Survey marks found on trees. Info requested.

[JasperFrank]

I'm attempting to relocate a ground pipe bounty marker for the south western part of my property. I knew sort of where it was and had it clearly marked till we had some rather nasty ice storms that down trees all over that area. I can't find any evidence of the location of the pipe any more. It is possibly under a fallen tree or a large pile of fallen branches.
The entire southern bounty is a straight line, running due east and due west. So If I can find this marker, it would be easy to establish the exact bountry line West to East to a major USGS brass marker.
My question is that, I have found surveyor marks on some of the bigger trees that are "Roughly" in a line of what I know to be close to the actual division line, which was a set of temporary posts that had a nail on top of them perfectly inline. Those exact posts are now long gone. And I admit I was an idiot for not putting down more durable stakes back when the line was clearly established 30 years ago. The property is rather hilly and in some places very steep.
The Sun was just right today to find the barely visible markings made on the trees 30 years ago. They are a faint red circle with a short red line extending straight up from the top of the circle. All of the markings are only on the due West side of the trees, and all of the short red lines off these circles are straight up. I do remember that the tree markings where on my property, and the "True Line" set by the poles with the target nails where slightly south, by a few feet, of these tree markings. Today I found one Eastern tree mark that has to be within 50 feet of where the Pipe has to be. The issue is that the next mark to the East, is a set of marks on two close together trees that are 90 degrees to the line. And I can't see the third Eastern tree mark, which is rather far away, over a hill, to get a straight line towards the final Pipe boundary marker. If I line up one of those trees, to the last other marked Western tree it points one way, and if I site off the other tree it goes in another direction. This presents a rather large area to try and use a metal detector to relocate the Boundary Pipe on a hill that is barely walk-able. Do surveyors "split" the difference if they marked two trees 90 degrees to the boundary line?

 

[Rockbadchild]

No there is no splitting difference if it was a professional survey .. i am somewhat confuse as to why some random mark would be at 90 degree from the est west line other then if it was used as temporary turning angle unless is your north south property line but it dosent sound like it …. if you have two points along your line just get the degree off your compass and keep laying yourself front sites to keep your bearings to find your pin … because this pin in question is on the corner of the property right ? I my missing something ?

 

[jaxs]

Surveys have compass headings that can be used to find latitude and longitude of any known corner or change in direction which can be used via gps satellite to find any other piticular spot along boundaries.

 

[airbiscuit]

Often, there is a metal pipe below the surface. Metal detector?

 

[Rockbadchild]

Surveys have compass headings that can be used to find latitude and longitude of any known corner or change in direction which can be used via gps satellite to find any other piticular spot along boundaries.

right … which requires professional help OP already probably payed good money to get his property Survey 30 years ago the survey was done, pins installed, I don’t think he want to pay again to simply refreshing it up.

 

[Rockbadchild]

did they give you maps with the survey? … i think with some map, compass, chainsaw, metal detector and a little bit of sweats and determination you should be able to pull it off … there is also the Polaris app it could help you can track your course it is ver clear and there is a new feature to track property line but i haven’t played with it yet.

 

[jaxs]

right … which requires professional help OP already probably payed good money to get his property Survey 30 years ago the survey was done, pins installed, I don’t think he want to pay again to simply refreshing it up.

Or a copy of previous survey and 13 year old kid with an app on his phone. That is if as you imply,op isn't capiable of doing it himself.

 

[Rockbadchild]

Or a copy of previous survey and 13 year old kid with an app on his phone. That is if as you imply,op isn't capiable of doing it himself.

ho I see, I miss understood your post. When you mentionne GPS I took it as road/ land survey GPS system with base station and rover which are worth 500k and not as a handheld Garmin type gps that’s why I said required professional help. Handheld GPS have a accuracy of plus minus 3m so it still would need to be used in conjunction with compass. But my bad to assume what you were suggesting.

 

[oosik]

My current property( 80 acres ) was part of an initial government homestead survey in 1892. The original survey is a page long verbal description. Specific markings ( razor-like cuts in the under-bark of close trees ) were made and recorded. Distances from these trees, with the markings, to the actual property corner, were also recorded. Subsequent sales, of adjoining lands, have resulted in actual steel pipe markers placed in the ground for three of my four corners. One has a USGS brass hub.

When I moved here - I knew I would have to fence the entire property - barbed wire fencing. With a metal detector I found the survey markers and later - the described marks on the trees.

The scribed marks on these trees meant nothing to me. A local surveyor could read them with great ease. They were so uncommon to find - he took pictures - and now they are recorded in a local geographical survey text.

I had little problem finding the three steel stakes - once I got away from the homestead buildings and out buildings. Around these old building sites - all you find - - nails, spikes, metal cans, pieces of broken machinery, dry cell batteries, etc, etc.

 

[oosik]

JasperFrank - if you just need a "approximation" of where the property line is - then splitting the difference might be OK.

However - if your plan is to install something of permanence - fence, building, plantings, cultivated fields, etc. Then I would recommend a official survey or have a surveyor refresh the survey points.

It depends upon how much time you want to spend finding these original survey markers.