Well, there was much to do up at the Beta Site so lets start at the top….
StarLink seemed to work just fine up there. One nice thing was that it allowed text messaging to work up there, which was pretty cool. I ran it off a small lithium battery bank that I picked up at CostCo a while back. Setup was simple, signal was good, and speeds were quite good. All in all, it worked out just fine. I’ve got a Milwaukee Packout case that will have some foam cut to fit the Starlink and all its accessories. The StarLink Mini is quite the piece of gear to let me stay in touch with the rest of the world while being way the heck off the beaten path.
Of course, I wanted to check out the new property markers. I already knew where the old markers were and was curious to see where the newer. more modern, survery put the markers in relation to the old ones. Broadly speaking, there were all within a yard or two of the old ones. At least, 3/4 of them were. I found three of the new ones but when I went to check on the last one, only the old markers were there. No new flagging tape, no new cap, no new nuthin’. Im guessing they didnt finish the task that day and will be back this coming week. But…I went to all the markers and got GPS coords.
And, for better or worse, I had to spend some time posting signage:
It is what it is. I didnt spend all that money to not have privacy. And just to help me stay abreast of any unauthorized visitors while I’m ‘in residence’ I also have these:
IYKYK. I also have a wired set of these and a bunch of extra geophones which will be quite handy for other projects.
While wandering around the property looking for the new markers I wound up tromping through parts I had not been through yet. I mean, I still havent really wandered the entire width and breadth of the property. I kinda held off on doing that because I wasnt 110% sure where my property started and stopped. Well, different story now. While wandering I found a cool little meadow-like area that was literally surrounded by fallen dead trees and in the middle of this opening was a huge tree that was bent into a serpentine shape. It was like some sort of wooden Stonehenge. Had no idea it was there. I need to spend a weekend just meticulously walking a grid so I don’t miss all these details.
Also brought up the other 4×8 deck I built and bolted to the first one I brought up, so now theres and 8×8 platform up there for me to use when I’m up there and need a place off the ground for a tent or cooking.
All in all, a productive trip.
Very nice! How many acres is it?
Cant really say for PerSec reasons…more than 10 less than 30.
Once you’re sure where the corners are, it’s useful to mark intermediate points, the idea being standing on one you can see the next point (intermediate or corner) in either direction from there. Those intermediate point markers do not have to be stakes with fluorescent streamers, although they can be, but there is some benefit to being markers only you recognize – like a 2-4″ band of visible but not highly obvious paint around a particular tree, and maybe that band is 20 feet up the tree because people tend to not look up. Easier done before the trees leaf out, but visibility after full leafing is useful.
And, incidentally, 3M happens to make black reflective tape in widths from 1/2 inch to 4″; when struck by light it glows a dull white but other than that it’s black and no one notices it (also available in medium gray…).
There is no several hundred yard uninterrupted line of sight at this property. Far too many trees for being able to see from one corner to the next.
From dictionary.com:
:”Intermediate”- being or occurring at the middle place, stage, or degree or between extremes
Since it is a rare property that allows unobstructed viewing of the corners from each other, and sometimes from anywhere, marking “intermediate” points between corners allows following a proprty line in segments. If the marker(s) delineating those segments are visible from each other, eg, “standing on one you can see the next point (intermediate or corner) in either direction,” one can follow the segments from one marked corner to another marked corner. It is possible that in some cases those “intermediate segments” may be quite short due to visual obstructions. It is also possible that existing features – trees – may be close enough to the property line that marking a tree and noting on the plat that “painted tree at lat X / long Y is 37 inches at 287 degrees from the property line” (Flight-ER Doc, below, noted that a band of fluorescent orange paint can be a legal boundary marker as well as a “no trespassing” notification in Montana (in Virginia it is a 3″ wide 10″ long vertical stripe of white or silver paint 4-8′ above ground level; paint, itself, will not prevent trespassing but aids immeasurably with enforcement of violations)).
If one possesses an accurate GPS device with a sufficiently fine degree of location determination that would work as well, but visible (extra points if they are also magnetically detectible) markers are usually easier, both to find and to enforce. And, if one does have such a GPS device, marking the survey plat with the location of the intermediate marked points with lat / long data will make them easier to find in X number of years when they become overgrown and especially if a dispute over boundaries has arisen. Much cheaper than having the property re-surveyed.
