The property, formerly Loyalton Ranch, spans the Great Basin to the Sierra Nevada and includes sagebrush scrublands, juniper and pine forests, along with critical water resources and wildlife habitat.

This acquisition is part of a broader Land Back movement in California, underscoring a trend of restitution with major recent returns like the Yurok’s 47,000-acre transfer and Tule River Tribe’s 14,672 acres in 2024.

The Washoe Tribe has acquired more than 10,000 acres near Lake Tahoe, marking one of California’s largest tribal land returns and dramatically expanding the tribe’s holdings.

The $6 million purchase was supported by $5.5 million in grants from the California Wildlife Conservation Board and private donors, with partnerships from the Northern Sierra Partnership and the Feather River Land Trust, plus planning funds and an endowment for long-term stewardship.

Tribal leadership frames the acquisition as a reconnection to ancestral lands and a step toward healing from historical trauma, underscoring cultural and ceremonial significance and benefits for future generations.

The Wêlmelti Preserve will triple the Washoe’s land holdings, support conservation goals for pronghorn, mule deer, and gray wolves, and include plans to clean up areas that were previously dumped.

Local and tribal leaders, including Lucy Blake of the Northern Sierra Partnership, emphasize the preserve’s conservation value and its role in enabling the Washoe to steward the landscape for generations.