COURTHOUSES, CANYONS, AND CHAIN OF TITLE: A SHERIDAN TEAM LAND SERVICES ROAD TRIP

Wyoming → Nevada → Utah

Located at the base of the Bighorn Mountains, WET’s Sheridan, Wyoming office is a trusted resource for accurate and dependable Land Services.

The team specializes in researching public records, land maps, and mineral ownership and preparing clear, detailed reports that support attorneys, landowners, mining operators, and agencies alike.

Their work ranges from documenting rights to enter and mine to assisting with due diligence for acquisitions and divestitures to supporting state and federal land use applications, and to verifying mineral interest ownership.

Left → Right: Cathy Reed, Mary Schilling, Teri Rowland, Tiffany Shaw, Heather Arambel

Mary Schilling

Sheridan’s land professionals also help clients negotiate access agreements and develop organized, modern land records systems. Backed by decades of experience, Sheridan’s Land Services professionals are a reliable partner for clients navigating land ownership, mineral rights, regulatory requirements, and project development.

Recently, a trio of our land service professionals launched on a public records research trip in Nevada for a mineral exploration and production company. As requested by a law firm, the trio adjusted their return plans on the fly to include additional research in eastern Utah.

The team often finds it necessary to travel to county clerks’ offices and recorder’s offices in rural areas since those counties have not had the resources to digitize and database their real property records. After reviewing the cost of flights and rental cars for the above-mentioned projects, the most efficient and cost-effective solution was to take a road trip. So, embracing the spirit of collaboration and adventure, Heather Arambel, Teri Rowland, and Mary Schilling loaded up and set out on their journey across the West.

Left → Right: Teri Rowland, Heather Arambel

Left → Right: Mary Schilling, Heather Arambel, Teri Rowland

Moab, Utah

Front → Back: Heather Arambel, Mary Schilling

Inside the Elko County Courthouse

The first stop for the job was the Elko County Courthouse. Here is where the trio put their public records, land mapping, and mineral ownership research skills to the test.

It would not have been a culture-building adventure if the team didn’t have a little fun along the journey. Our team checked out the Carlin Trend Mining Services office and gift shop in Elko, as they have worked on some of the same great projects together.

Left → Right: Mary Schilling, Teri Rowling

One of the funniest things to happen to them in Elko was a blackout dinner experience. Heather explained,

We were at La Fiesta Mexican restaurant in Elko eating when the power went out on the whole block and didn’t come back on while we were there. The grill kept cooking, but the whole restaurant filled with smoke because the kitchen vent fans weren’t running. We got a kick out of it! I had to use my phone flashlight to find the restroom, and thankfully, we had cash to pay our bill with.

La Fiesta Mexican Restaurant—Elko, Nevada

La Fiesta Mexican Restaurant—Elko, Nevada

Wendover Army Air Base—Wendover, Utah

Along the way to Moab, the team needed to stop and stretch their legs—and figured they might as well take in a bit of American history while doing so. What better place than the historic Wendover Army Air Base? Wendover Army Air Base was a remote World War II training installation where B‑17 and B‑24 bomber crews trained. The airfield later served as the base for the 509th Composite Group’s B‑29 operations, including preparation for the Manhattan Project–related atomic missions of 1945. After a quick 45‑minute break among old bomber hangars and relics of airfield life, the team continued their journey.

Wendover Army Air Base—Wendover, Utah

The next stop was the Grand County, Utah, Courthouse. As the WET truck rolled closer to town around 4 PM, the trio decided it was too late in the day to disrupt the County Recorder’s duties. However, there was still time to soak in some of the most breathtaking scenery Utah has to offer. They found themselves entering Arches National Park—almost as if the landscape insisted they slow down and take it in.

Left → Right: Mary Schilling, Teri Rowling

Left → Right: Mary Schilling, Heather Arambel, Teri Rowling

Towering red rock formations, natural stone arches, and endless desert vistas created a cinematic backdrop for the final stretch of the journey. It was the perfect blend of adventure and awe before settling into Moab for the research ahead. It was here, in Moab, Utah at the Grand County Courthouse, that the trio began sleuthing through public records, maps, and mineral ownership records to complete the mineral exploration task at hand.

Grand County Courthouse—Moab, Utah

Left → Right: Teri Rowling, Mary Schilling

With the mineral title research completed in both Elko, Nevada, and Moab, Utah, it was finally time for the team to turn the WET truck north and head home. But not without one more chance to enjoy the scenery—and take a few photos that perfectly capture how WET’s culture makes even the longest work trips memorable. As they drove up Highway 191 toward Wyoming, the road led to one last unforgettable stop: a bridge over the Green River, just southeast of Flaming Gorge. Framed by wide-open skies and rugged canyon walls, it was the perfect spot to stretch, laugh, snap a few team photos, and celebrate not just the work completed, but the friendships built along the way. The ideal ending to a 2,070-mile adventure where hard work, good company, and the spirit of exploration traveled every mile together.

Left → Right: Mary Schilling, Teri Rowling

Green River—Southeast of Flaming Gorge, Utah

Left → Right: Teri Rowling, Mary Schilling

Green River—Southeast of Flaming Gorge, Utah

Utah

Elko County Courthouse

Our land service professionals complete comprehensive mineral title research to support major mineral exploration and production endeavors and regularly partner with legal firms to prepare comprehensive mineral and surface title reporting. Their work involves reviewing historical legal records, verifying chain of titles, analyzing severances of surface and subsurface estates, and identifying potential encumbrances that could affect ownership and operational rights. By organizing complex legal title chains and reporting encumbrances across decades of documentation, we deliver a clear picture of mineral interests within a project area. The results equip both clients and law firms with the clarity needed to mitigate risk, streamline negotiations, and confidently plan next‑phase exploration and development activities.