Question?

It would be considered " State right of way ".
The private landowner still owns and pays taxes on the ground. So there for, you should get permission.

smith101 said:

It would be considered " State right of way ".
The private landowner still owns and pays taxes on the ground. So there for, you should get permission.

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i always ask its just good practice and they can let u no if someone else is setting there or they might b. im not sure what the right of way is. some bridges i have to walk about 15 ft from the road because of banks and or brush so in that case i would b trespassing. i would ask just to play it safe.

Thanks, i was just wondering what you guys do, i will probably just wait till weekends when i can trap land i already have permission on. It can be pretty difficult to track down the actual landowners most of the time.

cbowers said:

some bridges i have to walk about 15 ft from the road because of banks and or brush so in that case i would b trespassing. i would ask just to play it safe.

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Does not matter, if you are within the bridge wall you are still on private property. If a given property owner only owns one side of a road, his line would be the center line of the road. If the owner has both sides of the road the whole road and bridge is on his property. The state has the right of way for the use of the land owners property, not the public.

I always ask. They usually own the property that u walk on to get under bridge...

Just for your knowlegde, NOBODY owns the land under a body of water in Pa (creek, river). They only exception to this is if a pond is located on their property. They may own the land on both sides, but they CANNOT own the ground under water. That is the property of the Commonwealth.

Actually, the right of the Commonwealth extends to the regular water mark on the bank.

With that being said, it is always best to ask permission, but as long as don't intrude onto the land on either side you are within your legal right to set traps.

Roaddawg said:

Just for your knowlegde, NOBODY owns the land under a body of water in Pa (creek, river). They only exception to this is if a pond is located on their property. They may own the land on both sides, but they CANNOT own the ground under water. That is the property of the Commonwealth.

Actually, the right of the Commonwealth extends to the regular water mark on the bank.

With that being said, it is always best to ask permission, but as long as don't intrude onto the land on either side you are within your legal right to set traps.

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That is not entirely correct. In PA, only navigable waterways are considered public waters along with the river/creek beds. Any other waterway, including the stream bed, is considered private property.

http://fishandboat.com/water/public/faq_public_waters.htm

What waters are considered to be private?
Private waters are non-navigable rivers, streams and lakes.

Who owns private waters?
Title to the beds is held by the adjacent riparian landowner. If the adjacent riparian landowner owns property on only one side of a non-navigable waterway, he or she owns to the middle. When a non-navigable waterway flows through someone’s property, he or she owns the entire bed of the waterway.

Can a riparian landowner prevent members of the public from fishing or wading in a non-navigable water?
Yes.

Thank you Longie...


The waterways and roadways work the same.

Ask, Ask, Ask! If you dont get permission you know you shouldnt be there in the first place without it. PLUS!!!!! If you are going to be a "good, legal" trapper you wont EVER need to sneak around. I dont live in PA at the present, and trapping has a bad name already everywhere. If you walk down a waterway or canoe down one dont think you have a right, because land owners and Law dont care. If you get called out and step one foot on that property your wrong.