I have a plot map that shows my western property line as N03 41 W 00W. On the map the surveyor did not state if this was true north or magnetic north. As i understand this the compass bearing would be 3.6 degrees west of north. Is that correct? In Northern California where I live, true north is 13 degrees east. What would the compass bearing be for true north. My neighbor had a surveyor do some work and i don't think his line matches what i have on the map. Thanks for the help
If you were to give details you might be surprised at the amount of free expert advice that is offered. (Perhaps a copy of the map?)
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That said, I am not familiar with the land of fruits and nuts, but around here the bearing could simply be assumed. The angles formed by the different line is the part that matters.
If the survey was done with GPS, the bearing could be either geodetic (true) or State Plane Coordinate grid.?ÿ If done without GPS it is most likely that some line in the neighborhood was assumed to be close enough to north and other lines biven by the relative angle to that assumed one.?ÿ Unless the plat states exactly what was done, all you can do is use the angles between lines.
Surveys from decades or centuries ago might be on magnetic bearings (hardly ever done nowadays) but then you need to know how much the magnetic north pole has changed since that date, which is probably a lot.
Your interpretation is correct, that the bearing is 3.6 degrees west of north. The north magnetic pole moves over time, so if the bearing on the line is magnetic, you would need to know what year in which it was measured. That being said, here in the northeast, I see many bearing systems that are "assumed" as dmyhill mentioned. The direction of north on these assumed systems is best described as "north-ish". I've seen a few that were more that 45 degrees off of "true" (astronomic). I don't think the magnetic pole has ever been that far off in this area during recorded history.
North is what the surveyor says it is.?ÿ In PLSSia it is common to find deeds written that assume north-south section lines run North or South and east-west section lines run East or West.?ÿ In my area, using a State Plane definition of North rolls everything two to three degrees to the left of what you might think North is.
Nickysans, have you tried to contact the land surveyor in NorCal to ask your questions??ÿ That person would be the best source even if they did the survey for your neighbor.?ÿ You have a legitimate question which should be easily answered by the person who performed the survey.
Most states require a "basis of bearings" statement as a part of the minimum standards for boundary surveys. Look for a note (it may be by itself or buried in among other notes) that says something along the lines of "Basis of bearings is XXXX" or "Bearings shown hereon are XXXX".
If this is a lot & block survey, chances are that it is aligned with the original subdivision map. A newer survey may not be on the same basis of bearing. The angles/bearings may be quite different, but the distances should be fairly close.
In any case, the measurement itself generally matters less than what is at either end. The physical markers in/on the ground control the location of the line, and if both maps are showing the same markers and generally agree as to distance, then those markers are what determine where the line is.
(Obligatory disclaimer: without more information there's no way to know if there is indeed a problem with either survey. Without any knowledge of your specific case, the above is a very general rule of thumb.)