I’m certainly not a surveyor, but I can imagine that finding the corners of a piece of property that heavily treed and somewhat mountainous would be a little difficult, even with modern technology.
Every time I see those photos though, I’m am impressed with the beauty of that part of the country.
Glad to hear of your progress. The serpentine tree meadow sounds special. I recall finding something similar and looking around for the Druid.
I give up. What is the IYKYK device?
https://gunsamerica.com/digest/prepping-101-perimeter-security-wireless-options/
Paul Helinski was a little ‘out there’, but he really put out some interesting articles that were practical. He really thought out of the box on some prep items, but man do I miss his stuff. I’m sick of all these people on YT just covering ‘best solar generator YOU MUST HAVE – OR DIE!!!!’, use my links to help the channel.
Zero,
I suggest that you look into some low tech. On Amazon search for “glowing trail markers” (without the quotes). There are a bunch of sizes and styles. Some are bright all the time, some are subdued but glow when hit with a light. Some have arrows. Whether you want to mark trees on the back, facing inside the property, or on the front, facing out, marking trails and turns in trails; there are a lot of options. Also, search for “survey marking pins” (again, without the quotes) and look at what all is offered. The survey markers put out by your surveyors will be gone at some point. Something you can use in the future for building fence, reinforcing your memory, etc., could be really helpful. I have just bought giant nails at the hardware store and pounded them in, including one next to each stake. When grasses and weeks grow up and cover them, a metal detector will still help you to locate them. It might not seem important today, but two years from now you might really be glad you did something like this.
Be safe,
Phillip
Don’t forget that in Montana spraying trees, etc with fluorescent orange paint is the legal equivalent of posting no trespassing signs… It takes a lot (50 sq inches each, all of the visible fenceposts) but it’s a great intermediate marker.
Hi Zero
Take a look at the Dakota Alert systems
They have been around for 30 years
We bought them twenty years ago pretty good and easy to set up and conceal
Yes good idea George. We use the Dakota’s
not bad at all if those 3 new survey set markers are within a yard of the old ones – pretty damn good in fact – got an idea your survey is actually completed – that fourth old survey post was OK and didn’t get a new Tpost ……
Thats exactly the case.
Your property description sounds wonderful. Do take the time to learn what is where (especially noting edible – medicinal plant life) and geographic features that help you determine where camp is.
Sounds like fun so far – Enjoy It !
Have you considered a tree planting project? Granted, it might be a couple of decades before you see the beginnings of the benefits, but your offspring or someone’s offspring will appreciate the effort. Birches as starters, and oaks and then ashes and elms and larches and maples and chestnuts…..much more interesting than pine fichte and kiefer. Just got to keep the nibblers away, perhaps in the cooking pot.
Were I to plant anything, itd be apple trees. But, I dont think they’ll do well at that altitude.
The Swiss grow a lot of apples. Many are traditional heirloom varieties hard to get here. Crimson Topaz is a modern variety grown there and in the Czech Republic that is good with cold and high altitude. Those can be purchased in the US and are resistant to most diseases that plague apple trees.
Montmorency is a sour cherry tree, available in most nurseries and is a very robust tree.
Any fruit tree you plant there will need to be protected from deer and rabbits, of course.
And elk and moose and bear.
At my house in town I always had problems with the large animals in my fruit trees.
We had the same issue in town with a cow with two calves who almost got me when I stepped out the front door to let a new puppy do her business before bed time so we fenced the whole yard with chain link fence
The puppy breeder was with state fish and game and she recommended chain link fence with wire on top and that solved the problem
I guess there is apples tree options for you:
https://plantnative.org/best-5-apple-trees-for-montana.htm
We use the 16′ hog or cattle panel around the tree to protect if from deer the first decade or so, not sure what they use up north.
.30-30
As far as identifying features, maybe using an internet mapping service to take pictures of your property from directly overhead in quadrants so you can focus on individual pockets of territory not visible to naked eye.
I wish we had drones long ago to take pictures of properties we roamed as younger adults.