A section of county road outside Bluff is open again after nearby landowners blocked public access to it in late December.
The road traverses a section of Comb Ridge formerly owned by the Utah School Institutional Trust Lands administration, or SITLA. It was a popular picnic area for locals before it was purchased by the Lyman Family Farms Corporation in October. But San Juan County still holds easements to the road, meaning it must remain open to the public. San Juan County Sheriff Rick Eldredge tells KSJD he learned on December 30th that the gate across the road on Comb Ridge was padlocked. He then verified the easements and contacted the landowners to have them unlock the gate. Eldredge says the road is open to public access as of January 4th, but people still cannot enter the private land around it. The tract of land is surrounded by the new Bears Ears National Monument, but its owners have not said what they plan to do with it in the future.
