WY Platte County Public Roads

[Brachii]

Hello folks -- I'm hunting unit 38 this year and have had no difficulty finding the maps for Albany and Laramie counties, but have had zero luck finding a GIS map or any other kind of public roads map for Platte county. Anyone familiar with the area or know where to find said map? I want to make sure I'm accessing legal areas! Thanks

Aaron

 

[5Speedjim]

Just google "Platt County Wyoming public roads"

 

[Brachii]

wish it were that easy! The county assessor page doesn't have a map, and no other link has shown itself

 

[jwatts]

Try this link

http://www.plattecountywyoming.com/RoadandBridge/RoadMaps.aspx

 

[jtm307]

Also check out the Platte County Road and Bridge website. They have a handy list of the public roads. All the other counties I've researched don't have this. You can look at the WY parcel viewer here: https://www.arcgis.com/home/webmap/viewer.html?webmap=a5329343206c44fb99bf07bca14e8076

 

[Brachii]

Ya I looked into the Platte County Road and Bridge site, and there's a disclaimer that says maps show both public and private roads, so there's no way to know which is which. Same thing with that ArcGIS page... the legend is empty so I'm not sure which roads I can use. I sent an email to the Platte Assessor asking for his help... who knows how long that'll take to get a response. Thanks guys. I'll keep looking

 

[Topgun 30-06]

http://plattecountywyoming.com/RoadandBridge/RoadClassifications.aspx

 

[Brachii]

Thanks topgun! That's a great list-- it's not a full one with all roads but a good place to start. Maybe I'm over paranoid about all this. I'm not used to these rules and I'm not sure how strict they are. I just moved here from Texas where hunting is much more simple

 

[Topgun 30-06]

Thanks topgun! That's a great list-- it's not a full one with all roads but a good place to start. Maybe I'm over paranoid about all this. I'm not used to these rules and I'm not sure how strict they are. I just moved here from Texas where hunting is much more simple

You need to know where you are and be legal at all times or you'll find out how strict they are if you get caught on private property.

 

[Brachii]

You need to know where you are and be legal at all times or you'll find out how strict they are if you get caught on private property.

Oh yes I'm not talking private vs public property, that's a no brainer. I'm just worried about roads. Being the huge planner I am, I've been putting months of research into this unit's roads, including talking to law enforcement, and still don't have any solid answers as to which roads are definitely public. I mean, is every road that appears on county assessor maps public regardless of color/size because they don't have legends it's easy to misinterpret. I can only imagine how many people use private roads to access their land for hunting accidentally. I'm at the point where I'm emailing the game warden specific screen shots of roads asking if I can use this particular one.

 

[wytex]

Just be aware that a public road that crosses private may have a cattle guard and a fence with a posted sign at the boundary of the private property just to mark the property change.
The Platte Co. roads are pretty good with CR signs at the intersections. Usually by hunting season if a road is private it will have a locked gate, in the part of Platte county we know anyway.
The Rock River and Chugwater BLM maps are the ones you need for Platte County. The Laramie and Cheyenne BLM maps show the southern part of that unit.

 

[Brachii]

So you're saying I shouldn't be thrown off if the county road suddenly has a cattle guard or fence? Public roads that go through private property are still drivable to get to public property on the other side, correct?

 

[utah400elk]

yes

 

[wytex]

Yes , sorry . When the pastures change there will be a cattle guard across the road and usually some posted signs. Have seen that throw off some folks when driving through an area with open range.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

So you're saying I shouldn't be thrown off if the county road suddenly has a cattle guard or fence? Public roads that go through private property are still drivable to get to public property on the other side, correct?

Correct, and that also applies to BLM roads and two tracks that may have legal access through private property. If that's the case and you come across what is called a "a gap gate", leave it open if it's open or open it and close it back after you pass through if it was closed when you got there.

 

[Brachii]

Thanks everyone-- great info for this Wyoming rookie. I also understand that lots of public land may have a fence around it, especially if it borders a big road, that i can just park in the ditch on the side of the road and hop the fence to get in?

 

[WapitiBob]

Instead of spinning your wheels on the Internet for two months why don't you just go to the source?

 

[Brachii]

I've contacted game wardens and the county assessor as well as local rangers. Everyone has given me a different answer. I don't live in Wyoming so there's nothing else I can do but ask locals who've been there and done that.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

Thanks everyone-- great info for this Wyoming rookie. I also understand that lots of public land may have a fence around it, especially if it borders a big road, that i can just park in the ditch on the side of the road and hop the fence to get in?

There are jillions of barbed wire fences throughout the BLM and state lands and many to most don't have anything to do with being a property boundary. They are there to keep cattle and sheep in the proper pastures where the ranchers are paying grazing fees to the Feds or state. Correct on your parking and going over the fence on county, state, or BLM roads as long as you don't hinder traffic where you park.

 

[lovetotrapitall]

You should also pick up the Gazzetteer. It's not 100% reliable but it's a very good start. I hunted right across the highway in 34 last year and I'm headed back again this year. I used BLM maps, Google Earth, the Gazzetteer and OnXmaps in combination to get quite a few points on the map.