Hecla - Lion Mountain from the Air - A Montana ghost town near ghost town of Glendale, Montana MT.

[@J_Calvin_Hobbes]

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[@alexdrockhound9497]

i believe this was always private, but was unmarked and unmaintained. These mining claims were patented long ago. Patenting is the process of converting a claim into private property. Theyve been private for close to 100 years or maybe a few decades longer than that, some time in the 1880s-1930s era i believe.

[@alexdrockhound9497]

Patenting mining claims was ceased by the Clinton administration. In theory legally it could still be done, the law is still on the books permitting it, but the office that was in charge of it was closed down during that administration and never reopened.

[@davidegg22]

Alex, thanks for the great information. My digital maps show all the mining claims in Montana, and I am finding more and more of them have been closed off to the public. Unfortunately for us, people are pulling campers and building cabins on the claims that I explored and photographed, leaving no trace. A part of our history that isn't being preserved for future generations.

[@alexdrockhound9497]

@@davidegg22 yep. ive seen that happen too. It doesnt help also that the forest service and BLM keep closing down more and more roads and making all these wilderness study areas.

[@Go4Corvette]

The cabin just needs a little TLC.

[@davidegg22]

I was up there this summer and was stopped by a locked gate to the area. Drone footage recorded that this cabin now is just a blank spot in the dirt. It may have collapsed during the winter or was torn down by the new owners. Close by is a home being built and the mountain road that we used to travel onto the face of Lion Mountain had no trespassing signs all around. I am glad I was there to record this piece of history before it was closed to the public.