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FERNLEY SWALES PHOTO MONITORING
PROGRAM
Text By Tom Fee
Photos by Steve Knight
There is a 130 acre Historic Preservation and
Access Easement within Section 6, T. 20 N., R. 25. E. protecting the California
Emigrant Trail, the Central Pacific Railroad Bed, and the Sand Dune System of
Section 6 a short distance north of the Truck Inn in Fernley, Nevada, near Exit
48 on I-80. This Easement was recorded on 09/04/2001 at 04:21 P.M. on
the same date and at the same time as the Patient Deed which transferred
the property from the U.S. Government to Wade/Fernley, L. P. in a land
exchange.
BLM archaeologist Gary C. Bowyer prepared an Annual
Monitoring Plan for Segments of the California National Historic Trail (Fernley
Swales) and the Central Pacific Railroad in October 2002. During October
and November of 2001, Ronald L. Reno of Harding ESE, established a series of 24
repeat photography points from which photographs would be taken
annually. The purpose of these photographs is to document non-permitted
activities, such as off-road activities and illegal dumping, which cause damage
to, or have the potential to damage, these cultural resources.
There are nine photo stops which are found by metal
monuments in the ground along the road, directions to which are described in the
Photo Monitoring Manual. Should these be missing or hard to find, GPS
coordinates get the monitors to the general area. Directions are
given in the Photo Monitoring Manual from each Photo Stop Monument to the Photo
Points. The monitors use a compass and follow the compass directions from
the Monument so many feet to the photo point. The photo point is a rebar
stake pounded in the ground with a yellow plastic cap. At each of the 24
photo points, a photograph is taken in a specific and designated direction,
using a compass, with an attempt to carefully match a photograph in the
Monitoring Manual. After the film is developed, the photos are labeled on
the back with archival ink and inserted in a special photo album. The
Monitoring Manual officially is called The Historic Property Treatment for
the Fernley Swales Segments of the California Trail and Central Pacific
Railroad, the Wade Fernley Land Exchange.
The BLM, which is responsible for the Historic
Preservation Easement, has an agreement with the California-Nevada Chapter of
OCTA to do annual cleanups and the annual photo monitoring. Following are a series of pictures taken by Steve Knight
during the photo monitoring held on October 7,
2007.
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