WI DOT Wayside caches

[jenhen1]

In August we hit an active cache at a rest area in Pennsylvania. Unbeknownst to us PA was going through almost exactly what WI is going through right now; Caching not allowed at rest areas, caches still active at rest areas. We were approached by a DOT employee who had apparently been watching us from a distance, followed us into the woods and yelled at us to stop what we were doing, geocaching is NOT allowed, it is illegal, he could call police if he wanted to. He was pretty abrasive. Needless to say, it created an uncomfortable situation and we hightailed it out of there, no questions asked.

The point is, we didn’t know the PA policy being from out of state and I doubt most people not from WI know the WI policy as well and would hate for our out of state brethren to be unwittingly violating DOT policy. From what I gather the likelyhood of someone being approached by a WI DOT employee at this time is nil, but my question is, will the WGA necessarily be informed when they decide to start enforcing their policy? It almost seems like a bad situation waiting to happen. Perhaps it is time to be proactive with this situation and archive existing caches in the offending areas. I would hate to see our great game with a stained reputation because we knowingly geocached in areas where caches are not allowed. I don’t agree with their policy, but don’t want to be yelled at again either!!!

respectfully,

Mike and Jen

[furfool]

Seeing as waysides and rest areas are off limits by the DOT, I am also assuming that all P&Rs are also off limits by the DOT. At least those that are owned or controlled by them.

[WI_Robin]

This is what it said on the first post in this topic:

Something also to note — waysides are not under the jurisdiction of the DOT. They are fair game for geocache placement.

[cheezehead]

@WI_Robin wrote:

This is what it said on the first post in this topic:

Something also to note — waysides are not under the jurisdiction of the DOT. They are fair game for geocache placement.

THIS IS NOT TRUE!!!!! Most are DOT. They maybe maintained by someone else, like contracted out, but they are STILL DOT PROPERTIES unless a different municipalities has taken them over. Such is one near where I live. The local township took it over and is now a town park.

You need to check what wayside is and is not DOT.

Here is the link again http://www.rfw.org/RAM/RAMSiteLocations.htm

From the WIS DOT WEB page

Our waysides are more rustic in nature and feature parking, toilet facilities, drinking water and picnic areas on a smaller scale. Many waysides are located in scenic locations for your enjoyment. Waysides are generally open from early May through late October.

An entire team of people work cooperatively behind the scenes to keep our rest areas and waysides clean, safe and in good working order. Local Community Rehabilitation Programs (CRP) provide the day-to-day maintenance at each rest area and some waysides. The CRP’s provide employment for people with disabilities who might otherwise have limited employment opportunities. Rehabilitation For Wisconsin (RFW), a private non-profit organization, is responsible for direction of the CRP’s at each rest area. Counties are responsible for snow plowing at rest areas and waysides and the maintenance of some waysides. The Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Highway Operations is responsible for overseeing the state-wide rest area and wayside operation.
Our rest areas and some waysides feature recycling areas for your convenience. Please use the trash containers and recycling bins and help keep Wisconsin’s rest areas and waysides clean. We hope that you enjoy your visit.

http://www.dot.wisconsin.gov/travel/restareas/

[Team Black-Cat]

@jenhen1 wrote:

In August we hit an active cache at a rest area in Pennsylvania. Unbeknownst to us PA was going through almost exactly what WI is going through right now; Caching not allowed at rest areas, caches still active at rest areas. We were approached by a DOT employee who had apparently been watching us from a distance, followed us into the woods and yelled at us to stop what we were doing, geocaching is NOT allowed, it is illegal, he could call police if he wanted to. He was pretty abrasive. Needless to say, it created an uncomfortable situation and we hightailed it out of there, no questions asked.
-snip-
Mike and Jen

This is good to know! We’re planning a trip in March, and I’ve been choosing some easy caches along the Penn. Turnpike. I’m going to be changing my list…

[sandlanders]

We did the “Crossroads” cache at the wayside at the Highway 21/13 intersection near us today, but there are so many more we haven’t done that are close to us.

We started caching in mid-October and are looking forward to doing so many more of these when the snow melts and the waysides open up with places to park. It would be a shame to see a viable place for caches disappear.

[Author]

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