Wytex Ranch (Casper, Laramie, Rawlins: home, camp, closing)

[Little pony]

You guys pretty well have it right on directions. The best way to get there is through medicine bow. You go north towards casper. Right after you cross the medicine bow river bridge you will find marshall road a little further up on the right. It is marked with a street sign. Go down that road quite a way. You will pass a cassidy river ranch sign. Just keep going straight. The road has new electrical lines running next to it. When the elec. lines run out, keep going straight. you will be going over a few cattle guards along the way. When you get to where marshall rd and marshall county rd meet turn left. It is an easy spot to tell because the roads make a triangle shape on the turn and there is a shot up street sign on the left. Follow that road up until you see mailboxes and the anderson ranch sign. turn right and follow the road all the way down. When it turns right and goes through a fence, you are in wytex. The trip from medicine bow is about 20 min. depending on how many times you have to stop to let the baby antalope get out of the road. There are alot of them this year.

[frozentundra]

I thought I would let you know the WyTex sign has moved from next to the mailboxes to the actual entrance to the ranch. The ranch to the west is now a hunter management area, so watch out for hunters in September and October.

[Dr. Dorothy]

I have owned property in WyTex Ranch for seven and a half years. Seller does not reveal the truth about the place. I have lived in there for five years and it is the like living in H---. The roads are bad, you cannot grow anything. The place smells like rodent urine year round. Mice are ruining the mobile home and the vehicles. You go broke trying to poison them. Rats are bigger than your cats. I paid $5,000 for a well that has bad water so I cannot use it. Roads are impassable in winter and any time it rains. We were snowed in for 100 days last year. It is Siberia in the winter which is the longest season and like the Sahara in the short summer. There is no Fall or Spring. There are no Emergency or Fire services available so if a prairie fire starts you are just out of luck. The county Sheriff will not send help for Trespassing or anything else. You are supposed to approach the intruder and get all the informtion and then drive it to the Sheriff even if the intruder has a weapon and in WY everyone has a weapon of some kind. Phone service even cell phone service is unavailable or does not work. You have to have a generator for power or solar or wind power. The old outhouse is real common unless you can afford $12,000 or more for a septic system or you have a travel trailer with a bathroom. The wind never stops for long and destroys everything you have outside. In hunting season you need to wear orange vests in your own yard and put them on your pets and grandchildren. If you have school age children, health problems or are a senior (most of us are from 50 to 70 years in here) or have a job to get to you should not live in WyTex but it is sold as retirement property and that is why most owners are seniors. Do not buy WyTex property or from Rocky Mountain Timberlands unless you ask a lot of questions and get all of the facts.

[Dr. Dorothy]

Originally Posted by Little pony

I bought 106 acres a couple of years ago at wytex. Finally, we are going to start building a place this summer. Waiting for the well paperwork to go through at the moment. Then we are going to have a fun time trying to get someone out there this summer to drill. Seems that we are always waiting for something.
We are from California and plan to retire there someday. Till then, it will be our summer home. Southern CA is getting too expensive and crime filled. During the summer, people start going crazy in the heat and are always angry. We need to get out of CA. Ill put up with snow any day instead of these idiots. We cant even let the kids leave thier bikes in a fenced yard without worrying about them getting stolen.
I am looking forward to meeting my new nieghbors at wytex also. I would like to be part of a good place to be proud of. It is a beautiful place. It is going to take a long time to build but it will be worth it. We plan to build a decient mini ranch/farm there.
We have been watching the population growth creeping towards Wytex. Within the next 10 years, there should be quite a lot of housing poping up. Just look what has been happening all around. The area around ft collins grew within just 2 years. Gillette is getting tons of people this past year. Casper is getting alot of the overflow of people already. We are not that far from casper. You cant stop so called progress.

You are crazy if you waste your money building out here as I am the longest year round resident and I wish I had the money to get out of here and I would never sell to anyone unless I told them the absolute truth about what a horrible place it is to live

[Dr. Dorothy]

Originally Posted by Dir Drill 1

Right on the money...

As an Oil Driller, I can tell you that the footprint we leave in particular is extremely small.. If and when someone ever approached you about drilling on your land, there is quite a bit of negotiating you can do besides just $$$$.. You can negotiate for trees to be planted, custom fencing around wellheads, etc. that matches the colors or features in the area, you can even have improvements done to your driveways, your roads, etc... There is no limit to what you can negotiate for, just be reasonable and most often the company holding your mineral rights will be too...

In WyTex Ranch WY you do not have any rights to oil, minerals or water. It all belongs to the State or BLM and water rights can be revoked if you do not have an approved pump and are using the water within one year of having your well put in. You can apply for a 7 year extension but it does not mean you will get it.

[Dr. Dorothy]

They are considering a big wind farm for out of state power company on adjacent cattle ranch

[Dr. Dorothy]

New price for vacant 35 acres is now around $23,000 to $25,000. What a rip off.

[imbobbbb]

about how many yearround residents are there?i cant imagine there are very many.i love wyoming but i cant imagine trying to live around that area year round.even rockymountain timberlands admits its seasonal access.you better be real selfsufficient if you want to try that area yearround.between the gumbo mud when it rains the wind and the blowing snow i'll bet its a real adventure a lot of the year.i'm sure there are some that like it though.....of course there are people that love deathvalley,ca and deadhorse,alaska yearround too.i would imagine that if you werent there yearround and had a house there vandalism and theft would be big problems also...i guess someone who knows can address that,but ive seen it most isolated places.goodluck to all,i hope its what you really want

[shadowwalker]

Dr Dorthy, that is a very good post. I have often wonderded how many people are buying/living on land in wyoming with the same problems. You just don't know the unique living condtions of the rural parts of the state. Until you spend a few years there and get out in it. In all seasons of the year. I have a few friends that way back when. Got ranchers/farmers to sell them a couple acres on their land. Up close to public land and not intrusive to the owner. I thought at the time that these seasonal uses were great. Mostly just summer vacation and fall hunting. The rest of the year the origional owner is kinda the grounds keeper and security of the houses. Works great for both parties. I just never had the money for this kind of arrangement.

[Tyster]

If you're an older person (and based on your post that appears to be the case), and you are complaining about access to medical facilities or distance to a job then you should have picked a property closer to Laramie or Cheyenne.

By the way, the Rocky Mountain Timberlands website says nothing at all about Wytex being a 'retirement' property. Did you actually visit the property before you moved there?

If you live in a very remote area (and Wytex is remote), and you complain about road conditions and access, then you should have picked a property closer to Laramie or Cheyenne.

If you feel the need to wear an orange safety vest during hunting season then wear it. You are in big game country. I assume you knew this ahead of time. The Rocky Mountain Timberlands website states (about Wytex): "LOTS OF GAME in this area; Antelope, Deer, and Elk. There is great upland bird hunting in this area too!"

If you think paying $12,000 for a septic system is too much then you should have planned for this ahead of time by moving into a property that doesn't require a septic system.

If there is dodgy phone service then you should have picked a property closer to Laramie or Cheyenne.


If the sheriff can't send help (to defend you) then maybe you should have a way of defending yourself.

Long story short, and I'm not trying to be mean, if you are so unhappy there then maybe you should sell and move.