Working to give public land back to the public, Infinite Outdoors announced the launch of Access Granted, a first-of-its-kind initiative giving outdoor enthusiasts legal access to public lands long locked behind private property.
Public land access is one of the biggest challenges for outdoor recreation in the United States. While more than 640 million acres of public land exist, nearly 16 million acres remain landlocked, surrounded by private property and legally unreachable to the general public, limiting access for outdoor recreationalists for generations. Through strategic partnerships with private landowners and conservation-driven outdoor brands like HUSH and Primos, Infinite Outdoors now provides walk-in access to these previously unreachable areas of BLM, state and national forest lands – and at no cost to the public, a game-changing move for hunters, anglers and campers who’ve long been shut out of these public lands.
“For decades, there has been debate around why there are millions of acres of public land that the public cannot access,” said Sam Seeton, founder and CEO of Infinite Outdoors. “There’s nothing more frustrating than knowing public land is right there yet having no way for the average person to legally get to it. We are passionate about public lands being public, and as such, built the Access Granted Initiative to fix this issue, using our own funds and industry partnerships to tear down the invisible fences and let people experience the land that was meant for all of us free of cost.”
Infinite Outdoors, often called the “Airbnb for outdoorsmen,” launched in 2020 and quickly became the largest platform in the U.S. for connecting sportsmen with private land access for hunting, fishing and recreation. With more than one million acres of private land listings across 16 states, the app gives DIY outdoorsmen a way to skip the crowds, avoid high-dollar guided trips and enjoy the land on their terms – with conservation at the heart of every access point.
The Access Granted Initiative builds on that mission, giving the public legal passage through private land by funding easements with landowners and providing daily access licenses to the public. The initiative’s fund is powered by contributions from Infinite Outdoors’ Access+ paid membership program and supported by partners like outdoor apparel brand HUSH and well-known hunting brand Primos. Landowners are compensated for providing access, and new public routes are available without costing users a dime. Beyond access, the initiative opens the door for better experiences and more inclusive recreation – from families looking for quiet campgrounds to new hunters eager to get started in a controlled, low-pressure environment.
As is the case with all Infinite Outdoors initiatives, conservation remains a top priority for Access Granted. In alignment with the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, Infinite Outdoors assigns biologists to every participating property owner to ensure harvest quotas are sustainable and game populations stay healthy to avoid over harvesting and overpopulation simultaneously.
“Access Granted is one of the most important programs I’ve seen to date that will help shape the future state of hunting and the outdoors,” said Casey Butler, founder of HUSH. “Opening up new opportunities to hunters and sportsman to enjoy public access through private lands, while also promoting responsible land use and smart wildlife management efforts, bodes well for the future of our sport.”
By opening public lands, there are also more opportunities for conservation projects to guarantee the land for decades to come. To kick off the Access Granted Initiative, Infinite Outdoors has partnered with the Mule Deer Foundation and the first Access Granted property – a 600-acre parcel near Kaycee, Wyoming, that provides access to more than 40,000 acres of landlocked BLM – to launch a wildlife fencing project that protects critical habitat now open to the public for the first time in decades. The community conservation event will take place at the Andrus Draw Access Granted property on June 7 and is open to the public for volunteers.
At launch, nearly a dozen properties have signed onto the Access Granted Initiative across Wyoming and Colorado, unlocking more than 45,000 acres of new public land access – the equivalent of 60 square miles.
To explore the newly opened public lands or learn how to get involved in the Access Granted Initiative from a brand or landowner perspective, visit https://infiniteoutdoorsusa.com/.
