defines Montana. Through PPLT’s private lands program, our partners are ensuring that wildlife, farming, and ranching have a place in Montana’s future. 

Land protection agreements permanently protect the conservation values of the land by limiting the development potential of a property. Landowners continue to own the land and are free to carry on traditional land uses, sell the land, and pass it on to their heirs.

Each agreement is unique, tailored to meet the needs of the landowner and the special qualities of the land. PPLT mo. This agreement transfers to all future landowners, meaning the land will remain open for generations to come.

“Once it’s gone, it’s gone forever. This will be my legacy to the land. This will be my stewardship.”

– Bill Gehring, Lewis and Clark County fourth-generation rancher

Since 1998, we’ve protected more than 17,000 acres of private lands through conservation easements. PPLT’s stewardship staff meets with every landowner annually. We’re there to ensure the conservation values are protected and to act as a resource for landowners.

“As an individual ranch owner, it’s really tough to navigate this system and figure out how to protect your family land forever. We couldn’t do it without Prickly Pear Land Trust doing the work, making the connections, and helping us through the process.”

– Mark Juedeman, Cattle Canyon Ranch Company owner

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