Road Access Question

My mother is selling off some property. 80 acres of wooded forest land in northern Wisconsin. It was listed 3 weeks ago with a realtor. $160,000.
The realtor called earlier today and had 2 prospective buyers with adequate financial wherewithal to make an offer to purchase.
The prospective buyers want to be assured of a written easement before they make an offer to purchase.

The 80 acres is 1/2 mile off a blacktopped public road on a seasonal road....actually, the road is only passable during May, June, July, Aug, Sept, Oct, Nov at best. It is strictly recreational land, although it does have some timber value.

The road access is a potential problem. My father (who passed away 2 weeks ago) never mentioned any easement. A check of the deed shows no recorded easement. The road travels through 2 landowners "40" acre parcels. One of the landowners would gladly give a written easement as they have been family friends for generations. The other landowner "PROBABLY" would also give a written easement.....but one never knows.

My father had used the existing access road for over 60 years.


There also are other property owners past my mothers property. The State of Wisconsin owns thousands of acres. A good sized local timber company owns 200 acres. A couple of local people own 40's.

Incidentally, the access road was constructed by the CCC boys back in the 30's as a fire lane.


Obviously, the best case scenairio would be securing a written easement so that the sale can proceed.

What legal rights are involved in a situation such as this.