On August 14, 2020, Rebuild America Inc transferred 477 acres of land adjacent to the Coyote Mountains Wilderness to the Arizona Land and Water Trust - Arizona Land and Water Trust to provide an access area on the north east edge of the Wilderness:
- Hayhook Ranch - Arizona Land and Water Trust
- BLM acquires land near Coyote Mountains Wilderness Area | Bureau of Land Management
- BLM acquires land near Coyote Mountains Wilderness Area - The Gila Herald
Based on the 2018 BLM Coyote Mountains NE Access Land Acquisition Environmental Assessment there are no current plans to develop this area - no formal parking, no new trails - it is simply meant to provide a public access point.
Access to the Coyote Mountains Wilderness that doesn't depend on the permission of private land owners has been a problem since it was established. Securing public access points was identified as a management goal in the 2012 Baboquivari Peak Wilderness and Coyote Mountains Wilderness Wilderness Management Plan.
While this purchase does partly resolve a long standing access issue the BLM Coyote Mountains NE Access Land Acquisition Environmental Assessment mentions that some portions of the roads leading to the new access parcel don't have Pima County easements and that they will continue to work on the issue. (1/12/2021 - there are currently no closed/locked gates or signage indicating any road closures in the area...)
The BLM Coyote Mountains NE Access Land Acquisition Environmental Assessment cites Zinke's 2017 Secretarial Order Number 3356's directive to assess ongoing efforts and develop new opportunities to “enhance and expand public access to lands and waters administered by the Department—lands and waters owned by all Americans—for hunting, fishing, recreational shooting, and other forms of outdoor recreation” as a key motivation for this purchase.
