another oddity found

[+_dxd_]

Benchmarking, along with geocaching, is making me a little more observant of the "smaller things" as I'm driving around. I was driving up the nearby mountain, to cool off in 90+ temps, and noticed stakes with pink ribbon - had to check it out of course, might be a benchmark I wasn't aware of. Anyway, only thing I found nearby was this nail in the road, with a badly rusted disc and a pink spray-paint circle. But, at the side of the road, I found this drilled hole. It's not immediately clear in the picture, but the top portion of the rock is sloping outward, so the hole goes straight through (which is why there is light at the bottom lol ) My eTrex shows scale, but I didn't check how deep it is. It's right next to the road and a lot of traffic at the time so I didn't stay long. Might it have something to do with surveying ? It's certainly not a sign-post hole, or a hole they might have done in preparation of blasting... Just curious.

 

 

[Bill93]

The nail is undoubtedly a surveyor's temporary mark, either having to do with the road or an adjacent property boundary.

 

Was that chunk of rock originally there or was it quarried and brought there?

[+_dxd_]

sorry about the duplicate blank post, the page timed out while loading . Hopefully a moderator will delete it.

 

[+_dxd_]

The chunk of rock is orginal, it's part of a large outcrop on the hillside.

[+LSUFan]

The nail is undoubtedly a surveyor's temporary mark, either having to do with the road or an adjacent property boundary.

 

Yep, we have a lot of cotton spindles used for that same thing down here in my neck of the woods.

 

Edited April 29, 2009 by LSUFan

[+Ernmark]

..regarding the drill hole - I've seen the same thing (even the diameter looks the same) in 2 huge boulders on top of the ground in a park in town in an area where sewer lines were buried. At first I thought 'core sampling', but I ended up suspecting it could be for blasting....

[Bill93]

I agree, the holes look about right for blasting. That's why I was asking if it might be quarried. But maybe they blasted when they put in the road?

[+_dxd_]

Oops, I guess it could be for blasting, the blasting holes I've come across before were a bit smaller and perpendicular into the rock-face, but, duh, those were in mine tunnels and such.

 

I'm sure they blasted when they built the highway - started in '33 finished in '50, widened in this stretch probably in the early '90s. So, probably left-over drill hole from the recent widening projects. Feel sorta silly for asking now It's just that it was close to the recent stakes and curb marks, so I thought it might be connected somehow.

 

OK, a different interesting site found while trying to find a benchmark (so that this isn't a totally lame post.) I'm guessing that these might be Native American grinding holes, there are quite a few petroglyphs throughout this small range of mountains. This is not a stream bed, it's on the side of a hill, so not just the beginning of a tinaja created by stones and rushing water. First shows several holes, second shows a closeup from circled area.

 

[Z15]

The top pic looks like a metal shiner that are used for referencing survey points etc. We used the use them but they rusted and we went to using brass. Nail to a tree, pole etc and pull a distance and bearing to the point so we could find it or reset it.

Edited April 30, 2009 by Z15

[+Rick618]

I guess the indian holes are a possiblity, also could just be where a different material was that erroded at a different rate then the nearby material.

[+markjsolomon]

I think you are right about the Native American holes I was in NM and saw TONNES of these used to grind a variety of items. very cool find.

 

the ones in NM were alos near rock paintings as well