A grant of $45,000 was recently awarded to map and appraise three large properties in private ownership along the Yuba River watershed where owners are exploring public access for recreation.

The Sierra Nevada Conservancy awarded $45,000 to the Sierra Fund for project development, property appraisals and environmental assessments on three properties totaling more than 4,000 acres and spanning 12 miles of the Yuba River, according to a news release from the conservancy.

The properties offer the longest single stretch of potential river acquisition in the state, the release said.

"Currently on the table, there is nothing like it," said Janet Cohen, a former executive director for the South Yuba River Citizens League who has contracted with the Sierra Fund to serve as the project manager for what is being called the Yuba River Wildlife Area Phase I Plan.

For now, the grant will conserve the lands and make them accessible, Cohen said. Shawn Garvey, another former SYRCL director, will serve as the liaison with the property owners involved in the project, Cohen said.

The properties are located throughout the watershed and include the former Rice's Crossing Bridge, which linked Marysville with Carson City during the Gold Rush.

The land, which was cut off from public use for years, offers recreational promise for fishing, hiking and biking. Freeing up the properties could aid in efforts to restore salmon and steelhead populations. Some properties link to existing public lands and others would "unlock" public lands considered "landlocked," Cohen said.

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To contact Staff Writer Laura Brown, e-mail lbrown@theunion.com or call 477-4231.