The new fee-title property, owned by Sagebrush Steppe Land Trust, will be used as a cattle ranch and an educational property to demonstrate the compatibility of working lands and wildlife habitat.
Sagebrush Steppe Land Trust (SSLT) completed a fee-title transfer of ownership of land from the Idaho Foundation for Parks and Lands (IFPL) on May 31, adding 920 acres of ranchland and wildlife habitat to SSLT’s conservation portfolio. The property, known as the Kackley Ranch, contains a variety of habitats including mixed forest, sagebrush steppe, and pastureland. The mixed habitat, as well as the multiple forks of Chippy Creek and Wayan Creek, support an abundance of wildlife such as Columbian sharp-tailed grouse, long-billed curlew, Sandhill crane, elk, deer, moose, migratory songbirds, Yellowstone cutthroat trout, and reptiles and amphibians.
“This beautiful property protects such a valuable corridor of relatively undeveloped land in Southeast Idaho,” says Eric Pankau, SSLT Stewardship Manager. “It represents an amazing opportunity for partnership, education, and managing working lands to benefit wildlife. We are so excited to use this property as a focal point to showcase collaborative conservation efforts in this landscape.”
Alvin (Al) Kackley and his brother Ellis had granted a conservation easement and fee ownership to IFPL in 2006, perpetually protecting the Kackley Ranch. Al states that his family loved the property for many years and wanted to see it maintained in its current condition, protecting the land and all the critters that live on it.
After conducting careful stewardship of the Kackley Ranch for over two decades and desiring only to ensure the land’s continued protection and honor of the original donor’s intent, IFPL agreed to work with Matt Lucia, Executive Director of SSLT, to facilitate a transfer of ownership to a local land trust who could better preserve the property in perpetuity.
“As Idaho’s oldest land trust, we’re proud to convey the Kackley Ranch to the Sagebrush Steppe Land Trust, a fantastic representative of the current generation of Idaho’s conservation organizations. I am delighted that Sagebrush Steppe will provide local management of this beautiful agricultural open space for future generations,” says Brandy Wilson, President of Idaho Foundation for Parks and Lands.
After taking title to the ranch property, SSLT also received the Al and Yvonne Kackley Endowment to manage the Kackley Ranch in perpetuity. Al Kackley expressed his hope that the endowment will help keep the ranch in its current state for future generations to enjoy. He also said his family was privileged to know the beauty, wonder, and magic of Williamsburg and the wonderful people of Williamsburg and Grays Lake.
“The Kackley Ranch represents an anchor property in this portion of our service area,” Matt Lucia of SSLT said. “We are grateful to our partners at the IFPL for entrusting the future of this property to SSLT, to the Kackley family for their dedication to this property and for their financial support to manage it, and to . We are also grateful to Kyle Barber for managing this property transfer. This property will be managed as a working cattle ranch and as habitat for a variety of wildlife species.”
The recent 920-acre transfer brings the total land protected and managed by SSLT to nearly 10,500 acres.
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