I would rather pay a touch more for that land and know that im not gonna have knuckleheads grubbing through my ditches and screwing up activities on my property. Others may not agree....

yes this

What’s the benefit to owning and paying taxes up to the middle of the road?

Seems ridiculous buying an acre of land and a good chunk of it is ditch and road.

Id have a road closed sign on it on each side of my property line. Or a booth to collect payment for access.

If you can’t do that then calling it yours is just a feel good thing the State lets you feel.

I once did 6 months in the county jail for illegal foraging of asparagus. I think this depends on the State. In some States the town road ditches are off limits, but county and State/ Federal roads are ok. I try not to steal from in front of houses, but I have had owners ignore me too. I think I got chased off once. If I have notice cutting near a house, I figure they are aware of it and pass on it. From all the endless ditch mowing these days, I think most landowners are unaware of asparagus in the ditch. Sometimes if they know they mow around it. I won't touch that either.

The idea is that if the road ever closes, the land reverts to your full control and ownership. This pretty much never happens anymore, but used to in the 1800s pretty frequently.

Keith

How much asparagus did you pick? It seems ridiculous to get 6 months for that.

Keith

my rent house has an Old road bed on one side. the road was closed when they strip mined and it's been abandoned before I bought the place 23 years ago it was not able to be driven down.

In Indiana you can trap ride of way ditches and creeks I was told out to the telephone poles on the side and under the bridges. I always assumed asparagus was the same.

And yes the deed property descriptions say to center of roads and surveyors put nails in the road often when working to mark it.

I'd spray some red fox urine on the ones closest to the road and they will probably stop getting it from there.

Back in the late 90’s when I was trapping mink quite hard I had already completely understood the ROW rights but I had heard a whisper that the County Drain Commissioner could have a problem with me inside. I went down to the County Offices and spoke directly to the Drain Commissioner about trapping inside the culverts & bridges with property owner permission. LOL! He got quite excited and told me that yes, nice that I had property owner permission BUT-BUT the culvert & bridges belonged to him and he was NOT giving me permission to enter his culverts or bridges!!!!! Such is life in the trapper’s lane!!! LOL

I still get the use of my land. I can hunt, trap, and harvest edibles right out to the center of the road, including the entire ROW. The only rights anyone else has is to travel through. Many, and I mean many furbearers are harvested from ROW. Many, and I mean many deer are harvested from a hunting position in the ROW.

LOL! That’s for sure! I always think of my relation killing deer chased out of the City Forest and dumped crossing Monroe Rd during the by gone years and no subdivions! LOL

I harvest most of my fur every year in the ROW. Thankfully I can do that without having to get permission.

Do you enjoy the stretches of roads that don’t belong to you?

Remember Michigan wouldn't let you buy gardening supplies during covid19. So their right-a-way law wasn't the only dumb law they ever passed.

Guess I my see things differently than you, but I dont see a law that protects my property rights as stupid. Dont need every tom, dick and harry dinking around in my ditches and ROW. Do we hve our share of stupid laws...you bet. Im guessing we all do...

his trapping on it is no different than you driving on it. If you drive down the road in front of my farm I pay taxes on 1/2 mile of that road and it's listed on my property deed and including in my acreage. What's the difference Driving on my property or setting traps in the road right off way. The state says both are legal.

Yes. The ROW is public here. Once in awhile you get a landowner that tries to tell you differently, but trapping and hunting is legal in the ROW here.
You cannot, however, set traps or shoot within 200 yards of an occupied residence in the ROW.
The law works well. I trap a lot of bridges and trails in the ROW across several counties, and its nice to be able to do so without seeking permission.
There are also stretches of road ditch that are good pheasant habitat, and its nice to be able to hop out of the truck and hunt them.

I once looked at buying a piece of land North of Xenia, Ohio that was 42 acres. It was basically 7 small chunks of tree less, swampy land, in weird shapes, including triangles, strung out along and connected by 3 different roads. About 1/3rd of the land was public right of way. I doubt anyone ever bought it as it was. Some farmer basically strung together all their non tillable, worthless acreage.

The same realtor that showed me that monstrosity showed me a " heavily wooded" property, that was a just a steep ravine with impenetrable, thumb size trees and brush. There was no flat land to build on. I didn't bother seeing the other properties they had to show.

Keith

Must not be much longlining in Michigan.