If You See Purple Paint in the Montana Wilderness, You Need to Leave

Never ever in my life have I ever heard of this, but it's real. I thought a friend was jerking my chain when she told me that if you see purple paint out in the woods or seemingly empty spaces of Montana, that you shouldn't trespass. Naturally I was waiting for some amazing/scary/spooky story of a local cult that marks their territory to let you know that if they catch you they will boil you in a big pot and eat you. But that wasn't the case.

There's a "Purple Paint Law" in Montana that allows property owners to mark their property as "No Trespassing" by painting, or spray painting purple on fenceposts and trees to warn you that you're about to be on private property. You might wonder why they don't just post signs, but many times "No Trespassing" signs are stolen or vandalized, and they don't fare well in the Montana weather. The law is meant to keep landowners, their families, and livestock safe.

Avid hunters and hikers likely know this Montana Law, but I thought I would share as I have lived here my entire life and had never heard of it. And it's an important fact to know, considering that trespassing in Montana could land you a bullet in the butt. I've certainly seen orange markings indicating that you should stay away, but never purple, have you? From what I can tell, it's not a very well known rule and is the law in about a dozen states, including Montana.