Monday's happenings were definitely a first for us. Our intent was as stated in the thread early Monday morning about what is in store for Monday.
We arrived at the big city (population 482) around 10:30. This is roughly 50 miles from home base. I had been there previously but my helper had not, so we started out by driving around a bit to get him oriented as to what we were out to do, what needed to be tied together and how we might achieve that goal. As a minimum we needed to tie together the northwest section corner, three quarter corners and the centerline of a railroad to do what would normally be called a simple lot/block survey. We had been to all critical points and had dug out one when we headed towards the north quarter corner. This would be at the north end of Main Street at a "T" with the north section line.
This little town is merely a bedroom community now with one special restaurant that draws big crowds on weekends only and is not open during the day. There were about 20 vehicles parked near this building, which made no sense. We noticed that several of them were County sheriff's department vehicles, unmarked cars and the like. My guess was a training session was underway. As we neared the north end of Main Street we saw a car from one of the three nearby TV stations with the camera set up within 100 feet of where we needed to dig a hole in the asphalt to recover a record monument. Uh oh, what does this mean? Then we look to a driveway about 200 feet to the west of our point and notice another sheriff's vehicle somewhat blocking access to a rural area with ponds or quarries. I ignore the TV guy and stop to chat with the deputy to see if there would be a problem with us doing what we came to do. Of course he didn't tell us anything except to suggest that avoiding that area would be a good idea. I asked if it would be a better idea to wait two hours before coming back. He suggested we wait longer than that.....and that we really wouldn't want to try to go anywhere north of where he was parked. Not a problem...........we'll move to other parts of what we need to do.
About two minutes later we saw nearly a dozen official vehicles arrive and go past this officer to a point probably 1000 feet to the north in the field and over a hill, including a KBI Crime Scene special vehicle.
We make a point to keep our distance and set about doing other parts of what we needed to do for our survey. Routine stuff. Went to lunch at the little convenience store at the northwest corner of the section as that is the only place to eat. Watched numerous officers come and go and tried to ignore the locals who were obviously quite worked up about whatever it was that had happened. I was in process of getting us back to where we needed to start up again when an approaching sheriff's SUV stopped indicating he wanted to talk with us. Long story short..........nervous locals had reported suspicious activity by a couple of unknown guys hanging out near the railroad and driving aimlessly all over town in a vehicle matching the one we were in. A minute or two of chatting with the officer about our work got us off the hook, but my helper was very, very concerned that we were about to be hauled in. So we did the most suspicious thing we could think to do. We left town.
According to the 5,6,9 and 10:00 news someone had discovered an out-of-state vehicle on their rural property around 8:00 a.m. and there was a deceased person somewhere in or near that vehicle. The 10:00 news finally gave a name of a woman from Texas who had been identified as being the deceased but they were exceptionally vague as to anything else about the situation. The TV camera was pointed directly at our needed quarter corner for ninety percent of the report including interviews with law officials. The Sheriff mentioned something about how upset locals get when out-of-towners create problems in their quiet little town. I think I'll wait a few days before going back and upsetting their tranquility by digging a hole in the middle of street, which surely qualifies as suspicious activity.
Sometimes there's never a "right" place
You gotta love the small towns.
When I was a bureaucratic surveyor a lot of my time was spent kicking up ownerships and deeds at the local courthouse. While our work was never secret, we tried to stay under the radar, especially if a "new" bypass or highway loop was in the planning stages. I never divulged too much info when chatting with the local folks.
One particularly desolate county in Oklahoma, Kay County, had just endured the planning of a new bypass on the east side of town. It had been planned to go through tribal lands and the local native nation had dedicated RW...Who knows? Maybe a casino might pop up there.
Anyway, some 11th hour injunctions and appeals made the bypass unlikely. Fearing loss of the federal 80% funding the powers-in-charge decided to make a hasty last minute change to avoid the litigated area. There were only three logical options as to where the route could go. All the local land owners were told was "the State is evaluating all options". This was malarkey. They had the new route already chosen.
By the time I had made it to the courthouse in Newkirk and pulled books on several sections the news as to which sections I was looking at was all over town. Thank you Ms. County Clerk...:pinch: There was one place to eat lunch there; a diner across the street from the courthouse. By the time I made it there for lunch a "welcoming" committee had assembled, already loaded for bear telling me why that particular route wasn't any good....
I had the beef stew and cornbread.
That was probably the only lunch I've ever eaten with almost everybody in town stopping by my table and bending my ear. Even the local constable had a dog in that hunt. I really don't think I ever got a word in edgewise.
Small towns are wonderful. 😉
Great story. Glad you are still roaming free.
Sign of the times
"suspicious activity"
Daily I have crews in some extremely rural areas. The trucks have magnetic signs with the utility company's name. We never leave the RW without property owner permission. We dig up some corners, locate some poles or transmission gear, walk a little topo out...and we're gone.
At least twice a week a county deputy has to check out what we're doing because somebody called in "strangers".
You know, on one hand I'm glad that folks watch out for each other around here. But some people could be a little more observant when they "call the law".
We have been reported as cattle rustlers (in a 1/2 ton pickup?!), thieves, weirdoes and even escaped convicts (we were wearing orange vests). These are real descriptions from the RP (reporting party) to the 911 dispatch. Most of the deputies recognize the trucks and know very well what we are up to...but they still have to check us out.
I don't mind, but if it gets any more frequent I'm going to put all these deputies on the Christmas Card list!
But aren't you glad they found it before YOU found it? You'd have spent the entire day there explaining things.
You should probably send the Sheriff an email before returning to that site, because he is bound to get a call when you do.
