State trust

State trust lands

Trust lands held by individual states for the benefit of public schools, with widely varying recreation rules. Some require an inexpensive annual permit for dispersed camping.

What state trust lands are

When western states were admitted to the union, the federal government granted each state several million acres of land to be held in trust to generate revenue for designated beneficiaries — almost always public schools. These lands are managed by state-level land departments (in Arizona, the State Land Department; in New Mexico, the State Land Office; in Idaho, the Department of Lands; etc.) and are legally distinct from federal public land.

Total state trust acreage in the West is large — Arizona alone has about 9.2 million acres, New Mexico 9 million, Montana 5.2 million. Much of this land is leased for grazing, mining, or oil and gas, but it is generally open for low-impact recreation including dispersed camping subject to state-specific rules.

Permits

Most western states with significant trust holdings sell inexpensive annual recreation permits — typically $15-30 per year — that grant the holder the right to recreate on trust land, including dispersed camping for short stays. Without the permit, recreation on trust land is technically a trespass, even if rangers rarely enforce it on quiet weekdays.

If you camp on trust land regularly, the permit is cheap and the right thing to do — the proceeds fund schools and the legal coverage matters when you encounter a lessee or a ranger.

Variability

Rules differ substantially state to state. Some states require trust permits even for day use; others tolerate dispersed camping without one. Stay limits are often tighter than federal land — sometimes 7 days. Some states close trust land entirely to motor-vehicle use, allowing only walk-in recreation. Always read the state-level rules before counting on trust land for a trip.