An important and critical step in the analysis of an RS 2477 roadway is whether the public lands have, or have not, been removed from the public domain prior to the time the land route was created. RS 2477 only applies to public lands that have not been removed from the public domain. State court decisions on this issue are not helpful, as they do not cite any legal authority for their rulings. Since the public lands are lands owned by the U.S. government, then federal, not state, decisions control on this issue. A review of federal decisions was made in the context of mining claims under the Mining Act of 1872, and the Colorado Mining Law. The conclusion is clear. Until a U.S. Patent is issued for a mining lode, the U.S. government continues to own the land within the mining claim. The mining claim is not removed from the public domain until the Patent is issued…