Kansas Members??
- Thread starter adventure_is_necessary
- Start date
As long as you have Google Earth downloaded, you should be able to double click the .kmz and it will open up in Google Maps. The first picture is a place called Ozro Falls. We got a late start and skipped the middle (took 177 from Hwy 4 to to Hwy 54) still took a solid 4-5 hours to make the trip down. It takes 8-9 hours to make the whole trip through. Once we got to the south end we set up camp and explored the area for the next day and a half.
Sounds like there's a good size group interested. Lets schedule something. It would be best to take a half day off work on a Friday to drive down. Then spend the day on Saturday and Sunday morning exploring, fishing ect..., drive back afternoon Sunday.
Yup. Have Google Earth.
Talked to a member of Konza Overland and figured out it was Orzo.
It really depends on the weather. Last year sucked till May the 3 prior years were great by March.
Traveler II
Hey guys, a new Kansas member here. I have been exploring Kansas back roads for years, searching for unique sites in our great flyover state. My name is Brett and some of you probably know me from Konza Overland. I was handed the reins of Konza when our founder moved to Minnesota.
@caswanson - It seems like we share the same passion for mapping out Kansas' backroads. The .kmz you shared awhile back is well done. I do have a question for you about the truss bridge northeast of Cedar Vale: Is the bridge passable and/or is the route you have through the Caney River a legal road? I have a slight obsession with truss bridges (and old train depots) and always try to find a few when exploring.
@caswanson - It seems like we share the same passion for mapping out Kansas' backroads. The .kmz you shared awhile back is well done. I do have a question for you about the truss bridge northeast of Cedar Vale: Is the bridge passable and/or is the route you have through the Caney River a legal road? I have a slight obsession with truss bridges (and old train depots) and always try to find a few when exploring.
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The truss bridge is unfortunately only open to foot traffic. The crossing on the Caney is the legal bypass of the bridge. I'm in Manhattan if your ever up for a beer.
Traveler II
Right on! Thanks for the intel. I am always up to meeting other like minded folks. I don't drink, but most bars in Manhattan have killer appetizers.
I can respect that. I grew up Catholic and I'm part Bohemian, so you'll have to excuse me. lol.
Also, if you guys ever need any map help let me know. I'm a GIS Specialist for a company here in Manhattan. We serve the sheriff's offices and appraiser offices for 32 counties here in Kansas. That means that I have access to a TON of pertinent information for the Kansas Overlanding community. I have road centerline data, bridge data, ownership data and legal ROW data. That's actually how I made the Flint Hills trail map. I didn't trace the road myself, I just pulled the centerlines I wanted. What's really cool is that SOME counties even maintain road condition info in their centerline data. So if I wanted to pull ALL the minimum maintenance roads in the state, I could do that (assuming each county has populated that data).
Can you find me any back dirt roads in johnson county?
Per the DeLorme description the are "topographic maps with elevation contours, major highways and roads, dirt roads, trails and land use data".
Note that they say "dirt roads and trails" - most apps (at least those I've looked at) do not do this in the same detail these maps use. To give you an example: last August SWMBO and I were in the northern part of Kansas looking for a waterfall. The GPS she was using provided the typical directions yet it provided an iffy rout. The Gazetteer provided us with a much easier rout. I have also tested the Gazetteer's accuracy in my own area - it did provide all of the dirt roads and trails with the exception of one that a farmer had created on his own property a couple years after the map was made. This trail didn't show up on GPS either, but I found it on Google maps only because I know were to look an zoom in - yet even it only provided a view of the trail partly built.
IMHO these maps are indispensable, especially if you prefer old school methods as well as those time GPS just doesn't work or you have no way to keep it powered up. From what I understand they get updated a bit more frequently than USGS topo maps yet I haven't confirmed this.
Here is a link that might give you more info.
https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/575993/pn/010-12656-00#
Traveler II
It would be great to get together sometime to talk maps just for fun. I really should have studied to be a cartographer versus getting a near worthless Master of Landscape Architecture degree. I have searched for public ROW data for the state, but generally came up empty handed in the DASC catalog. Even though I no longer have access to ESRI software, I found that Google Earth Pro is able to display some raw data but manipulating that data is a pain.
KDOT has a source you can try. This is primarily what I use to find routes through the state on minimum maintenance roads.
*seems that OB wont let me post a link yet*
>Google: KDOT maps
>Open result: KDOT: Kansas Official State Maps
>Open link: HIGHWAY MAPS - County Maps
>Click on Johnson County
>View Quarter or half inch maps. I like to use the Half Inch map since they show where water crossings are (Fords).
Honestly it would be really cool to talk maps. I'm 18 so I've been using a GPS my whole life. Which needs to change if I plan to get into some more serous overlanding
If your researching legal right of ways you could use the ORKA site: https://www.kansasgis.org/orka/
Not every county is on there. Just depends on how upidy they are about their data (JOCO).
I have found that you get what you pay for with DASC. Also, TIGER road lines are worthless. If you have access to geospatial software, you could use the LIDAR data from DASC though to see elevation contours.
If anyone is in the market for some paper maps, I could potentially create some pretty detailed stuff.
Not every county is on there. Just depends on how upidy they are about their data (JOCO).
I have found that you get what you pay for with DASC. Also, TIGER road lines are worthless. If you have access to geospatial software, you could use the LIDAR data from DASC though to see elevation contours.
If anyone is in the market for some paper maps, I could potentially create some pretty detailed stuff.
County Maps - there use to be a set of county maps available out there for more professional use - at least that's what I was told. For the life of me I can not tell you the name of them but I think my father still has one. He use to own a cable trenching company. There were dozens of times that he would need to trench cable onto private property so that the electrical/TV/phone company could then hook the property up. These maps were in booklet form and only included a single county or portion of a county. Each page covered a section. The information included the property owner's name, mapped all roads, trails, paths, fences buildings as well as all utilities (above and below ground).
These maps were incredibly useful, not only for finding your way around the backroads but also in providing a name of the property owner to call in case you wanted to ask about hunting, fishing, camping and so on.
I wonder if they still make these?
