Long before they took to the hills, the surveyors
analyzed previous survey information, including original
documents from the Bureau of Land Management. Some
of the survey notes dated to 1879 and 1883; many were
hand-written.
“Our charge was to find the original corners,” said
Harry Warden, one of the surveyors on the four-person
team. “Even if any surveyor had come through the area
after that first survey, we had to have the original markers,
because that’s what the people who came on the land used
to establish ownership.”
Crew members quickly learned to respect the harsh
working conditions.
“One day the open-range cattle nearly destroyed our
$20,000 GPS base station,” recalled survey crew member
Ken Clark. “Another day we discovered a black widow
spider under a rock we moved.”
The nature of the property carried its own challenges,
including working in areas where military personnel are
trained to detect and avoid explosive devices.
“Every morning we reported to the Fire Desk to lay
out where we were headed for the day, pick up radios so
we could be reached if necessary, and check in,” Clark
said. “They would tell us at what times we could travel
through certain areas. They were our lifeline as to all of the
ranges and the impact area on the base.”
Some days crew members had to revise their plans so
they would not interfere with training operations. Other
days the troops were able to accommodate them.
“The people at the Camp were very professional and
worked with us to keep us out of danger,” said survey
crew member Dan Hawkins. “Harry and I were delayed
one morning on the gravel road into the Camp by a line
of howitzers (a large military gun) set up next to the
road. They were firing over the road, up and over a large
hill, into the designated impact area. After they called a
cease-fire and allowed us through, we traveled up the road
around the hill to our destination. There we realized those
same howitzers were firing rounds way over our heads
and landing probably three-quarters of a mile past us. I
could hear them fire, the rounds whistle through the air and
explode far away on the other side of the hill.”
TRENDS
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