This is a nail that was set as a reference tie, but the tree was not blazed. The tree had been cut down and I noticed that the cut was right on the nail. There are 8 rings from the head of the nail to the edge of the bark. The only visible sign on the outside of the tree was a hole about the size of the nail head. There is a line in the rings from the nail head toward the bark hole that is a 23° deflection from the tangent of the nail shaft if prolonged.
I do blaze the trees Looks like this Y with a 0 under it. That is my signature. Maybe I should post a pic of it.
I also usually use aluminum nails. This saves the saw, should it get cut, and it ALSO does not add iron to the tree, which somehow seems to improve it's chances of getting lightning struck!
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Looks like that chainsaw needs sharpening after cutting that.
Wonderful pictures, wish every surveyor did this as it perpetuates corner positions for the future. Have been able to reset several corners because of rp's and recently reset a corner that would have otherwise been calced several feet off.
We don't have problem with lightning here so we use iron nails. They are easily found with metal detector. Keep up good work!
Very cool pictures, thanks for posting! Is that amberized flagging under the head?
If the round is oriented with the skyward face-up, then I would assume (due to the nature of my own experience beating on spikes and such with the head slightly away from me than the tip) the surveyor who drove-in the nail was right-handed and placed it in at approximately waist height/near face to the corner.
I haven't blazed a tree in about 30 years.
Down in the hills we would blaze trees.
As I did more and more work around more civilized areas, I became too afraid of tree-hugging lawsuits to this anymore.
Trees on private property are a huge concern in Nebraska where less than 2% of the land is public. I remember being on a crew in 1989 where we made a small blaze on a tree for a tie and the landowner went crazy when he saw it. He contacted an arborist who determined the value of the tree and the company had to buy the tree. I've made very few blazes since then, but fully understand the need in forested areas.
Very, very cool post.
I remember back in day when I did have permission to blaze a tree on private property, an she was not happy with the results!
Guess we should have made a small blaze, rather then the knee high to the ground blaze.
Course that was 40 years ago and probably grown over now!!
