Last week, Wyoming Game and Fish named Tim and Tina Delaney of Bondurant, WY landowner of the year. The esteemed award is given each year to “Wyoming landowners who have demonstrated outstanding practices in wildlife management, habitat improvement, and conservation techniques on their properties.”
The Delaney family initially worked with Terry Fieseler, one of our brokers at Live Water Properties, to purchase the Rolling Thunder Ranch located next to the Hoback Ranches development. The Delaneys continued to grow the ranch by purchasing the Rim Ranch as well as two other smaller pieces. They placed both properties under easement, conserving 7,600 acres next to the national forest, preserving a continuous wildlife habitat for the future.
During the buying process, they consulted with Fieseler and Live Water Properties on conservation easement potential for the land as well as potential habitat improvements that could be made. Since purchasing the properties, the Delaney Family completed numerous projects for Aspen regeneration, sage aeration treatment to improve grouse habitat, and installation of wildlife-friendly fencing. They continued the property’s ranching legacy by leasing the cattle grazing to local ranchers.
“They love the ranch, the wildlife and the agriculture,” says Fieseler of this deserving family.
“Today’s landowners contribute to wildlife management in many ways. Landowners preserve critical migration corridors, they improve habitat through costly enhancement projects, and they provide important access, which allows for our hunting and angling heritage to continue into the future,” says Scott Talbott, director of Wyoming Game and Fish. “Today’s landowners are more than ranchers or farmers, they are key partners with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department in carrying out our mission, ‘Conserving Wildlife – Serving People.’”
We were honored to attend the banquet and watch this deserving family accept the landowner of the year award. One of our favorite parts of the job at Live Water Properties is having the privilege to work with families like the Delaneys. If you are searching for a ranch and interested in conservation easements, our brokers are experienced with local partners and land trusts to help walk you through the process.
