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Wyoming landowner wins road access to 640 acres, must pay $61,200

By · Via Times of India · Published by Everything Blog

In short

The dispute originated when Wagonhound filed a petition under the state's private road statute after private negotiations for a right-of-way collapsed. The court rejected Little Medicine Creek Ranch's proposed alternative routes, finding they involved nonexistent bypasses or rough federal tracks lacking legally enforceable public road connections. Court-appointed viewers determined the easement impacted 680 acres and reduced property value by $90 per acre. Justices upheld the resulting $61,200 payout, affirming that statutory damages exclude indirect business losses like hunting impacts or livestock dust issues.

Key points

  • Wyoming's private road statute requires property compensation to be calculated solely thr…: Wyoming's private road statute requires property compensation to be calculated solely through before-and-after land appraisals rather than indirect operational losses.
  • Proposed access alternatives over adjacent federal lands fail statutory requirements if t…: Proposed access alternatives over adjacent federal lands fail statutory requirements if they do not provide legally enforceable vehicular connections.
  • Landowners with landlocked parcels may secure binding access across adjacent properties w…: Landowners with landlocked parcels may secure binding access across adjacent properties when private right-of-way negotiations fail.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

A 640-acre property is of little practical use if its owner cannot legally reach it by vehicle. That problem became the centre of a dispute between two Wyoming landowners after Wagonhound Land & Livestock Company sought access to an isolated parcel surrounded almost entirely by a neighbouring ranch. After negotiations failed, the company approached the court to establish a private road across the neighbouring property, but the ranch challenged the move and disputed the compensation.

In its September 23, 2026,

decision in Wagonhound Land & Livestock Company, LLC v. Little Medicine Creek Ranch, Inc., available on Justia, the Wyoming Supreme Court upheld the creation of the private road and the $61,200 compensation awarded to the neighbouring ranch. However, it overturned two restrictions imposed on the road, finding that they lacked sufficient supporting evidence.

The dispute over access to 640 acres

The dispute concerned Parcel 1, a roughly 640-acre tract in a remote and rugged part of northern Albany County, Wyoming. The property belonged to Wagonhound and was surrounded almost entirely by land owned by Little Medicine Creek Ranch, formerly known…

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