We have a similar thing out here in California, but it's not with BLM land, it's with Indian reservation land.  There are a few tribes that were given land, and it's a whole bunch of 1 mile squares, like you explained.  I would check with you local BLM office, but I would think that with the help of a GPS, and if you go directly from one square to the other at the exact corner, I don't think anyone will give you any trouble.  Worse comes to worse, if you can't figure it out, go ask the private landowners, if you can find them.  Tell them that you will be hunting the public land, and that you might need to cross a very small portion of their land to get to it.  You might get shot down alot, but it only takes one "yes" to be in business.

Ah I bet it has got you really wondering huh? That is one of the most annoying land ownership problems to mess with. You can blame the rail roads for that mess. And when I say railroads I mean go way back in history and think the Union Pacific Rail road and the Central Pacific Rail road. This was during the era that our government was basically giving away land so that we could get people to settle the frontier west of the Mississippi. The railroads were given land to build the railroads on (because it would expedite the process of settling the west) and they were also given a big buffer on either side of the tracks. The thing is (and the government was smart to do it) the created a checkerboard pattern in this buffer so that the railroads would not own such a giant swath of land into the future. The checkerboard allows anyone to travel the length of the railroad without ever tresspassing (if you stick to hopping the corners). Good luck with that though. You can get it done for hunting though. Get a good map. A GPS set up for UTM's can be helpful too.

Really?  Follow the railroads?  Interesting.  Not that I don't trust you, but is there any way of verifying that information?  Just curious.  What about the many, many other corner points where the checkerboards meet?  I know the ranches out there have cattle fences that run many of the property lines which will definitely help too, but just curious if there was a definitive way to conquer this obstacle in all instances.

I was perplexed by that situation when hunting Antelope back in the early 80's. During a snowstorm one night, I went to a motel in a wierd little town and it turns out the guy behind the desk was also the Sheriff. So I asked him how in the hell do you figure out this checkerboard with regards to tresspassing and so on. And why do some of the squares have signs indicating that they are controlled or owned by some Sheep or Cattle Company, when they are clearly BLM? He took a slurp out of his Wild Turkey and said "Nobody cares. You go out and have fun and shoot as many antelope as you have a license for. Anybody complains you tell'em I said it's OK".

Old Hawkeye 270 is right about the Railroads and the claims of every other square mile in a checkerboard pattern. This was intended to keep Government control in a haphazard way over all that giveaway land. I believe they also have mineral rights to those same squares; a pretty significant asset in these times. Beware of secret deals between the the BLM and Energy companies whereby they lease these lands for energy development, with a stipulation to keep them open for recreational uses for (let's say) 20 years. Twenty years is up in some parts, and they now seal them off from hunters, campers, hikers, and everyone else! I'm referring to units 11 and 211 in Colo. for example.  

Get a good map and gps and corner hop. Remember you really should to get a new map every year, as things do change. You can also get a private land map that will tell you who owns what. If you do get confronted by a land owner just show them the BLM map and your GPS. Well of coarse make sure you are on public land. I have been confronted more than once. You would be surprised on how many land owners don't know there own property lines. Good Luck

Man, that really sucks.  I guess the last thing I want to be worrying about when I get out there is constantly checking for boundary lines.  It's a shame it is set up like that as it really makes me lean to going to an area that doesn't have this checkerboard pattern just to avoid the possibility of trespassing and creating a big headache for myself.  Unfortunately, some of the better areas in Wyoming are set up like this for public land.  Bummer.

I don't want to get into a pizzing match, but what everyone is saying about just jumping across from corner to corner on those lands is incorrect and will get you in big trouble if you get caught.  I've hunted Wyoming since 1994 and I'll guarantee that if you get caught doing what some are saying that you will be paying a $200 trespass fee at a minimum!!!   This came right from a Game Warden with the Wyoming F&G!  In order to access public land like that you must have permission from the private landowner that owns the bordering property, like it or not!  The only real way to not have a problem accessing public land is if a public road goes through the land at some point and that is where a good map and GPS are necessary.  Those checkerboard lands that are mainly in the southwest part of the state are basically off limits unless you can find who owns the adjoining private land and you gain access by paying them or finding one who won't charge you a fee, both of which are very difficult if not impossible.  This is covered right in black and white on page 2 in a pamphlet regarding public land access in Wyoming that is published by the F&G, BLM, and USFS.