Public Lands

What it shows

Public Lands colors federal and state land across the United States by the agency that manages it, so you can see at a glance whether you're on BLM land, in a National Forest or in a wildlife refuge. Tap an area for its name, the agency that manages it, whether it's open to the public, and its designation.

It's free. Use it to find dispersed camping on BLM and National Forest land, or to check which rules apply where you plan to hunt or camp.

Legend

Color	Managed by
Yellow	Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
Olive green	U.S. Forest Service (National Forests and Grasslands)
Sage green	National Park Service
Dusty rose	U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (wildlife refuges)
Purple	U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Pale yellow	Bureau of Reclamation
Light gray	Department of Defense
Dark green	Other federal agencies
Tan	State land
Light orange	Special districts

Hatching marks land that isn't open to the public, or whose access is unknown. Wilderness areas are outlined in light green and labeled.

The overlay leaves out private land and land owned by cities, counties and school districts. For private land and owner names, use Land Ownership.

On the map

The colors show as soon as you turn the overlay on. They're faint when zoomed far out and stronger from zoom 5. Borders and hatching appear from zoom 8. National Forest and National Park names show when zoomed out, and the names of smaller areas appear as you zoom in.

Where the data comes from

The Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US) from the U.S. Geological Survey, version 3.0. It brings together land records from federal, state and local agencies. Goat Maps uses its fee ownership layer, which records who owns the land, not the easements or designations on top of it.

PAD-US isn't a legal boundary survey. Boundaries can be off, and recent purchases and transfers may be missing. Where it matters, such as around a private inholding, check the managing agency's own map.

Coverage

The United States, including Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the U.S. territories.

Offline

Public Lands is free on the web and on iPhone. With a membership, you can download the whole overlay in the iPhone app to use offline.