Good maps?

[jayL]

All,

I'm going to get myself a good map for fishing and exploring my area (Berks/chester/montgomery/lancaster). I'm guessing that i'd need a good topo map.

Any input as to which maps are best and where to get them?

I'd prefer something which shows roads, streams (obviously), towns, and possibly public versus private land in detail.

I know there are alot of resources out there, but which should I use?

Thanks.

 

[MKern]

I have Delorme Topo for the easter US. I like it and it is easy to use. But recently, someone told me about topozone.com. It's free and really precise. however, I find it hard to read-- especially when you zoom in to get the nitty gritty.

 

[Padraic]

Have you downloaded Google Earth? http://earth.google.com/

I'm not sure if any topo resource will show public/private land. That can change quickly. You can get maps of the State Game Lands and the State Forests for free from the respective agencies. They are not topo maps, but will show exact boundaries.

 

[Philly]

I also have DeLorme Gazetteer for both PA and NJ. The one I find most useful for SE PA, I picked up at Mid-Atlantic AAA a couple of years ago is a book that has detailed street maps for the 5 county Philadelphia area. It has indexes of streams, lakes, parks, and I believe SGL along with streets and roads. They're all keyed to the map they are located on in the book. I've seen similar books by individual county for Lancaster, Berks, Chester and Montgomery. If you belong to AAA, you might want to check and see what they carry. I know I saved a few dollars, as a member, buying it through them rather than a book store. All the big chain book stores carry them, and there is a map store on Henderson Rd off of 202 near King of Prussia. There use to be one up in Doylestown on Swamp Rd, Patton Maps. They produced the maps themselves and had some really nice ones, but I'm not sure if they're still in business.

 

[jayL]

Thanks all,

I saw the delorme maps and figured that was the route i'd take. I'm probably gonna get one.

As far as the computer maps...

There are two things that people laugh at me for. I'm a fisherman who doesn't eat fish, and I'm a computer programmer who doesn't use the computer (i get enough at work)... Google earth is nice, but I found that the only images of some of my home streams are pretty low res.

Thanks for the AAA advice. I think my dad is a member. I'll talk to him.

 

[Bamboozle]

jayL:

Are you talking about paper maps, software based maps or both? If you want paper maps you will more than likely have to buy two different types; topographic & street. For the street maps nothing beats the ADC book maps you can find at just about any Wawa. You may have to buy a few to get all counties you want. The ADC maps will give you all the roads but not all the waterways; for that you will need a topo map.

For the topo maps get a Delorme Pennsylvania Gazetteer. It is also a book map, similar to the ADC map but as a road map it leaves a LOT to be desired. You could also buy individual USGS 7.5 minute quad maps at a hiking/camping store like REI but they are EXPENSIVE when you have to buy a lot of them which you will to cover that much area. A USGS 7.5’ Quad is an area in the northern US of about 49 square miles. While quads offer a lot more detail than a regular topo map or Topo USA; the road information is lousy. Be advised that many topo maps are based on USGS surveys, many of which were done MANY years ago so you may find errors especially when it comes to roads and access points. Like most topo maps; using a quad map as a road map will leave A LOT to be desired.

If you are talking about computer software based maps I use 4 different map programs because ALL of them have shortcomings. For a basic road map program that does everything that Mapquest does and more check out Microsoft Streets & Trips. It is an excellent road map program that you can buy at Staples BUT it doesn’t have many waterways in it. You CAN print out any map you create with it so you can transport maps.

For really good topographic and road map combination software, check out Delorme Topo USA. You can buy the whole US or just the Eastern Region on CD or DVD. Topo USA will give you both topo mapping & road mapping and both maps are pretty good with lots of other features. Topo USA will also give you turn by turn directions and you can print out any map you create. If you want to get a lot more detail for extra $$$ you can add USGS 7.5 minute quad maps to Topo USA or even aerial or satellite views.

Finally for the ultimate in finding places you can always take the big plunge and buy a handheld GPS and the requisite map software which will give you directions right to the creek. With most GPS’s you will need BOTH street map & topo map software which when added to the price of the GPS will get you close to $500. Topo USA software will NOT work with another manufacturer’s GPS but Delorme just came out with a new GPS called Earthmate GPS PN-20 that will work with the Topo USA software but I haven’t heard enough about it yet to comment.

All I can tell you I have spent an EXTREMELY large amount of time and money mapping and searching for streams all over the state and country and I haven’t found ONE product, program, map or the like that does it all. Sometimes cross referencing multiple sources and using a compass is the only way I have found some places. All of the maps out there seem to be missing something so it can get frustrating although in the counties you are interested in; it shouldn’t be TOO bad.

BTW, you won’t find anything that will tell you access information or ownership in detail; unfortunately that you have to find out the hard way.

Good luck and good hunting!

 

[troutbert]

PennDot county maps are pretty good. Some of the newer ones that are in color are very nice. They aren't as detailed as topo maps, but are pretty good, and at a scale of 1 inch to a mile. They do include streams and gamelands etc.

Even with the old black and white maps, you can take a blue highlighter and trace over the streams you are interested in, so they are easy to see.
You order these from PennDot directly. They are called "Type 10" maps. Who knows where that name comes from, but that's the kind you want.

The DeLorme of course.

State forest maps are great, but I don't there are many, or any in the counties you are talking about.

I think Topozone.com is great for very detailed maps. They have all the USGS topographic maps online. You can search by stream name or town name.

 

[ryanh]

if you want to get serious about it get the USGS 7.5 min topoquads. They are about 6 bucks/ map, and are the paper version of what you see on line. I figure about 5 maps will have me covered for the areas that I want.

 

[fly_flinger]

Check these maps out. I just got myself one last month and I really like it. Not all the streams are labeled but most are. Like it was mentioned above, this map will not do everything for you but is a great reference map.

http://www.streammaps.com/

 

[MKern]

fly-flinger,

I own that map. I actually recieved 1 with a year subcription to the local news paper (the laminated 1). What a great deal. It is a littel hard to read because it is so cluttered, but it comes with a manual.

If I am in a hurry, i use the GIS map on the fish commission site -- it's hard to locate though since they swithced everything around. My suggestion is if you find it, save it under you favorites. It gives you mapquest corrodinates .

 

[jayL]

Anyone having trouble getting the GIS map to load?

http://www.fish.state.pa.us/gis.htm